Codex vs Cursor for MCP servers
Codex and Cursor differ in 7 of 10 facts: publisher, kind, runs on, licence, connects to, server config, servers that work in it.
| Fact | Codex | Cursor |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | OpenAI | Anysphere |
| Kind | Terminal, Editor extension, Desktop app | Code editor, Terminal, Web app |
| Runs on | macOS, Windows, Linux | macOS, Windows, Linux, Web |
| Price | Free plan | Free plan |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | Not stated |
| Connects to | Local (stdio), Remote (HTTP) | Local (stdio), Remote (HTTP), Remote (SSE) |
| Headers for remote servers | Yes | Yes |
| Server config | ~/.codex/config.toml | ~/.cursor/mcp.json |
| Servers that work in it | 119,253 | 123,011 |
| What we checked | Matches the official docs | Matches the official docs |
| Add a server | In Codex | In Cursor |
From each client's own documentation and site, as linked on its page. The server counts are today's install configs that work in each.