superpowers vs Desktop Commander
superpowers is a plugin bundle for AI coding tools published by obra. Marketplaces we read that list it: 3 (Claude Code: claude-plugins-official, Claude Code: claude-plugins-community, Community GitHub marketplaces). Desktop Commander is an MCP server published by wonderwhy-er. Marketplaces we read that list it: 6 (Official MCP Registry, Claude Code: claude-plugins-official, Docker MCP Catalog, Claude: knowledge-work-plugins, Claude Code: claude-plugins-community, Community GitHub marketplaces). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-15. 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 |  superpowers |  Desktop Commander |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Code: claude-plugins-official | Listed Version: 6.4.1 Forks (GitHub): 26 726 Stars (GitHub): 299 197 Not marked · First seen |
Listed Version: 0.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen |
| Claude Code: claude-plugins-community | Listed Version: 6.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 26 726 Stars (GitHub): 299 197 Not marked · First seen |
Listed Version: 0.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen |
| Official MCP Registry | Not listed | Listed Version: 0.3.0 Downloads/month (npm): 926 846 Downloads/week (npm): 204 381 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen |
| Docker MCP Catalog | Not listed | Listed Version: sha256:5df787069e37 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Pulls (Docker Hub): 236 074 Stars (Docker Hub): 22 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 Not marked · First seen |
| Claude: knowledge-work-plugins | Not listed | Listed Version: 0.2.0 Forks (GitHub): 1 272 Stars (GitHub): 10 050 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 | superpowers | Desktop Commander |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it (differs) | 3 (worse) | 6 (better) |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 299 197 (better) | 10 050 (worse) |
| Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs) | No figure on Docker Hub | 236 074 |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 26 726 (better) | 1 272 (worse) |
| Last release (differs) | Not published | 2026-10-13 |
| Where it runs (differs) | Installs as a plugin bundle | On your machine (@wonderwhy-er/desktop-commander) |
| Transport (differs) | Not stated | stdio |
| Tools it declares (differs) | Not published | 26 |
| Environment variables it asks for | Not published | Not published |
| Hooks it runs (differs) | 1 | Not published |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | 16 | 7 |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/obra/superpowers | github.com/wonderwhy-er/desktopcommandermcp |
| Changes in the last 7 days (differs) | 5 | 3 |
| 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
superpowers
Superpowers teaches Claude brainstorming, subagent driven development with built in code review, systematic debugging, and red/green TDD. Additionally, it teaches Claude how to author and test new skills.
Desktop Commander
MCP server for terminal commands, file operations, and process management
How to run each
superpowers As a Claude Code plugin
/plugin install superpowers@claude-plugins-officialDesktop Commander As a local MCP server: npm package
claude mcp add --transport stdio desktop-commander -- npx -y @wonderwhy-er/desktop-commanderCommands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Tools each declares
The marketplaces of superpowers publish no list of tools, so we do not compare tools.
Settings each asks for
Neither one's marketplaces publish the settings it asks for.
What it can do: superpowers · What it can do: Desktop Commander · Compare two other plugins
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/claude-plugins-community/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Data comes from public marketplace files in GitHub repositories of their authors. Data comes from the Official MCP Registry (registry.modelcontextprotocol.io), CC0 1.0. Data comes from the Docker MCP Catalog (desktop.docker.com/mcp/catalog) and Docker Hub. 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.