openapi-to-mcp vs Serena

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

	openapi-to-mcp Turn any OpenAPI spec into an MCP server, exposing your API endpoints as strongly typed tools. Unverified stdio (local) API key Stale C#	Serena LSP-powered coding agent toolkit: semantic symbol search, references and structural edits. Verified stdio (local) No auth Python
Category	Developer Tools	Developer Tools
Language	C#	Python
Transport	stdio (local)	stdio (local)
Auth	API key	None
GitHub stars	33	12k
Last commit	11 months ago	23 days ago
Verified
Actively maintained
Install	`dotnet tool install --global openapi-to-mcp`	`uvx --from git+https://github.com/oraios/serena serena start-mcp-server`
Repo	Open	Open

Verdict

Pick openapi-to-mcp if you prefer its approach (turn any openapi spec into an mcp server, exposing your api endpoints as strongly typed tools).

Pick Serena if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option, and you want zero-setup with no API key.

Add openapi-to-mcp

Install / run

dotnet tool install --global openapi-to-mcp

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

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "openapi-to-mcp": {
      "command": "openapi-to-mcp",
      "args": [
        "https://petstore3.swagger.io/api/v3/openapi.json"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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

openapi-to-mcp or Serena — which is better?

Pick openapi-to-mcp if you prefer its approach (turn any openapi spec into an mcp server, exposing your api endpoints as strongly typed tools). Pick Serena if you prefer the more popular, battle-tested option, and you want zero-setup with no API key.

Can I use both openapi-to-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 openapi-to-mcp and Serena work with Claude, Cursor and Windsurf?

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

View openapi-to-mcp →View Serena →More comparisons →