# NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue (remote · mcp.needanai.com)

Search, compare and watch 15,000+ AI tools: pricing, alternatives, liveness. Free, no auth.

- Trust score: 62/100 (medium)
- Registry status: active
- Liveness: live
- Owner verified: no
- Last scored: 2026-11-05

## Components

- remote · `mcp.needanai.com`: 62/100 (this document), [markdown](https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/mcp.md), [page](https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/mcp)
- npm · `@needanai/mcp`: 33/100, [markdown](https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/needanai-mcp.md), [page](https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/needanai-mcp)

## Channel facts

- Endpoint: `https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp`
- Transports: `streamable-http`
- Auth: `none`
- Version: `1.0.1`

## Trust breakdown

How this component scores in each security and reliability category. Every signal is checked automatically against the live server, and we only credit what we can confirm. Scores are 0–100 per category. Scoring method: https://verifymcp.io/docs/scoring (what has changed: https://verifymcp.io/docs/scoring/changelog)

Scored 2026-11-05.

- **Endpoint Security**: 51/100
  - The endpoint's TLS certificate is valid, in date, and uses a strong key.
  - Authorisation check failed: no authorisation is required to call this server, and it exposes a tool marked destructive (unwatch_tool).
  - HTTPS enforcement could not be verified: the plaintext port answered with HTTP 406, which proves neither a plaintext path nor enforcement.
  - The HSTS (Strict-Transport-Security) header is present.
  - DNSSEC check failed: this domain isn't protected by DNSSEC.
- **Transport & Reachability**: 100/100
  - Verified streamable-http transport via a live MCP handshake.
- **Schema Quality & AI Usability**: 77/100
  - 100% of prompts and resources have a non-trivial description (not blank, and not just the item's name).
  - AI-judged instruction clarity (good).
  - Tool/resource definitions use about 1136 tokens (~81/item across 14 items; 14 tools + 0 resources), lean.
  - Usage-examples check failed: none of the tools include examples.
- **Stability & Change Management**: 10/100
  - Stability observed for 3 of 30 days with no destabilising changes; credit accrues until the full window elapses.
- **Tool Coverage**: 83/100
  - 100% of tools have a non-trivial description (not blank, and not just the tool's name).
  - 40% of tool parameters carry a description.
  - Structured output schemas are declared (100% of tools); any adoption earns full credit.
- **Tool Safety**: 100/100
  - No prompt-injection markers were found in the server instructions, tool names or descriptions we captured.
  - We read all 14 captured tool definition(s), and no name or description among them implies an irreversible operation.
  - An AI judge read all 15 captured unit(s) of tool text and found none that tries to manipulate the model reading it.
- **Capabilities**: 100/100
  - Implements a supported MCP spec version (2025-11-25); the latest is 2026-07-28.

## Install

### How do I install the NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue MCP server?

NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue is a hosted endpoint at https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp, so there is nothing to install locally. Ready-made configuration for Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Codex and 5 more is on this page, copied from each client's own documentation.

### Claude

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http com-needanai-catalog 'https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp'
```

### Cursor

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "com-needanai-catalog": {
      "url": "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

### VS Code

```json
{
  "servers": {
    "com-needanai-catalog": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

### Codex

```toml
[mcp_servers.com-needanai-catalog]
url = "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp"
```

### opencode

```json
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "com-needanai-catalog": {
      "type": "remote",
      "url": "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp",
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
```

### OpenClaw

```bash
openclaw mcp add com-needanai-catalog --url 'https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp' --transport streamable-http
```

### Hermes

```yaml
mcp_servers:
  com-needanai-catalog:
    url: "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp"
```

### Netclaw

```json
{
  "McpServers": {
    "com-needanai-catalog": {
      "Transport": "http",
      "Url": "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

### Vellum

