Context7 review

Q: How do I install Context7?

Run npx ctx7 setup. It needs Node.js >=20.18.1. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

Context7 is a documentation service that feeds up-to-date, version-specific library docs and code examples into AI coding agents through a CLI or MCP server.

Updated Nov 1, 2026. Review written Oct 22, 2026 from the project's own sources; usage data refreshed every Monday.

TL;DR

Context7 pulls current, version-specific documentation and code examples from the source into a coding agent's context. It is for developers using agents like Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or OpenCode who get outdated or hallucinated API answers. Context7 works either as a CLI plus agent skill or as an MCP server.

64kGitHub stars
+441new stars, week of Oct 25
~580.8kdownloads a week, −30% vs 4-week avg
#48in MCP and agent tools this week

Context7 at a glance

Category: MCP and agent tools
Maintained by: Upstash (organization, @upstash on GitHub)
License: MIT
Language: TypeScript, JavaScript, Dockerfile
Repository: github.com/upstash/context7
Website: context7.com
npm package: @upstash/context7-mcp 4.4.4
Latest release: mcpb-v4.4.4 on GitHub, Oct 19, 2026
First published: Mar 26, 2025

What Context7 does

Context7 fetches up-to-date, version-specific documentation and code examples and places them in your coding agent's context.
Context7 matches the library version you mention in a prompt, such as Next.js 16, and returns docs for that version.
Context7 accepts a library ID like /supabase/supabase in the prompt to skip the library-matching step.
Context7 exposes MCP tools resolve-library-id and query-docs, with an optional language parameter to rank code examples.
Context7 offers CLI commands ctx7 library and ctx7 docs to search the index and retrieve documentation without MCP.
Context7 publishes a TypeScript SDK, Vercel AI SDK tools, and a pi.dev extension as npm packages.

How it works

Context7 runs in two modes. In CLI + Skills mode, a skill guides your agent to call ctx7 CLI commands. In MCP mode, your agent connects to the Context7 MCP server at https://mcp.context7.com/mcp and calls documentation tools natively, passing an API key in an Authorization header. The API backend, parsing engine, and crawling engine are private services.

How to install and start using Context7

Guided setup

npx ctx7 setup

Global CLI install

npm install -g ctx7

Remove generated setup

npx ctx7 remove

Requirements

The ctx7 CLI requires Node.js 22.13 or newer.
The @upstash/context7-mcp package requires Node.js 20.18.1 or newer.
An API key is recommended for higher rate limits and is available free at context7.com/dashboard.
An MCP-compatible client or a supported coding agent such as Cursor, Claude Code, or OpenCode.

First steps

Run npx ctx7 setup to authenticate via OAuth, generate an API key, and install the skill.
Choose CLI + Skills or MCP mode, and add --cursor, --claude, or --opencode to target a specific agent.
Add "use context7" to a prompt, or name a library ID such as /vercel/next.js.
Optionally add a rule in Cursor Settings > Rules or CLAUDE.md so the agent uses Context7 automatically.

Who Context7 is for

Developers whose coding agents produce outdated code or hallucinated APIs for the libraries they use.
Users of Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or OpenCode who want library docs fetched inside the agent.
Developers working against specific library versions who need version-matched documentation.
Teams building agents with the Vercel AI SDK or TypeScript who want documentation lookup tools.

Limitations to know

Context7's library docs are community-contributed, and the project does not guarantee their accuracy, completeness, or security.
Context7's API backend, parsing engine, and crawling engine are private; the repository hosts only the MCP server source.
Context7 applies rate limits; an API key is recommended to get higher limits.
Context7 retrieves docs from its hosted service, so lookups depend on that service rather than running fully offline.

Is Context7 growing? Usage data

In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, Context7 ranked #299 on the Devtoolwatch Board and #48 in MCP and agent tools, with a momentum score of 31 out of 100. Its main package had about 580.8k downloads that week, −30% against its own 4-week average.

New GitHub stars per week for the last 12 weeks, from GitHub's stargazer history (today's stargazers by the week they starred).

Show the weekly numbers

New GitHub stars per week for Context7
Week of	New stars
Aug 9, 2026	385
Aug 16, 2026	312
Aug 23, 2026	332
Aug 30, 2026	298
Sep 6, 2026	303
Sep 13, 2026	317
Sep 20, 2026	269
Sep 27, 2026	232
Oct 4, 2026	290
Oct 11, 2026	381
Oct 18, 2026	436
Oct 25, 2026	441

The Board ranks tools by four signals each week: new stars, new stars for the repo's size, added downloads and download growth beyond the market. How the ranking works.

