github-mcp-lite

A small Model Context Protocol server for GitHub — nine tools, PAT auth, stdio transport.

The official github/github-mcp-server covers a lot of ground (60+ tools). Handy for org admin and security workflows, but heavy if you mostly read files, scan PRs, and file issues. GitHub's been nudging people toward smaller tool sets for that reason (changelog, notes on token use).

This repo is the opposite end: fixed scope, short tool list, easy to skim before you plug it into an MCP host.

Install

git clone https://github.com/benjimkh/github-mcp-lite.git
cd github-mcp-lite
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -e .

Run it:

export GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_...
github-mcp-lite

MCP client config (stdio):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "github-mcp-lite": {
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/github-mcp-lite/.venv/bin/github-mcp-lite",
      "env": {
        "GITHUB_TOKEN": "ghp_your_token_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

See examples/mcp-client.json.

Related MCP server: MCP GitHub CrunchTools

Tools

No gists, notifications, or org settings — that's intentional.

Benchmark

Ballpark tool/schema footprint vs the official server:

python3 benchmark/measure_schema_size.py

Background: docs/context-budget-guide.md.

This repo vs official github-mcp-server

License

MIT — see LICENSE. PRs welcome; see CONTRIBUTING.md.