Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) vs Serena

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

	Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) Popular community server that feeds Figma layout data to coding agents via a Figma API token. Verified stdio (local) API key TypeScript	Serena LSP-powered coding agent toolkit: semantic symbol search, references and structural edits. Verified stdio (local) No auth Python
Category	Design & Media	Developer Tools
Language	TypeScript	Python
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	API key	None
GitHub stars	15k	12k
Last commit	21 days ago	13 days ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`npx -y figma-developer-mcp --stdio`	`uvx --from git+https://github.com/oraios/serena serena start-mcp-server`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) if you prefer its approach (popular community server that feeds figma layout data to coding agents via a figma api token).

Pick Serena if you want zero-setup with no API key, and you need the broadest set of tools.

Add Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp)

Install / run

npx -y figma-developer-mcp --stdio

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "figma-context-mcp-figma-developer-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "figma-developer-mcp",
        "--stdio"
      ],
      "env": {
        "FIGMA_API_KEY": "<your-figma-api-token>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Add Serena

Install / run

uvx --from git+https://github.com/oraios/serena serena start-mcp-server

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "serena": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "--from",
        "git+https://github.com/oraios/serena",
        "serena",
        "start-mcp-server"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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

FAQ

Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) or Serena — which is better?

Pick Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) if you prefer its approach (popular community server that feeds figma layout data to coding agents via a figma api token). Pick Serena if you want zero-setup with no API key, and you need the broadest set of tools.

Can I use both Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) and Serena?

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 Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) and Serena work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

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

View Figma Context MCP (figma-developer-mcp) →View Serena →More comparisons →