API Gateway vs OpenClaw MCP Server
API Gateway is an MCP server published by rflpazini. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). OpenClaw MCP Server is an MCP server published by freema. Marketplaces we read that list it: 2 (Official MCP Registry, Community GitHub marketplaces). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-17. 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 |   API Gateway |  OpenClaw MCP Server |
|---|---|---|
| Docker MCP Catalog | Listed Version: sha256:9cc67b4a037f Forks (GitHub): 12 Pulls (Docker Hub): 58 654 Stars (Docker Hub): 6 Stars (GitHub): 44 Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Official MCP Registry | Not listed | Listed Version: 1.7.0 Downloads/month (npm): 982 Downloads/week (npm): 296 Forks (GitHub): 25 Stars (GitHub): 187 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 | API Gateway | OpenClaw MCP Server |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it (differs) | 1 (worse) | 2 (better) |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 44 (worse) | 187 (better) |
| Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs) | 58 654 | No figure on Docker Hub |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 12 (worse) | 25 (better) |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | On your machine (mcp/api-gateway) | On your machine (openclaw-mcp) |
| Transport | stdio | stdio |
| Tools it declares (differs) | 2 | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for (differs) | 3, secrets among them: 0 | 4, secrets among them: 1 |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | Not a bundle | 5 |
| Licence (differs) | Not stated | MIT |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/rflpazini/mcp-api-gateway | github.com/freema/openclaw-mcp |
| Changes in the last 7 days (differs) | 0 | 2 |
| 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
API Gateway
A universal MCP (Model Context Protocol) server to integrate any API with Claude Desktop using only Docker configurations.
OpenClaw MCP Server
MCP server bridging Claude.ai/Desktop with self-hosted OpenClaw via OAuth 2.1.
How to run each
API Gateway As a local MCP server: Docker image
claude mcp add --transport stdio mcp-api-gateway -- docker run -i --rm mcp/api-gatewayOpenClaw MCP Server As a local MCP server: npm package
claude mcp add --env "OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN=<YOUR_OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN>" --env "OPENCLAW_URL=<YOUR_OPENCLAW_URL>" --transport stdio openclaw-mcp -- npx -y openclaw-mcpRequires: OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN (secret), OPENCLAW_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 OpenClaw MCP Server publish no list of tools, so we do not compare tools.
Settings each asks for
Only API Gateway asks for
API_1_HEADER_AUTHORIZATIONAPI_1_NAMEAPI_1_SWAGGER_URL
Only OpenClaw MCP Server asks for
OPENCLAW_GATEWAY_TOKEN (secret)OPENCLAW_MODELOPENCLAW_TIMEOUT_MSOPENCLAW_URL
Settings as each marketplace publishes them. Asking for fewer is not better in itself.
What it can do: API Gateway · What it can do: OpenClaw MCP Server · 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. Data comes from public marketplace files in GitHub repositories of their authors. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on . We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.