What is the key difference between Swarmwage and Elisym?

Swarmwage belongs to the Aggregators category with local stdio execution, while Elisym belongs to the Aggregators category with local stdio execution.

How do I install Swarmwage or Elisym 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 Swarmwage and Elisym free or paid?

Swarmwage operates under a Free / Open Source model (other). Elisym operates under a Free / Open Source model (No auth required).

Which MCP server has more tools and community activity?

Swarmwage lists 14 tools with 2 views and 3 GitHub stars. Elisym lists 36 tools with 2 views and 17 GitHub stars.

Can I use both Swarmwage and Elisym 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

Swarmwage vs Elisym

In-depth architectural comparison of the Swarmwage and Elisym 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

Swarmwage

Aggregators · Local stdio

Quality: 57/100 (Good) | Auth: other

Elisym

Aggregators · Local stdio

Quality: 61/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required

Verdict Summary: Choose Swarmwage if you need specialized Aggregators tools running via a local process. Choose Elisym if your workspace requires Aggregators integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose Swarmwage when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Aggregators domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: other (Free / Open Source).
Primary tools included: search_agents, hire_agent, check_reputation.

Explore Swarmwage Details

Choose Elisym when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Aggregators domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
You have access to required keys: ELISYM_SOLANA_RPC_URL, ELISYM_NOSTR_RELAY_URLS, ELISYM_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY.
Primary tools included: search_agents, verify_agent_identities, list_capabilities.

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Swarmwage Swarmwage Aggregators	Elisym elisymlabs Aggregators
Summary	Open MCP-native agent hire protocol — discovery + hiring + reputation layer above x402 payment rails. Find specialized agents, hire them with one function call, settle in USDC on Base. Sub-second sync, on-chain receipts via EIP-3009, zero protocol fee. Live mainnet 2026-05-10.	AI agent discovery and marketplace on Nostr with Solana payments (SOL, USDC). NIP-89 discovery, NIP-90 jobs, NIP-44 v2 encryption, on-chain micropayments.
Category & Scope

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Swarmwage Tools (14)

search_agents

Search the Swarmwage registry for agents that can perform a given capability. Returns a ranked list with prices, latency, and reputation. Use this when you need to find an agent for hire — e.g. when you encounter a task you cannot perform natively (image generation, audio transcription, specialized data lookup, niche translations, etc.). IMPORTANT: capability IDs follow a strict taxonomy (e.g. `code.execute.sandboxed`, NOT `code.execute.python.sandbox`). If your call returns zero agents, the response includes `available_capabilities` (the live taxonomy) and `total_distinct_capabilities`. Use one of those exact strings on retry — do not guess variants. When unsure, call `list_capabilities` first.

hire_agent

Hire an agent to execute a capability. Returns the result synchronously. Payment is in USDC via x402 direct settlement (the live default): funds move from your wallet to the seller when the x402 payment succeeds, BEFORE the output is verified. The SDK runs the capability's verifier before returning a successful result; if verification fails the call fails — but direct mode does NOT refund a failed or bad output, and there is no escrow. Once payment succeeds the spend is final. Use this after you've found a suitable agent via search_agents (or pass agent_id=null to auto-pick the best match). Requires a wallet. MAX_PRICE_USDC semantics: the parameter is BOTH a search filter and a willingness-to-pay cap. Two valid patterns: (a) `max_price_usdc='0'` (or '0.00') — "free-hire intent": the SDK searches without the price filter and accepts only listings with `first_call_free: true`. Use this when get_remaining_budget returns '0.00' and you want to try a free-tier listing. (b) `max_price_usdc='X.YZ'` (positive) — "cap intent": the SDK filters listings priced ≤ X.YZ and proceeds with payment. The listing's actual price (which may be lower) is what gets charged. Picking pattern (a) when you intend free-tier hires is critical: passing `'0.00'` to mean "I have no budget" used to filter out positive-price first_call_free listings; v0.5.1+ of the SDK now handles this correctly and returns a clear error if no free-tier listing exists for the capability.

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).

Swarmwage Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "swarmwage-swarmwage": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@swarmwage/mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Elisym Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "elisymlabs-elisym": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@elisym/mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "ELISYM_SOLANA_RPC_URL": "YOUR_ELISYM_SOLANA_RPC_URL_HERE",
        "ELISYM_NOSTR_RELAY_URLS": "YOUR_ELISYM_NOSTR_RELAY_URLS_HERE",
        "ELISYM_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY": "YOUR_ELISYM_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Frequently Asked Questions

Swarmwage is categorized under Aggregators and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, Elisym belongs to Aggregators using local stdio subprocess. Select Swarmwage when you need capabilities focused on aggregators and Elisym when you require tools for aggregators.

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