Vatnode MCP vs Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP
A side-by-side look at the Vatnode MCP and Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Vatnode MCP for finance & fintech work as a local process; choose Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP for finance & fintech as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Vatnode MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Finance & Fintech domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: API key required.
- You have the keys it needs:
VATNODE_API_KEY, VATNODE_API_URL. - You want tools like
list_eu_vat_rates, get_country_vat_rates, check_vat_format.
Choose Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Finance & Fintech domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You have the keys it needs:
REF_API_KEY. - You want tools like
query, url.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Finance & Fintech | Finance & Fintech |
| Quality signal | 64/100 · Good | 63/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | API key required | Not declared |
| Pricing | Freemium | Not declared |
| Required env vars | VATNODE_API_KEYVATNODE_API_URL | REF_API_KEY |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 2 | 1,183 |
| Directory activity | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 2 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 5 | 2 |
| Full listing | View Vatnode MCP | View Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP |
Tools & capabilities
Vatnode MCP tools 5
list_eu_vat_ratesReturns current VAT rates for all EU member states (plus XI for Northern Ireland). Read-only and offline: no network call, no API key, no rate limit, no side effects. Takes no arguments. Output: { rates: Array<{ countryCode, countryName, vatName, vatAbbr, currency, standardRate, reducedRates[], superReducedRate, parkingRate, vatNumberFormat, vatNumberPattern, updatedAt }>, count, updatedAt }. Rates are percentages (e.g. 25.5). Use when the user asks for an overview, a comparison across countries, or "all EU VAT rates". For a single country prefer get_country_vat_rates. Data is sourced from the EU Commission TEDB and updated daily. Free, no API key required.get_country_vat_ratesReturns the standard, reduced, super-reduced and parking VAT rates for a single European country, plus the VAT number format and regex. Read-only and offline: no network call, no API key, no rate limit, no side effects. Accepts ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes (DE, FR, IT, …); also covers non-EU European jurisdictions where available (NO, CH, GB, UA, TR, …). Output: { countryCode, countryName, vatName, vatAbbr, currency, standardRate, reducedRates[], superReducedRate, parkingRate, vatNumberFormat, vatNumberPattern, updatedAt }; rates are percentages and may be null where not applicable. Returns an error if the country code is unknown. Use when the user asks "what is the VAT rate in X" or needs the VAT number format for a country. Free, no API key required.check_vat_formatPerforms an offline syntactic check of a VAT number against the country-specific regex pattern. Read-only and offline: no network call, no API key, no rate limit, no side effects. Does NOT verify the VAT with VIES (a valid format does not mean the VAT is real or active) — use validate_vat_number for that. Output: { input, normalized, countryCode, validFormat (boolean), error }; countryCode is null when the prefix is unknown. Use when the user wants a quick sanity check on the shape of a VAT ID without burning a quota call. Free, no API key required.list_supported_countriesReturns every country the vatnode server has VAT data for (EU-27 + XI for Northern Ireland + ~17 other European jurisdictions such as NO, CH, GB, UA, TR). Read-only and offline: no network call, no API key, no rate limit, no side effects. Takes no arguments. Output: { countries: Array<{ countryCode, countryName, isEUMember, viesValidationSupported }>, count, euCount, updatedAt }, sorted by countryCode. `viesValidationSupported: true` means validate_vat_number can do live VIES verification; non-EU jurisdictions are rate-lookup only. Use to discover coverage or to pick a valid countryCode before calling get_country_vat_rates or validate_vat_number.validate_vat_numberVerifies an EU VAT number against the official VIES service and returns validity, company name, address, registration date and other metadata. The audit-grade VIES consultation number (`consultationNumber`) is produced when a requester VAT is configured once in the vatnode dashboard Settings — a one-time account setup, not a per-call parameter. With a requester configured, every response is either a success with a non-null `consultationNumber` or an error; without one, `consultationNumber` is null and national-registry fallback stays enabled. Use whenever the user wants to confirm a VAT is real, look up the company behind a VAT, or needs evidence for accounting/compliance. Side effects: makes an authenticated network call to api.vatnode.dev (which queries the EU VIES service) and consumes one request from your monthly quota; it is read-only (verifies, never mutates) and safe to retry. Requires a vatnode API key (free tier available; set VATNODE_API_KEY). Only EU-27 + XI (Northern Ireland) are supported by VIES; other countries return an error.
Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP tools 2
queryurl
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Vatnode MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"vatnode-vatnode-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"vatnode-mcp"
],
"env": {
"VATNODE_API_KEY": "YOUR_VATNODE_API_KEY_HERE",
"VATNODE_API_URL": "YOUR_VATNODE_API_URL_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"ref-tools-ref-tools-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"ref-tools-mcp@latest"
],
"env": {
"REF_API_KEY": "YOUR_REF_API_KEY_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Vatnode MCP is categorized under Finance & Fintech and uses a local stdio subprocess. Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP belongs to Finance & Fintech and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Vatnode MCP for finance & fintech work and Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP for finance & fintech.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Vatnode MCP is listed as freemium — a free tier with paid plans. Auth: api key required. Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add vatnode-vatnode-mcp and ref-tools-ref-tools-mcp as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Vatnode MCP has a quality signal of 64/100 (Good) with 2 views, 0 installs and 2 GitHub stars. Ref Tools Ref Tools MCP has 63/100 (Good) with 2 views, 0 installs and 1,183 GitHub stars.