kubefwd vs mcp-k8s

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

	kubefwd Bulk Kubernetes port forwarding with an MCP server that lets AI assistants forward services, inspect pods, and monitor traffic. Unverified stdio (local) No auth Go	mcp-k8s Kubernetes MCP server: manage cluster resources and Helm releases through MCP tools, with fine-grained write controls. Unverified stdio (local) No auth Go
Category	DevOps & Cloud	DevOps & Cloud
Language	Go	Go
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	None	None
GitHub stars	4.1k	146
Last commit	1 month ago	2 months ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`brew install kubefwd`	`go install github.com/silenceper/mcp-k8s/cmd/mcp-k8s@latest`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick kubefwd if you want the official, vendor-maintained server, and you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option.

Pick mcp-k8s if you prefer its approach (kubernetes mcp server: manage cluster resources and helm releases through mcp tools, with fine-grained write controls).

Add kubefwd

Install / run

brew install kubefwd

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "kubefwd": {
      "command": "kubefwd",
      "args": [
        "mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Add mcp-k8s

Install / run

go install github.com/silenceper/mcp-k8s/cmd/mcp-k8s@latest

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-k8s": {
      "command": "/path/to/mcp-k8s",
      "args": [
        "--kubeconfig",
        "/path/to/kubeconfig",
        "--enable-create",
        "--enable-delete",
        "--enable-update",
        "--enable-list",
        "--enable-helm-install",
        "--enable-helm-upgrade"
      ]
    }
  }
}

FAQ

kubefwd or mcp-k8s — which is better?

Pick kubefwd if you want the official, vendor-maintained server, and you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option. Pick mcp-k8s if you prefer its approach (kubernetes mcp server: manage cluster resources and helm releases through mcp tools, with fine-grained write controls).

Can I use both kubefwd and mcp-k8s?

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 kubefwd and mcp-k8s work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

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

View kubefwd →View mcp-k8s →More comparisons →