The official MCP reference servers explained

What each reference server in the modelcontextprotocol/servers repository does, and when to use it.

Reference servers

These are maintained in the official modelcontextprotocol/servers repository as examples of the protocol. They make a good first install for testing a client.

• Time (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Time and timezone conversion capabilities. Install config available on its page.
• Sequential Thinking (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Dynamic and reflective problem-solving through thought sequences. Install config available on its page.
• Memory (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Knowledge graph-based persistent memory system. Install config available on its page.
• Git (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Tools to read, search, and manipulate Git repositories. Install config available on its page.
• Filesystem (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Secure file operations with configurable access controls.
• Fetch (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Web content fetching and conversion for efficient LLM usage. Install config available on its page.
• Everything (official) (Official reference server · last pushed 2026-10-13)
  Reference / test server with prompts, resources, and tools.

How to try one

The Memory server needs no keys or paths, so it is an easy first test:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "memory": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-memory"
      ]
    }
  }
}

See all of them: Official Reference category.

About this list

Data: public GitHub repositories, refreshed 2026-10-15. Star counts change daily. A listing is not a security review, so read our security checklist before installing.