Llm Usage MCP vs Heimdall MCP — MCP Server Comparison | AllMCPs
Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison
Llm Usage MCP vs Heimdall MCP
In-depth architectural comparison of the Llm Usage MCP and Heimdall 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
Llm Usage MCP
Monitoring · Local stdio
Quality: 61/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required
Heimdall MCP
Monitoring · Local stdio
Quality: 60/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required
Verdict Summary: Choose Llm Usage MCP if you need specialized Monitoring tools running via a local process. Choose Heimdall MCP if your workspace requires Monitoring integration with local subprocess execution. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.
Which MCP Server Should You Choose?
Choose Llm Usage MCP when:
You need dedicated capabilities in the Monitoring domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
Local-first LLM API cost tracker. Captures usage across Anthropic, OpenAI, Qwen, and DeepSeek into a local SQLite ledger and exposes spend queries, provider comparison, and recommendations as MCP tools — with first-class Chinese-provider support (CNY→USD). Install: uvx llm-usage-mcp.
Transparent proxy for any MCP server that intercepts all JSON-RPC messages, measures latency, and stores traces in SQLite, PostgreSQL, or MySQL. Exports OpenTelemetry (OTLP) spans to Jaeger, Tempo, or Grafana. Supports stdio, HTTP, and SSE transports. npx @cardor/heimdall-mcp
Category & Scope
Tools & Capabilities Breakdown
Llm Usage MCP Tools (7)
record_usage
Record a single LLM API call with token counts.
Cost is computed automatically from the pricing table at insert time.
`request_id` enables idempotent recording — replaying a log file
won't double-count.
query_spend
Return spending broken down by a chosen axis over a time window.
`start` and `end` are ISO-8601 strings (trailing-`Z`, `+00:00`, or
naive — naive is interpreted as UTC). Default window is the last
30 days. `group_by` is one of provider | model | project | tag | day.
`filter` AND-combines optional provider/model/project equality
predicates.
`include_failed` defaults to `False` so failure rows (e.g. streams
that died mid-flight with partial counts) are excluded from totals
and groups. Pass `True` to fold them back in — useful for debugging
capture-layer behavior, not for honest spend numbers.
Tag semantics: events with NULL/empty tags are excluded from
`group_by="tag"` results entirely; multi-tag events contribute once
per tag (so per-group `calls` sums can exceed the window total).
Project semantics are symmetric: NULL projects are dropped from
`group_by="project"`. Groups are ordered cost-desc with
alphabetical ties.
compare_providers
Project the cost of a hypothetical workload across providers/models.
Returns models ranked by absolute cost ascending, with
`relative_cost_pct` measured against the cheapest entry
(cheapest = 100%). `models`, if given, restricts the comparison to
those model names. Cost is computed from input/output tokens only;
`RankedEntry.notes` is always `None` in v1 (the field is retained
for future per-row caveats like "tiered pricing approximated").
`include_snapshots=False` (the default) family-dedups the ranked
list: rows sharing both a model-family root (`gpt-5-mini` ↔
`gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07`) AND an identical projected cost collapse
to one representative, with `RankedEntry.variant_count` recording
how many catalog rows the entry stands for. Set
`include_snapshots=True` to see every catalog row (each with
`variant_count=1`) — useful when comparing snapshot-by-snapshot
pricing for production pinning.
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).
Llm Usage MCP is categorized under Monitoring and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, Heimdall MCP belongs to Monitoring using local stdio subprocess. Select Llm Usage MCP when you need capabilities focused on monitoring and Heimdall MCP when you require tools for monitoring.
Recommend the cheapest priced model that fits the workload + budget.
v1 ranks by cost only. A future release will incorporate quality
benchmarks (see `quality_snapshot` — the table is reserved for that
purpose) and accept a `quality_priority` axis; for v1 those would
rely on data we don't yet have, so the surface stays cost-only and
honest.
`expected_input_tokens` / `expected_output_tokens` default to a
nominal 1k/1k workload when absent; the `reasoning` notes when
defaults are in use. `budget_usd`, when set, filters out models
that exceed it — if nothing fits, falls back to the cheapest model
overall (the result fields are required, so there's no "no match"
return shape) and the `reasoning` says so plainly.
`providers` / `models` are optional whitelists (AND-combine when
both passed). Both are applied before the budget cut, so an over-
budget fallback returns the cheapest within the filter set rather
than the cheapest priced model overall. A whitelist that matches
nothing raises rather than fabricating a result — likely a
spelling error in the caller's name list.
