Needle Remote vs xlsx-for-ai
xlsx-for-ai is no longer listed on any marketplace we read: these are its last known data, as of 2026‑10‑20.
Needle Remote is an MCP server published by docker. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). xlsx-for-ai is a plugin bundle for AI coding tools published by xlsx-for-ai. No marketplace we read lists it any more. As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-21. A plugin in this pair is no longer listed on any marketplace we read, so search engines are asked not to index the page.
Where each is published
| Marketplace |  Needle Remote | |
|---|---|---|
| Docker MCP Catalog | Listed Version: not stated No figure published Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Community marketplace senoff/xlsx-for-ai | Not listed | Removed on 2026-10-20 Version: 0.1.2 Forks (GitHub): 0 Stars (GitHub): 6 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 | Needle Remote | xlsx-for-aino longer listed · |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it (differs) | 1 | 0 |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | No figure on GitHub | 6 |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | No figure on GitHub | 0 |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | Remote server (mcp.needle.app/mcp) | Remote server (api.xlsx-for-ai.dev/mcp) |
| Transport | Streamable HTTP | Streamable HTTP |
| Tools it declares | Not published | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for (differs) | 1, secrets among them: 1 | Not published |
| Hooks it runs (differs) | Not published | 1 |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | Not a bundle | 3 |
| Licence (differs) | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Repository (differs) | Not stated | github.com/senoff/xlsx-for-ai |
| Changes in the last 7 days (differs) | 0 | 5 |
| First seen (differs) | 2026-10-11 | 2026-10-14 |
| Endpoint at the last check (differs) | Answered with HTTP 301 (4 days ago) | no remote endpoint we check |
Lines where the two differ have a tinted background and bold values. No value is marked better or worse: a plugin no marketplace lists any more is shown with its last known data, which we do not rank against current figures.
What to use instead of xlsx-for-ai
Plugins still listed whose own names, descriptions, tools and skills are closest in meaning to it. Comparable, not endorsed.
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Agent-safe Excel workbook analysis, editing, recalc, and verification tools.
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gantt-chart io.github.theluckystrike/gantt-chart
Build Gantt charts from your AI chat: tasks, dependencies, timeline spreadsheets. All data is local.
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spreadsheet io.github.theluckystrike/spreadsheet
Open, inspect, filter, edit and convert xlsx and csv files from your AI chat. Processing is local.
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spreadsheet-builder io.github.theluckystrike/spreadsheet-builder
Open, inspect, filter, edit and convert xlsx and csv files from your AI chat. Processing is local.
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Extract and analyze large Excel workbooks (1MB-50MB+) with minimal token usage. Lossless extraction of all formulas, cell formatting, and complex table structures while achieving…
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Read local Excel workbooks (.xlsx, .xlsm, .csv): cells, formulas, tables. Read-only, sandboxed.
What each says it does
Needle Remote
Production-ready RAG service to search and retrieve data from your documents.
xlsx-for-ai
Connection to the hosted xlsx-for-ai tools for .xlsx, .xlsm, .xls, .csv, .tsv and Google Sheets, plus a session-start note on when to use them: formula results, whether saved values are current, or a working spreadsheet file back. Ships no engine.
How to run each
Needle Remote As a remote MCP server
claude mcp add --transport http needle https://mcp.needle.app/mcpRequires: NEEDLE_API_KEY (secret)
xlsx-for-ai
No data for an automatic command: what its marketplaces declare does not say unambiguously how to connect it.
Commands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Only Needle Remote has a remote endpoint we check. How we check endpoints
Tools each declares
Neither one's marketplaces publish a list of tools, so there is nothing to compare.
Settings each asks for
The marketplaces of xlsx-for-ai publish no settings it asks for, so we do not compare settings.
What it can do: Needle Remote · What it can do: xlsx-for-ai · Compare two other plugins
Data comes from the Docker MCP Catalog (desktop.docker.com/mcp/catalog) and Docker Hub. 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.