head to head · open source
NocoDB vs mcp-toolbox
NocoDB has 64,998 GitHub stars, 5,054 forks, 710 open issues and last shipped yesterday. mcp-toolbox has 16,443 stars, 1,727 forks, 292 open issues and last shipped yesterday. NocoDB leads on adoption by 295% (64,998 vs 16,443 stars). NocoDB is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; mcp-toolbox is written in Go under Apache-2.0. NocoDB has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, mcp-toolbox 11%. mcp-toolbox was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| NocoDB | mcp-toolbox | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 65K | ★ 16K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.1K | ⑂ 1.7K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick NocoDB if
- You weight community size — 65K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick mcp-toolbox if
- You want the mcp-toolbox feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and mcp-toolbox fits your workflow better
About NocoDB
NocoDB is a free and self hostable open source Airtable alternative that turns an existing relational database into an intuitive spreadsheet interface, built for teams who want no code data management without moving their data into a hosted SaaS product.
read the full NocoDB overview →
About mcp-toolbox
MCP Toolbox for Databases is an open source Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, written in Go and licensed under Apache 2.0, that connects AI agents, IDEs, and applications directly to enterprise databases.
read the full mcp-toolbox overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is NocoDB or mcp-toolbox more popular?
NocoDB has 64,998 GitHub stars and mcp-toolbox has 16,443. NocoDB has the larger community by that measure.
Are NocoDB and mcp-toolbox free?
Both are open source. NocoDB has no licence declared in this registry, and mcp-toolbox is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between NocoDB and mcp-toolbox?
NocoDB is written in TypeScript and mcp-toolbox in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, NocoDB or mcp-toolbox?
Choose NocoDB if you want the larger community (64,998 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose mcp-toolbox if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.