`task_description` is **optional** and echoed into the reasoning
but does not drive selection — the tool isn't an LLM and can't
interpret free text. Omit it (or pass `None`) and the reasoning
opens with `"Recommending …"` instead of `"For task 'X': …"`.
get_pricing
Return current pricing for one model, one provider, or all models.
Both filters are optional and AND-combined. An unknown
(provider, model) returns an empty list rather than an error — the
caller can distinguish "model not in our table" from "no model
matches your filter" by passing `provider` alone.
usage_summary
Return a one-shot summary of usage over a named calendar period.
`period` is one of today | week | month | year (default: "week").
Boundaries are calendar UTC: `today` = since 00:00 UTC today,
`week` = since Monday 00:00 UTC, `month` = since the 1st of the
month, `year` = since January 1st. Returns totals, the top-3
providers and top-3 models by cost (with `pct` of total), and the
single most expensive call in the window — or `largest_call=None`
when the window is empty.
`include_failed` defaults to `False`: totals, top-N rollups, and
`largest_call` all exclude `success=False` rows (partial-stream
captures and other failure rows). Pass `True` for symmetric
debugging access to the failure population.
list_providers
List every provider we know about, with their models and OpenAI-compat flag.
Sources the provider/model lists from `pricing_snapshot`, so a
provider whose pricing hasn't been seeded simply doesn't appear.
After `bootstrap()` runs on a fresh install this includes every v1
provider (anthropic, openai, qwen, deepseek). Order is alphabetical
by provider, then by model within each provider.
Heimdall MCP Tools (14)
read_file
Read the complete contents of a file as text. DEPRECATED: Use read_text_file instead.
read_text_file
Read the complete contents of a file from the file system as text. Handles various text encodings and provides detailed error messages if the file cannot be read. Use this tool when you need to examine the contents of a single file. Use the 'head' parameter to read only the first N lines of a file, or the 'tail' parameter to read only the last N lines of a file. Operates on the file as text regardless of extension. Only works within allowed directories.
read_media_file
Read a file and return it as a base64-encoded content block with its MIME type. Image and audio files are returned as image/audio content; any other file type is returned as an embedded resource. Only works within allowed directories.
read_multiple_files
Read the contents of multiple files simultaneously. This is more efficient than reading files one by one when you need to analyze or compare multiple files. Each file's content is returned with its path as a reference. Failed reads for individual files won't stop the entire operation. Only works within allowed directories.
write_file
Create a new file or completely overwrite an existing file with new content. Use with caution as it will overwrite existing files without warning. Handles text content with proper encoding. Only works within allowed directories.
edit_file
Make line-based edits to a text file. Each edit replaces exact line sequences with new content. Returns a git-style diff showing the changes made. Only works within allowed directories.
create_directory
Create a new directory or ensure a directory exists. Can create multiple nested directories in one operation. If the directory already exists, this operation will succeed silently. Perfect for setting up directory structures for projects or ensuring required paths exist. Only works within allowed directories.
list_directory
Get a detailed listing of all files and directories in a specified path. Results clearly distinguish between files and directories with [FILE] and [DIR] prefixes. This tool is essential for understanding directory structure and finding specific files within a directory. Only works within allowed directories.
list_directory_with_sizes
Get a detailed listing of all files and directories in a specified path, including sizes. Results clearly distinguish between files and directories with [FILE] and [DIR] prefixes. This tool is useful for understanding directory structure and finding specific files within a directory. Only works within allowed directories.
directory_tree
Get a recursive tree view of files and directories as a JSON structure. Each entry includes 'name', 'type' (file/directory), and 'children' for directories. Files have no children array, while directories always have a children array (which may be empty). The output is formatted with 2-space indentation for readability. Only works within allowed directories.
move_file
Move or rename files and directories. Can move files between directories and rename them in a single operation. If the destination exists, the operation will fail. Works across different directories and can be used for simple renaming within the same directory. Both source and destination must be within allowed directories.
search_files
Recursively search for files and directories matching a pattern. The patterns should be glob-style patterns that match paths relative to the working directory. Use pattern like '*.ext' to match files in current directory, and '**/*.ext' to match files in all subdirectories. Returns full paths to all matching items. Great for finding files when you don't know their exact location. Only searches within allowed directories.