Kagi Search vs Scholar RAG MCP
Kagi Search is an MCP server published by kagisearch. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). Scholar RAG MCP is an MCP server published by notwhiteblank. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Official MCP Registry). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-23. This pair was picked by a reader, not by our comparison rule, so search engines are asked not to index the page.
Where each is published
| Marketplace |  Kagi Search |  Scholar RAG MCP |
|---|---|---|
| Docker MCP Catalog | Listed Version: sha256:c26439346cd6 Forks (GitHub): 49 Pulls (Docker Hub): 20 002 Stars (Docker Hub): 1 Stars (GitHub): 546 Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Official MCP Registry | Not listed | Listed Version: 0.4.0 Downloads/month (PyPI): 187 Downloads/week (PyPI): 43 Forks (GitHub): 0 Stars (GitHub): 5 Not marked · First seen |
Each figure is the marketplace's own and is never added up across marketplaces. A marketplace that publishes no figure shows none: no number is not zero.
The facts side by side
| Fact | Kagi Search | Scholar RAG MCP |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it | 1 | 1 |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 546 (better) | 5 (worse) |
| Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs) | 20 002 | No figure on Docker Hub |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 49 (better) | 0 (worse) |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | On your machine (mcp/kagisearch) | On your machine (scholar-rag-mcp) |
| Transport | stdio | stdio |
| Tools it declares (differs) | 2 | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for (differs) | 2, secrets among them: 1 | 4, secrets among them: 0 |
| Licence (differs) | MIT | Not stated |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/kagisearch/kagimcp | github.com/notwhiteblank/scholar-rag-mcp |
| Changes in the last 7 days | 0 | 0 |
| First seen | 2026-10-11 | 2026-10-11 |
Lines where the two differ have a tinted background and bold values. Where the data itself says which value is better (more marketplaces, a larger figure of the same marketplace, a fresher release, a verified mark on a marketplace that lists both), the better one is also marked green with ▲ and the worse one red with ▼. Where it runs, the transport, the tools, the settings, hooks, the bundle's parts, the licence and the week's changes are marked only as different: more or fewer is not better in itself.
What each says it does
Kagi Search
The Official Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Kagi Search & other tools.
Scholar RAG MCP
Academic paper knowledge-base MCP server: PDF ingest, vector search with reranking, KB management.
How to run each
Kagi Search As a local MCP server: Docker image
claude mcp add --env "KAGI_API_KEY=<YOUR_KAGI_API_KEY>" --transport stdio kagisearch -- docker run -i --rm -e KAGI_API_KEY mcp/kagisearchRequires: KAGI_API_KEY (secret)
Scholar RAG MCP As a local MCP server: PyPI package
claude mcp add --env "SCHOLAR_RAG_CHAT_BASE_URL=<YOUR_SCHOLAR_RAG_CHAT_BASE_URL>" --env "SCHOLAR_RAG_EMBED_BASE_URL=<YOUR_SCHOLAR_RAG_EMBED_BASE_URL>" --env "SCHOLAR_RAG_RERANK_BASE_URL=<YOUR_SCHOLAR_RAG_RERANK_BASE_URL>" --transport stdio scholar-rag-mcp -- uvx scholar-rag-mcpRequires: SCHOLAR_RAG_CHAT_BASE_URL, SCHOLAR_RAG_EMBED_BASE_URL, SCHOLAR_RAG_RERANK_BASE_URL
Commands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Tools each declares
The marketplaces of Scholar RAG MCP publish no list of tools, so we do not compare tools.
Settings each asks for
Only Kagi Search asks for
KAGI_API_KEY (secret)KAGI_SUMMARIZER_ENGINE
Only Scholar RAG MCP asks for
SCHOLAR_RAG_CHAT_BASE_URLSCHOLAR_RAG_DATA_DIRSCHOLAR_RAG_EMBED_BASE_URLSCHOLAR_RAG_RERANK_BASE_URL
Settings as each marketplace publishes them. Asking for fewer is not better in itself.
What it can do: Kagi Search · What it can do: Scholar RAG MCP · Compare two other plugins
Data comes from the Docker MCP Catalog (desktop.docker.com/mcp/catalog) and Docker Hub. Data comes from the Official MCP Registry (registry.modelcontextprotocol.io), CC0 1.0. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on . We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.