mcp-use review

Q: How do I install mcp-use?

Run npx -y create-mcp-use-app@latest. It needs Node.js >=22.22.2. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

mcp-use is a TypeScript framework for building, testing, and shipping MCP servers, ChatGPT apps, and Claude connectors, with a Python version too.

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

TL;DR

mcp-use is an open-source framework for building MCP servers and MCP Apps for ChatGPT and Claude. It targets TypeScript developers, and a Python package covers servers, clients, and agents. It sets itself apart with typed Zod tool schemas, React Views bound to tools, a built-in Inspector, tunneling, and a View screenshot CLI.

10.8kGitHub stars
+26new stars, week of Oct 25
~61.8kdownloads a week, +7% vs 4-week avg
#50in MCP and agent tools this week

mcp-use at a glance

Category: MCP and agent tools
Maintained by: Manufact (organization, @mcp-use on GitHub)
License: MIT
Language: TypeScript, Python, JavaScript
Repository: github.com/mcp-use/mcp-use
Website: manufact.com
npm package: mcp-use 2.11.2
PyPI package: mcp-use 1.7.1
Latest release: [email protected] on GitHub, Oct 21, 2026
First published: Mar 28, 2025

What mcp-use does

mcp-use defines MCP tools with Zod input and output schemas, and those types flow to structured results, View props, and tool calls.
mcp-use binds React Views to tools, so you can ship interactive apps inside ChatGPT without custom extension wiring.
mcp-use includes an Inspector at /mcp/inspector for invoking tools, validating inputs, and viewing interactive Views during development.
mcp-use can open a tunnel that gives a local MCP server a public URL for testing with ChatGPT and Claude.
mcp-use provides a client CLI that lists and calls tools headlessly and captures View screenshots from the terminal.
mcp-use offers packages for MCP clients in Node.js, browsers, and React, plus model-powered agents built on MCP clients.

How it works

mcp-use builds on the official TypeScript SDK v2. You scaffold a project with create-mcp-use-app and define tools in index.ts. Views go in views/<name>/view.tsx. Development mode serves the MCP endpoint at localhost:3000/mcp. You can deploy to Manufact with npm run deploy or follow the self-hosting guide.

How to install and start using mcp-use

Scaffold a new project

npx -y create-mcp-use-app@latest

Add the client CLI

npm install --save-dev @mcp-use/client

Requirements

Node.js >=22.22.2 for the npm package
Python >=3.11 for the Python package

First steps

Run npx -y create-mcp-use-app@latest to scaffold a server with TypeScript config, dev scripts, Inspector, and a React view pipeline.
Run npm run dev in the generated project to serve the MCP endpoint at http://localhost:3000/mcp.
Open http://localhost:3000/mcp/inspector to invoke tools and inspect Views.
Run npm run build for a production build, then npm run deploy to ship to Manufact.

Who mcp-use is for

TypeScript developers building MCP Apps with interactive UI for ChatGPT and Claude
Teams that want typed tool-to-UI contracts and built-in debugging for MCP servers
Developers who drive scaffolding, inspection, and deployment through a coding agent

Limitations to know

mcp-use v2 changed enough that v1 projects need a migration following the official guide.
mcp-use requires a recent Node.js release, version 22.22.2 or later.
The README focuses on TypeScript, and Python is offered as a separate package.

Is mcp-use growing? Usage data

In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, mcp-use ranked #325 on the Devtoolwatch Board and #50 in MCP and agent tools, with a momentum score of 27 out of 100. Its main package had about 61.8k downloads that week, +7% 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 mcp-use
Week of	New stars
Aug 9, 2026	32
Aug 16, 2026	33
Aug 23, 2026	28
Aug 30, 2026	49
Sep 6, 2026	33
Sep 13, 2026	44
Sep 20, 2026	28
Sep 27, 2026	47
Oct 4, 2026	34
Oct 11, 2026	39
Oct 18, 2026	32
Oct 25, 2026	26

On Hacker News

Show HN: Mcp-use – Connect any LLM to any MCP, 155 points and 74 comments (Jul 31, 2025)
Launch HN: Manufact (YC S25) – MCP Cloud, 111 points and 70 comments (Jul 2, 2026)
Show HN: mcp-use v2 rebuilt from scratch for stateless 2026-07-28 MCP spec, 10 points and 1 comments (Aug 6, 2026)
Show HN: We built an open source BYOK CLI that supports any model and any MCP, 6 points and 2 comments (Jul 1, 2025)
Show HN: How we made MCP development feel good, 6 points and 1 comments (May 12, 2026)

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.

mcp-use 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 mcp-use releases

[email protected] (pre-release), Oct 22, 2026
@mcp-use/[email protected] (pre-release), Oct 22, 2026
[email protected] (pre-release), Oct 21, 2026
@mcp-use/[email protected] (pre-release), Oct 21, 2026
@mcp-use/[email protected] (pre-release), Oct 21, 2026

mcp-use FAQ

Is mcp-use free and open source?

Yes. mcp-use's source code is on GitHub (mcp-use/mcp-use) under the MIT license, so you can use it for free. Its website also links to a pricing page (https://manufact.com/pricing) for any paid plans.

How do I install mcp-use?

Run npx -y create-mcp-use-app@latest. It needs Node.js >=22.22.2. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

Is mcp-use still maintained?

Yes. The mcp-use/mcp-use repository was last updated on Oct 22, 2026, and the latest release, [email protected] on GitHub, came out on Oct 21, 2026.

How popular is mcp-use?

mcp-use has 10.8k GitHub stars as of Nov 1, 2026. It gained 26 new stars in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, against a 12-week average of 35 a week. Its main package had about 61.8k downloads that week, +7% against its own 4-week average. That made it #50 among MCP servers and agent tools on the Devtoolwatch Board.

What are the best alternatives to mcp-use?

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.

What is mcp-use built on?

mcp-use builds on the official TypeScript MCP SDK v2. It adds Views, typed tool-to-UI contracts, a stateless runtime, the Inspector, screenshot verification, agent-first CLI workflows, and deployment.

Can I test a local mcp-use server in ChatGPT or Claude?

Yes. mcp-use can expose a local server publicly so you can test it with ChatGPT and Claude before deployment. Start a tunnel from the Inspector UI or run mcp-use dev --tunnel.

Do I have to deploy mcp-use servers to Manufact?

No. mcp-use servers can deploy to Manufact with npm run deploy, but the README also links a self-hosting guide.

Does mcp-use support Python?

Yes. mcp-use has a Python package on PyPI for building MCP servers, clients, and agents. It requires Python 3.11 or later.

How do I add a UI View to an mcp-use tool?

In mcp-use, create views/<name>/view.tsx, where the directory name matches view.name on the tool. Then use hooks such as useToolContext and useCallTool from mcp-use/react.

Sources

mcp-use README badge

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

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

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].