What is the key difference between Portkey Admin MCP and Apisix MCP?

Portkey Admin MCP belongs to the Cloud Platforms category with local stdio execution, while Apisix MCP belongs to the Cloud Platforms category with local stdio execution.

How do I install Portkey Admin MCP or Apisix MCP in Claude Desktop or Cursor?

Copy the mcpServers JSON configuration snippet provided on this page into your claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json file and restart your AI client.

Are Portkey Admin MCP and Apisix MCP free or paid?

Portkey Admin MCP operates under a BYOK (Pay Provider Direct) model (API Key required). Apisix MCP operates under a Free / Open Source model (API Key required).

Which MCP server has more tools and community activity?

Portkey Admin MCP lists 181 tools with 2 views and 6 GitHub stars. Apisix MCP lists 6 tools with 3 views and 38 GitHub stars.

Can I use both Portkey Admin MCP and Apisix MCP together in the same MCP host?

Yes! MCP hosts like Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, and VS Code support configuring multiple servers under the mcpServers object simultaneously.

Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison

Portkey Admin MCP vs Apisix MCP

In-depth architectural comparison of the Portkey Admin MCP and Apisix MCP MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.

At a Glance & Executive Verdict

Portkey Admin MCP

Cloud Platforms · Local stdio

Quality: 65/100 (Great) | Auth: API Key required

Apisix MCP

Cloud Platforms · Local stdio

Quality: 43/100 (Fair) | Auth: API Key required

Verdict Summary: Choose Portkey Admin MCP if you need specialized Cloud Platforms tools running via a local process. Choose Apisix MCP if your workspace requires Cloud Platforms integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose Portkey Admin MCP when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Cloud Platforms domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: API Key required (BYOK (Pay Provider Direct)).
You have access to required keys: PORTKEY_API_KEY, PORTKEY_TOOL_DOMAINS.
Primary tools included: list_all_users, invite_user, get_user_stats.

Explore Portkey Admin MCP Details

Choose Apisix MCP when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Cloud Platforms domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: API Key required (Free / Open Source).
You have access to required keys: APISIX_SERVER_HOST, APISIX_SERVER_PORT, APISIX_ADMIN_API_PORT, APISIX_ADMIN_API_PREFIX, APISIX_ADMIN_KEY.

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Portkey Admin MCP s-b-e-n-s-o-n Cloud Platforms	Apisix MCP api7 Cloud Platforms
Summary	MCP server for the Portkey AI Gateway Admin API — 150 tools for prompts, configs, analytics, keys, guardrails, integrations, and more.	MCP Server that support for querying and managing all resource in Apache APISIX.
Category & Scope	Cloud Platforms

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Portkey Admin MCP Tools (181)

list_all_users

List accepted org users with id, name, email, role, and timestamps. Use this to find a user_id before get_user, update_user, delete_user, or add_workspace_member; use list_user_invites for pending invitations. Enterprise-gated. Returns 403 on non-Enterprise Portkey plans.

invite_user

Invite a new org user and optionally provision workspace access and an API key in one call. Workspace assignments apply only after acceptance; use add_workspace_member or update_workspace_member later for follow-up changes.

get_user_stats

Return per-user request and cost analytics for a required time range. This is usage-by-user, not population metrics; use get_users_analytics for active-user or cohort trends. Enterprise-gated. Returns 403 on non-Enterprise Portkey plans.

get_user

Get one accepted user by id and return their profile, role, and timestamps. Use list_all_users to find the id if you only have a name or email, and get_user_invite for pending invitations. Enterprise-gated. Returns 403 on non-Enterprise Portkey plans.

Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations

Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).

Portkey Admin MCP Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "s-b-e-n-s-o-n-portkey-admin-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "portkey-admin-mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "PORTKEY_API_KEY": "YOUR_PORTKEY_API_KEY_HERE",
        "PORTKEY_TOOL_DOMAINS": "YOUR_PORTKEY_TOOL_DOMAINS_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Apisix MCP Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "api7-apisix-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "apisix-mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "APISIX_SERVER_HOST": "YOUR_APISIX_SERVER_HOST_HERE",
        "APISIX_SERVER_PORT": "YOUR_APISIX_SERVER_PORT_HERE",
        "APISIX_ADMIN_API_PORT": "YOUR_APISIX_ADMIN_API_PORT_HERE",
        "APISIX_ADMIN_API_PREFIX": "YOUR_APISIX_ADMIN_API_PREFIX_HERE",
        "APISIX_ADMIN_KEY": "YOUR_APISIX_ADMIN_KEY_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Frequently Asked Questions

Portkey Admin MCP is categorized under Cloud Platforms and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, Apisix MCP belongs to Cloud Platforms using local stdio subprocess. Select Portkey Admin MCP when you need capabilities focused on cloud platforms and Apisix MCP when you require tools for cloud platforms.

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