Context7 alternatives

Other MCP servers and agent tools on the Board in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, by momentum:

MCP and agent tools ranked by momentum, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026
Rank	Tool	Stars	Downloads/wk
#1	REAREA is an MCP server and CLI that lets coding agents reverse engineer native binaries, JavaScript and Electron apps, .NET assemblies,…	415.5k	760.6k
#2	ha-mcpha-mcp is an unofficial Model Context Protocol server that lets AI assistants control and manage Home Assistant using natural language.	5.4k	118.1k
#3	TregTreg is a registry and proxy that gives AI agents one token for a catalog of paid third-party API endpoints and team-shared tools.	6.9k	6.7k
#4	Chrome DevTools MCPChrome DevTools MCP is an MCP server and CLI that lets coding agents control and inspect a live Chrome browser using Chrome DevTools.	54.6k	2.7M
#5	codebase-memory-mcpHigh-performance code intelligence MCP server. Indexes codebases into a persistent knowledge graph — average repo in milliseconds. 162…	47.9k	–
#6	open-computer-use👾 Open Computer Use – Open-Source Alternative to Codex Computer Use	2.8k	–

All MCP servers and agent tools, ranked

Recent Context7 releases

mcpb-v4.4.4, Oct 19, 2026
@upstash/[email protected], Oct 19, 2026
[email protected], Oct 19, 2026
mcpb-v4.4.3, Oct 19, 2026
@upstash/[email protected], Oct 19, 2026

Context7 FAQ

Is Context7 free and open source?

Yes. Context7's source code is on GitHub (upstash/context7) under the MIT license, so you can use it for free.

How do I install Context7?

Run npx ctx7 setup. It needs Node.js >=20.18.1. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

Is Context7 still maintained?

Yes. The upstash/context7 repository was last updated on Oct 21, 2026, and the latest release, mcpb-v4.4.4 on GitHub, came out on Oct 19, 2026.

How popular is Context7?

Context7 has 64k GitHub stars as of Nov 1, 2026. It gained 441 new stars in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, against a 12-week average of 333 a week. Its main package had about 580.8k downloads that week, −30% against its own 4-week average. That made it #48 among MCP servers and agent tools on the Devtoolwatch Board.

Context7 vs Serena: how do they compare?

Context7 and Serena are both tracked by Devtoolwatch as MCP servers and agent tools. Context7 has 64k GitHub stars and Serena has 31k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, Context7's main package had 580.8k downloads and Serena's had 35k. Serena is an MCP toolkit that gives coding agents semantic, symbol-level code retrieval, editing, refactoring and debugging tools, similar to an IDE. Serena review.

Context7 vs Graphify: how do they compare?

Context7 and Graphify are both tracked by Devtoolwatch. Context7 has 64k GitHub stars and Graphify has 140k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, Context7's main package had 580.8k downloads and Graphify's had 480.7k. Graphify is an AI coding assistant skill that turns a codebase, with its docs, PDFs, images and videos, into a queryable knowledge graph. Graphify review.

What are the best alternatives to Context7?

Other MCP servers and agent tools on the Devtoolwatch Board in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, by momentum: REA (#1), ha-mcp (#2), Treg (#3), Chrome DevTools MCP (#4), codebase-memory-mcp (#5). The alternatives table above has their numbers.

How do I use Context7 with Claude Code?

Run npx ctx7 setup with the --claude flag to install the skill or MCP config. Then add "use context7" to prompts, or add a rule in CLAUDE.md telling Claude Code to always use Context7 for library and API documentation.

How do I use Context7 in Cursor?

Run npx ctx7 setup --cursor, or configure Cursor's MCP client with the server URL https://mcp.context7.com/mcp and an Authorization: Bearer header. To trigger it automatically, add a rule under Cursor Settings > Rules.

How do I use the Context7 MCP server with other clients?

Point your MCP client at https://mcp.context7.com/mcp and pass your API key via the Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY header. Context7's docs list manual setup instructions for 30+ clients.

Does Context7 require MCP?

No. Context7 has a CLI + Skills mode that installs a skill guiding your agent to fetch docs with ctx7 CLI commands, with no MCP required. MCP mode is the alternative.

Is Context7 safe to rely on?

Context7 states that library documentation is community-contributed and that it cannot guarantee accuracy, completeness, or security. Libraries are maintained by their owners, and users can report suspicious content with the Report button on a project page.

Is Context7 open source?

Partly. The repository hosting the MCP server source code is MIT licensed. The supporting API backend, parsing engine, and crawling engine are private and not part of the repository.

Sources

Context7 README badge

Maintainers can show the tool's weekly Board rank in their README:

[![Devtoolwatch](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/badge/context7.svg)](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/context7/)

How this page is made: Devtoolwatch writes each review from the project's README, releases, package metadata and website, with an AI model, then checks every claim against the source it cites and drops what the sources don't support. The numbers come from Devtoolwatch's daily GitHub snapshots, GitHub's stargazer history, and the npm and PyPI download APIs. Spotted an error? Email [email protected].