GitHub MCP Server vs Grafana MCP Server

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

	GitHub MCP Server GitHub's official server for repos, issues, PRs, and Actions — local Docker or hosted remote. Verified stdio (local) API key Go	Grafana MCP Server Grafana's official server for dashboards, Prometheus/Loki queries, alerts, and incidents. Verified stdio (local) API key Go
Category	DevOps & Cloud	DevOps & Cloud
Language	Go	Go
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	API key	API key
GitHub stars	31k	2.1k
Last commit	3 days ago	6 days ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`docker run -i --rm -e GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN ghcr.io/github/github-mcp-server`	`docker run --rm -i -e GRAFANA_URL -e GRAFANA_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_TOKEN grafana/mcp-grafana -t stdio`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick GitHub MCP Server if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option.

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

Add GitHub MCP Server

Install / run

docker run -i --rm -e GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN ghcr.io/github/github-mcp-server

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "github-mcp-server": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "-e",
        "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN",
        "ghcr.io/github/github-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "GITHUB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "<your-github-pat>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Requires Docker to be installed and running.

Add Grafana MCP Server

Install / run

docker run --rm -i -e GRAFANA_URL -e GRAFANA_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_TOKEN grafana/mcp-grafana -t stdio

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "grafana-mcp-server": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--rm",
        "-i",
        "-e",
        "GRAFANA_URL",
        "-e",
        "GRAFANA_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_TOKEN",
        "grafana/mcp-grafana",
        "-t",
        "stdio"
      ],
      "env": {
        "GRAFANA_URL": "https://your-grafana-instance.example.com",
        "GRAFANA_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_TOKEN": "<your-grafana-service-account-token>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Requires Docker to be installed and running.

FAQ

GitHub MCP Server or Grafana MCP Server — which is better?

Pick GitHub MCP Server if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option. Pick Grafana MCP Server if you need the broadest set of tools.

Can I use both GitHub MCP Server and Grafana MCP Server?

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 GitHub MCP Server and Grafana MCP Server work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

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

View GitHub MCP Server →View Grafana MCP Server →More comparisons →