Compare · Version Control
Git vs GitHub MCP Server
Git exposes 12 tools and adds about 1,139 tokens to every model turn. GitHub exposes 46 tools and adds about 11,509. GitHub costs 10.1× as much context. Measured by connecting to each server and counting its tool list, not from the README.
 Gitmodelcontextprotocol |  GitHubgithub | |
|---|---|---|
| Context tax | ~1,139 tok/turn(leaner) | ~11,509 tok/turn |
| Tools | 12 | 46 |
| Cost per 1,000 turns (Claude Sonnet 5.5, uncached) | $2.28 | $23.02 |
| Security score | 95/100 | 100/100 |
| Cold start | 3,022 ms | 164 ms |
| Runs | Local (stdio) | Local or hosted |
| Needs keys | None declared | None declared |
| Freshness | Active | Active |
| GitHub stars | 91k | 34k |
| License | — | MIT |
| Official MCP registry | No | Yes |
Install in Claude Code
GitHub
claude mcp add github -- docker run -i --rm ghcr.io/github/github-mcp-server:2.0.2
Tools
By name, from each server's live tool list. The same name can still behave differently.
Only in Git · 12
- git_status
- git_diff_unstaged
- git_diff_staged
- git_diff
- git_commit
- git_add
- git_reset
- git_log
- git_create_branch
- git_checkout
- git_show
- git_branch
In both · 0
- none
Only in GitHub · 46
- add_comment_to_pending_review
- add_issue_comment
- add_reply_to_pull_request_comment
- assign_copilot_to_issue
- create_branch
- create_or_update_file
- create_pull_request
- create_repository
- delete_file
- fork_repository
- get_commit
- get_file_contents
- get_label
- get_latest_release
- get_me
- get_release_by_tag
- get_tag
- get_team_members
- get_teams
- issue_read
- issue_write
- list_branches
- list_commits
- list_issue_fields
- list_issue_types
- list_issues
- list_pull_requests
- list_releases
- list_repository_collaborators
- list_tags
- merge_pull_request
- pull_request_read
- pull_request_review_write
- push_files
- request_copilot_review
- search_code
- search_commits
- search_issues
- search_pull_requests
- search_repositories
- +6 more
Questions
- Which uses fewer tokens, Git or GitHub?
- Git: its tool definitions take about 1,139 tokens per turn against 11,509 for GitHub (10.1× more). Tool definitions are resent on every model turn.
- Do Git and GitHub have the same tools?
- No tool names overlap: Git has 12 tools and GitHub has 46.
- Are Git and GitHub hosted or local?
- Git: local (stdio). GitHub: local or hosted.
Token counts use the o200k tokenizer on each server's tool definitions as an agent receives them; clients that load tools lazily pay less. Prices are Claude Sonnet 5.5 input at $2/MTok. Want to check one yourself? Run npx mcpskillhub test <package> — how it works.