io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar vs xpay Academic Research
io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar is an MCP server published by SMABoundless. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Official MCP Registry). xpay Academic Research is an MCP server published by xpaysh. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Official MCP Registry). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-21. 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 |  io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar |  xpay Academic Research |
|---|---|---|
| Official MCP Registry | Listed Version: 1.0.0 Downloads/month (npm): 280 Downloads/week (npm): 79 Forks (GitHub): 0 Stars (GitHub): 0 Not marked · First seen |
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 | io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar | xpay Academic Research |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it | 1 | 1 |
| Stars (GitHub) | 0 | 0 |
| Forks (GitHub) | 0 | 0 |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | On your machine (semanticscholar-mcp-server) | Remote server (research.mcp.xpay.sh/mcp) |
| Transport (differs) | stdio | Streamable HTTP |
| Tools it declares | Not published | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for (differs) | 1, secrets among them: 1 | Not published |
| Licence | Not stated | Not stated |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/smaboundless/semanticscholar-mcp-server | github.com/xpaysh/mcp-server |
| Changes in the last 7 days | 0 | 0 |
| First seen | 2026-10-11 | 2026-10-11 |
| Endpoint at the last check (differs) | no remote endpoint we check | Responded 32 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
io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar
Search 200M+ papers, authors, citations, and recommendations via Semantic Scholar
xpay Academic Research
30+ academic research tools. Semantic Scholar, arXiv, PubMed, bioRxiv, CrossRef, IACR.
How to run each
io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar As a local MCP server: npm package
claude mcp add --env "SEMANTICSCHOLAR_API_KEY=<YOUR_SEMANTICSCHOLAR_API_KEY>" --transport stdio semanticscholar -- npx -y semanticscholar-mcp-serverRequires: SEMANTICSCHOLAR_API_KEY (secret)
xpay Academic Research
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 xpay Academic Research 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 xpay Academic Research publish no settings it asks for, so we do not compare settings.
What it can do: io.github.SMABoundless/semanticscholar · What it can do: xpay Academic Research · Compare two other plugins
Data comes from the Official MCP Registry (registry.modelcontextprotocol.io), CC0 1.0. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on . We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.