caveman vs com.gitkraken/gk-cli
caveman is a plugin bundle for AI coding tools published by JuliusBrussee. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Claude Code: claude-plugins-community). com.gitkraken/gk-cli is an MCP server published by gitkraken.com. Marketplaces we read that list it: 3 (Official MCP Registry, Claude Code: claude-plugins-official, Claude: knowledge-work-plugins). 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 |  caveman |  com.gitkraken/gk-cli |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Code: claude-plugins-community | Listed Version: 3098342 Forks (GitHub): 6 546 Stars (GitHub): 113 062 Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Official MCP Registry | Not listed | Listed Version: 3.1.77 Downloads/month (npm): 115 143 Downloads/week (npm): 25 813 Forks (GitHub): 374 Stars (GitHub): 460 Not marked · First seen |
| Claude Code: claude-plugins-official | Not listed | Listed Version: 1.0.0 Forks (GitHub): 0 Stars (GitHub): 0 Not marked · First seen |
| Claude: knowledge-work-plugins | Not listed | Listed Version: 1.0.0 Forks (GitHub): 0 Stars (GitHub): 0 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 | caveman | com.gitkraken/gk-cli |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it (differs) | 1 (worse) | 3 (better) |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 113 062 (better) | 460 (worse) |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 6 546 (better) | 374 (worse) |
| Last release (differs) | Not published | 2026-10-14 |
| Where it runs (differs) | Installs as a plugin bundle | On your machine (@gitkraken/gk) |
| Transport (differs) | Not stated | stdio |
| Tools it declares | Not published | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for | Not published | Not published |
| Hooks it runs (differs) | 2 | Not published |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | 17 | 1 |
| Licence | Not stated | Not stated |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/juliusbrussee/caveman | github.com/gitkraken/gk-cli |
| Changes in the last 7 days (differs) | 0 | 1 |
| 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
caveman
Auto-activation works differently per agent: Claude Code uses SessionStart hooks, this repo's Codex dogfood setup uses .codex/hooks.json, Gemini uses context files. Cursor/Windsurf/Cline/Copilot can be made always-on, but npx skills add installs only the skill, not the repo rule/instruction files. ¹ Codex uses $caveman syntax, not /caveman. This repo ships .codex/hooks.json, so caveman auto-starts when you run Codex inside this repo. The installed plugin itself gives you $caveman; copy the same hook into another repo if you want always-on behavior there too. caveman-commit and caveman-review are not in the Codex plugin bundle — use the SKILL.md files directly. ² Add the "Want it always on?" snippet below to those agents' system prompt or rule file if you want session-start activation. ³ Cursor and Windsurf receive the full SKILL.md with all intensity levels. Mode switching works on-demand via the skill; no slash command. ⁴ Available in Claude Code, but plugin install only nudges setup. Standalone install.sh /
com.gitkraken/gk-cli
The GitKraken MCP Server for managing repos, PRs, issues across GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket and more.
How to run each
caveman As a Claude Code plugin
/plugin marketplace add anthropics/claude-plugins-community
/plugin install caveman@claude-communitycom.gitkraken/gk-cli As a local MCP server: npm package
claude mcp add --transport stdio gk-cli -- npx -y @gitkraken/gk mcpCommands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Tools each declares
Neither one's marketplaces publish a list of tools, so there is nothing to compare.
Settings each asks for
Neither one's marketplaces publish the settings it asks for.
What it can do: caveman · What it can do: com.gitkraken/gk-cli · Compare two other plugins
Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/claude-plugins-community/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Data comes from the Official MCP Registry (registry.modelcontextprotocol.io), CC0 1.0. Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/claude-plugins-official/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on . We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.