```bash
assistant mcp add com-needanai-catalog -t streamable-http -u 'https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp'
```

### Other

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "com-needanai-catalog": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

The mcpServers block is a cross-client convention. Remote transports vary, so check your client's docs.

## Changelog

Every change recorded for this component, newest first. Days that predate change tracking, or that we cannot explain, say so: "we were watching and nothing happened" and "we were not watching" are different claims.

### 2026-11-04 (score 62, +1)

No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 3 to 7. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 1 days of observed history at the previous scan, 2 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

### 2026-11-03 (score 61, 0)

- [functional improvement] Stability: unverified → 0.03

### 2026-11-02 (score 61)

First indexed and scored.

## MCP tools (14)

### `search_tools` (~177 tokens)

Search AI tools

Search the NeedAnAI catalogue of 15,000+ AI tools by free text, pricing model, category or task. Returns ranked hits with pricing, status, freshness (when the site was last confirmed alive) and canonical URLs, plus facet counts and a separate, labelled sponsored block. Use list_taxonomy for valid category and task slugs.

Input parameters:

- `category` (string): Category slug from list_taxonomy.
- `page` (integer): 1-based page number.
- `perPage` (integer): Results per page, max 25.
- `pricing` (array): Restrict to these pricing models.
- `query` (string): Free text, e.g. "video editing" or a tool name. Empty lists the catalogue.
- `sort` (string)
- `task` (string): Task slug from list_taxonomy.

Output parameters:

- `facets` (object)
- `hits` (array)
- `page` (number)
- `pages` (number)
- `perPage` (number)
- `query` (string)
- `sponsored` (object)
- `total` (number)

### `get_tool` (~83 tokens)

Get a tool profile

Full profile of one tool by slug: description, pricing model and details (with when pricing was last checked), pricing history, pros, cons, FAQs, categories, tasks, media, site status, freshness and up to five alternatives. Ends with a provenance line.

Input parameters:

- `slug` (string, required): Tool slug as it appears in https://needanai.com/tool/<slug>

Output parameters:

- `alternatives` (array)
- `categories` (array)
- `cons` (array)
- `description` (string)
- `faqs` (array)
- `flags` (object)
- `freshness` (object)
- `jobs` (array)
- `launchDate` (string|null)
- `media` (object)
- `name` (string)
- `pricing` (object)
- `pricingHistory` (array)
- `pros` (array)
- `siteStatus` (string)
- `slug` (string)
- `source` (object)
- `summary` (string)
- `tags` (array)
- `tasks` (array)
- `websiteUrl` (string|null)

### `find_alternatives` (~94 tokens)

Find alternatives

Alternatives to a tool, ranked by freshness, profile completeness, curation and how many other tools list them as an alternative. Each entry carries a rationale. Optionally restrict to the same pricing model.

Input parameters:

- `limit` (integer)
- `samePricing` (boolean): Only alternatives with the same pricing model.
- `slug` (string, required): Tool slug as it appears in https://needanai.com/tool/<slug>

Output parameters:

- `alternatives` (array)
- `tool` (object)

### `compare_tools` (~57 tokens)

Compare tools

Side-by-side comparison of 2–5 tools: pricing, summary, categories, tasks, pros, cons, site status, freshness, flags and launch date.

Input parameters:

- `slugs` (array, required): 2 to 5 tool slugs.

Output parameters:

- `missing` (array)
- `rows` (array)
- `tools` (array)

### `recommend_for_task` (~98 tokens)

Recommend tools for a task

Given a job to be done ("create a logo", "transcribe meetings") and an optional budget, returns the best-fitting tools with an explicit rationale per recommendation. Resolves known task slugs first, then falls back to free-text search.

Input parameters:

- `budget` (string)
- `limit` (integer)
- `task` (string, required): What the user wants to do, e.g. "create a logo", or a task slug.

Output parameters:

- `budget` (string)
- `considered` (number)
- `matchedTask`
- `recommendations` (array)
- `task` (string)

### `list_taxonomy` (~43 tokens)

List categories or tasks

All category or task slugs with names and live tool counts. Use the slugs as filters for search_tools and recommend_for_task.

Input parameters:

- `kind` (string, required)

Output parameters:

- `items` (array)
- `kind` (string)

### `search_articles` (~52 tokens)

Search articles

Search 660+ editorial articles (reviews, comparisons, alternatives round-ups, guides) by keywords and optional category.

Input parameters:

- `category` (string)
- `limit` (integer)
- `query` (string)

Output parameters:

- `articles` (array)
- `query` (string)
- `total` (number)

### `get_article` (~25 tokens)

Get an article

The full markdown body of one article by slug.

Input parameters:

- `slug` (string, required)

Output parameters:

