RepoAlerts

Find open-source alternatives

find_alternatives

Read-onlyIdempotent

Open-source alternatives to an app, product or service ("Photoshop", "Notion", "Heroku", "Postman"), from the GitHub repos RepoAlerts tracks, with real star counts and growth. Optionally for a platform or constraint ("Mac", "self-hosted"). Repos whose own page lists that app as something they replace come first.

Tool call template

Replace each placeholder with a value matching the input schema. Only required parameters are included; add optional parameters as needed.

{
  "id": 1,
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "arguments": {
      "to": "<to>"
    },
    "name": "find_alternatives"
  }
}

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`to`	Yes	The app, product or tool to replace, e.g. 'Photoshop', 'Notion', 'Heroku', 'Postman', 'Google Analytics'.
`kind`	No	Optional: what the repo is. app (end-user application), mcp_server, agent_skill, agent, template, library, cli, model, resource (lists, docs, courses), other.
`limit`	No	How many repos to return, 1 to 10. Default 5.
`topic`	No	Optional topic: agents (AI agents, MCP, LLM tooling), models (ML models, training, inference), infra (databases, devops, backend), creative (image, video, audio, design), desktop (desktop and mobile apps), web (frontend, web frameworks).
`locale`	No	Language of the summaries: 'en' (default) or 'es' for Spanish. Use 'es' when the user writes in Spanish.	en
`platform`	No	Optional platform or constraint in a few words, e.g. 'Mac', 'self-hosted', 'Windows', 'mobile'.

Output Schema

Name	Required	Description
`notes`	No
`repos`	Yes
`total`	No	Matches in the directory before the limit
`attribution`	Yes

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

First observedOct 20, 2026

TDQS

A3.9/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already declare readOnly, idempotent, non-destructive, and closed-world behavior, so the safety profile is covered. The description adds real value beyond that: the data source (GitHub repos RepoAlerts tracks), that star counts and growth are real, and the ranking rule that self-declared replacements surface first. It stops short of describing result volume or failure behavior.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Three sentences, front-loaded with the core purpose before the optional constraint and ranking behavior. Nearly every clause earns its place, with only minor overlap between the required input mention and the schema.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

An output schema exists, so return-value explanation is not needed, and the description covers the data source, ranking, and optional filters well enough to call the tool correctly. The one gap is the absence of any routing guidance against sibling tools, which leaves the agent to infer tool selection.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, so the schema already documents every parameter including the enum values and defaults. The description reinforces the 'to' and optional platform/constraint semantics with examples but adds no syntax or format detail beyond the schema. Baseline 3 applies when the schema does the heavy lifting.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

States a specific verb and resource ('Finding open-source alternatives to an app, product or service') and grounds it with concrete examples ("Photoshop", "Notion", "Heroku", "Postman"). The scope is unambiguous and clearly distinct from get_repo, search_repos, and trending_repos, which retrieve repos rather than alternatives to a given product.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines3/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Usage is implied by the phrasing: use it when you want alternatives to a named product, optionally constrained by platform. However, it never states when to prefer this over sibling tools like search_repos, nor what inputs make it fail (e.g. unknown app). The guidance is present but inferential rather than explicit.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

All RepoAlerts tools Inspect

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