Atlan MCP Server vs Memory (Knowledge Graph)

A side-by-side comparison of two AI, Data & Knowledge servers — tools, transport, auth, maintenance, and copy-paste config for each.

	Atlan MCP Server Search, govern, and manage Atlan data catalog assets from AI agents via the Model Context Protocol. Unverified stdio (local) API key Python	Memory (Knowledge Graph) Official MCP server providing persistent, file-backed knowledge-graph memory across sessions. Verified stdio (local) No auth TypeScript
Category	AI, Data & Knowledge	AI, Data & Knowledge
Language	Python	TypeScript
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	API key	None
GitHub stars	33	74k
Last commit	5 days ago	5 months ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`uvx atlan-mcp-server`	`npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-memory`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick Atlan MCP Server if you need the broadest set of tools.

Pick Memory (Knowledge Graph) if you want the official, vendor-maintained server, and you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option.

Add Atlan MCP Server

Install / run

uvx atlan-mcp-server

Paste into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "atlan-mcp-server": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "atlan-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "ATLAN_API_KEY": "<YOUR_API_KEY>",
        "ATLAN_BASE_URL": "https://<YOUR_INSTANCE>.atlan.com",
        "ATLAN_AGENT_ID": "<YOUR_AGENT_ID>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Requires `uv` (the Python package runner). Install it from https://docs.astral.sh/uv/ if `uvx` is not found.

Add Memory (Knowledge Graph)

Install / run

npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-memory

Paste into ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "memory-knowledge-graph": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-memory"
      ],
      "env": {
        "MEMORY_FILE_PATH": "/absolute/path/to/memory.jsonl"
      }
    }
  }
}

FAQ

Atlan MCP Server or Memory (Knowledge Graph) — which is better?

Pick Atlan MCP Server if you need the broadest set of tools. Pick Memory (Knowledge Graph) if you want the official, vendor-maintained server, and you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option.

Can I use both Atlan MCP Server and Memory (Knowledge Graph)?

Yes — MCP clients let you enable multiple servers at once. Add both configs to your client's mcpServers and use whichever tool fits the task.

Do Atlan MCP Server and Memory (Knowledge Graph) work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

Both do. Copy the per-client config below into Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf.

View Atlan MCP Server →View Memory (Knowledge Graph) →More comparisons →