The best MCP server directories, and what each one is for

The short answer: open the official MCP Registry for the record the protocol keeps, PulseMCP or Glama for a large catalog to browse, and PlugMCP when you want a page that sends you to the publisher, an agent that can search for you, and optional hosting.

We run one of these sites, so read this as a field guide from a participant. Each line describes what the site itself offers. None of it is a ranking by traffic.

The directories

• Official MCP Registry, registry.modelcontextprotocol.io: the protocol's own registry of servers. Use it when you want the entry the spec project records.
• Glama, glama.ai: a large catalog with tool-level pages and quality signals. A common starting point when people ask which registry to trust.
• PulseMCP, pulsemcp.com: a large catalog that updates daily, strong on popularity sorts, with an MCP Apps explainer and a news desk.
• mcp.so: a community index of servers, clients, and skills, with setup guides by client.
• Smithery, smithery.ai: hosted MCP servers you can run without standing up the process yourself.
• MCP.Directory, mcp.directory: a catalog of servers and skills with one-click install.
• mcpservers.org: an awesome-list style directory with client guides.

Where PlugMCP fits

PlugMCP is a directory and the MCP for MCPs. Browse servers on the site, or add one MCP to your agent so it can search that catalog and return the install config. Hosting is optional and separate.

• One stable page per server at /mcp/{slug}, and one per skill. The install block is the publisher's URL or command, not a PlugMCP proxy.
• Browse by what the server does at /categories when you want a searchable list by category.
• Listings come from the official registry, GitHub, npm, PyPI, Docker Hub, Smithery, and other public catalogs. A copy of a server another source already lists is skipped, so one server has one page.
• Remote servers are probed every fifteen minutes, so a listing shows whether the URL answers.
• The directory MCP on /directory-mcp is the MCP for MCPs: your agent searches the catalog and gets the install snippet for its own client.
• When the server is yours and you want keys, call logs, and one URL for every agent, that is /host.

Which one to open

• You want the record the protocol keeps: the official registry.
• You want what is popular this week: PulseMCP.
• You know the tool name and need a server that has it: Glama, or /tools here.
• You want a hosted server you can try quickly: Smithery.
• You want to browse by category on PlugMCP: /categories.
• You want your agent to find and install a server without leaving the chat: /directory-mcp.
• You built a server and want keys and logs on it: /host.

The side-by-side page is /compare/mcp-directories. The full catalog is /mcp. The MCP for MCPs is /directory-mcp.