Ref - Up-To-Date Docs vs skilld
Ref - Up-To-Date Docs is an MCP server published by ref-tools. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). skilld is a plugin bundle for AI coding tools published by Harlan Wilton. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Community GitHub marketplaces). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-11-07. 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 |  Ref - Up-To-Date Docs | |
|---|---|---|
| Docker MCP Catalog | Listed Version: sha256:8b5fcfe3e4e1 Forks (GitHub): 72 Pulls (Docker Hub): 19 536 Stars (Docker Hub): 2 Stars (GitHub): 1 184 Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Community marketplace skilld-dev/skilld | Not listed | Listed Version: 3.6.8 Forks (GitHub): 10 Stars (GitHub): 330 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 | Ref - Up-To-Date Docs | skilld |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it | 1 | 1 |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 1 184 (better) | 330 (worse) |
| Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs) | 19 536 | No figure on Docker Hub |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 72 (better) | 10 (worse) |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | On your machine (mcp/ref-tools-mcp) | Remote server (skilld.dev/api/mcp) |
| Transport (differs) | stdio | Streamable HTTP |
| Tools it declares (differs) | 2 | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for (differs) | 1, secrets among them: 1 | Not published |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | Not a bundle | 7 |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/ref-tools/ref-tools-mcp | github.com/skilld-dev/skilld |
| Changes in the last 7 days (differs) | 0 | 2 |
| First seen (differs) | 2026-10-11 | 2026-11-06 |
| Endpoint at the last check (differs) | no remote endpoint we check | Responded 9 h ago |
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
Ref - Up-To-Date Docs
Ref powerful search tool connets your coding tools with documentation context. It includes an up-to-date index of public documentation and it can ingest your private documentation (eg. GitHub repos, PDFs) as well.
skilld
The skilld-maintained Skills and the skilld.dev discovery MCP server. Search curated Skills, then run or install them with the skilld CLI.
How to run each
Ref - Up-To-Date Docs As a local MCP server: Docker image
claude mcp add --env "REF_API_KEY=<YOUR_REF_API_KEY>" --transport stdio ref -- docker run -i --rm -e REF_API_KEY mcp/ref-tools-mcpRequires: REF_API_KEY (secret)
skilld As a Claude Code plugin
/plugin marketplace add skilld-dev/skilld
/plugin install skilld@skilldCommands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Only skilld has a remote endpoint we check. How we check endpoints
Tools each declares
The marketplaces of skilld publish no list of tools, so we do not compare tools.
Settings each asks for
The marketplaces of skilld publish no settings it asks for, so we do not compare settings.
What it can do: Ref - Up-To-Date Docs · What it can do: skilld · 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.