- `category` (string)
- `description` (string)
- `markdown` (string)
- `readingMinutes` (number)
- `slug` (string)
- `title` (string)
- `url` (string)

### `check_status` (~61 tokens)

Check a tool’s status

Is the tool’s site alive? Returns the scanner verdict, when it was last checked and verified, when pricing was last checked, and a freshness label.

Input parameters:

- `slug` (string, required): Tool slug as it appears in https://needanai.com/tool/<slug>

Output parameters:

- `checkedAt` (string|null)
- `freshness` (object)
- `name` (string)
- `note` (string)
- `pricingCheckedAt` (string|null)
- `siteStatus` (string)
- `slug` (string)
- `url` (string)
- `verifiedAt` (string|null)
- `websiteUrl` (string|null)

### `watch_tool` (~96 tokens)

Watch a tool for changes

Subscribe to status and pricing changes for a tool (checked every 30 minutes). Delivered to an https webhook or email. Requires an API key (free, from https://needanai.com/profile?tab=api-keys).

Input parameters:

- `channel` (string, required)
- `slug` (string, required): Tool slug as it appears in https://needanai.com/tool/<slug>
- `target` (string, required): https webhook URL or email address

Output parameters:

- `channel` (string)
- `createdAt` (string)
- `id` (string)
- `lastNotifiedAt` (string|null)
- `target` (string)
- `toolSlug` (string)

### `list_watches` (~16 tokens)

List my watches

Active watches on this API key.

Output parameters:

- `watches` (array)

### `unwatch_tool` (~22 tokens)

Remove a watch

Stop a watch by id.

Input parameters:

- `id` (string, required)

Output parameters:

- `id` (string)
- `revoked` (boolean)

### `submit_tool` (~62 tokens)

Submit a tool

Suggest a tool for the catalogue. If its website is already listed the existing listing is returned instead. Requires an API key.

Input parameters:

- `description` (string, required)
- `name` (string, required)
- `pricingType` (string)
- `url` (string, required)

Output parameters:

- `name` (string)
- `status` (string)
- `submissionId` (string)
- `tool` (object)
- `url` (string)

### `export_tools` (~90 tokens)

Export tools

Bulk export of a filtered slice of the catalogue (up to 2,000 rows) as JSON or CSV. Returns a signed download URL valid for 24 hours. Requires an API key.

Input parameters:

- `category` (string)
- `format` (string)
- `maxRows` (integer)
- `pricing` (array)
- `query` (string)
- `task` (string)

Output parameters:

- `createdAt` (string)
- `expiresAt` (string)
- `format` (string)
- `id` (string)
- `rows` (number)
- `truncated` (boolean)
- `url` (string): Signed download URL, valid until expiresAt.

## Diagnostics

Captured diagnostic sections: TLS, DNSSEC, Authorisation, Transports. The full working is on the page: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/mcp#diagnostics

## Score history

- 2026-11-05: 62
- 2026-11-04: 62
- 2026-11-03: 61
- 2026-11-02: 61

## Common questions

### What is the NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue MCP server?

NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue is an MCP server listed in the public MCP registry as com.needanai/catalog. Search, compare and watch 15,000+ AI tools: pricing, alternatives, liveness. Free, no auth. This page covers its hosted endpoint (https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp).

### Is the NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue MCP server safe to use?

NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue scores 62 out of 100 on VerifyMCP. That is a record of what we were able to check automatically, not an endorsement. The category breakdown on this page shows every signal behind the number, including the ones we could not confirm.

### What tools does the NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue MCP server expose?

NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue exposes 14 tools: search_tools, get_tool, find_alternatives, compare_tools, recommend_for_task, and 9 more. Their descriptions and schemas cost roughly 976 tokens of context every time the server is loaded.

### Does the NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue MCP server require authentication?

No. We connected to NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue without credentials and it answered, so anything it exposes is reachable by anyone who knows the address.

### Is the NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue MCP server still maintained?

NeedAnAI — AI tool catalogue is still listed as active in the MCP registry. We last reached this channel on 5 November 2026. Those dates come from our own scans of the registry and the channel itself, not from anything the publisher announced.

## Links

- Remote endpoint: https://mcp.needanai.com/mcp
- Website: https://needanai.com/developers
- Changelog RSS feed: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/mcp.xml
- Changelog JSON feed: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/mcp.json
- HTML version of this page: https://verifymcp.io/servers/com-needanai-catalog/mcp