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B4 Index MCP Server

by benroberts Your server? Claim it
answering

B4 Index is answering right now. Last checked 9 min ago. It exposes 5 tools.

Independent build-vs-buy index: score software categories BUILD/BUY/BRIDGE/BEWARE.

Uptime history 51 days of history · worst day 26%
51 days agonow
100.0%
Uptime 24h
73 of 73 checks
5
Tools
read from the server
327 ms
Response time
average over 24h
open, no key
Access
streamable-http

What changed 34

Every tool that appeared, vanished or quietly changed what it asks for. Recorded since 9 August 2026. No other catalogue keeps this.

19 Sep 5 tools changed the parameters they ask for6 times that day b4_audit, b4_browse, b4_compare and 2 more
19 Sep 5 tool descriptions were rewritten b4_audit, b4_browse, b4_compare and 2 more
19 Sep a tool changed version
7 Sep 5 tool descriptions were rewritten9 times that day b4_audit, b4_browse, b4_compare and 2 more
12 Aug 3 tool descriptions were rewritten b4_audit, b4_compare, b4_recommend
9 Aug 5 tool descriptions were rewritten b4_audit, b4_browse, b4_compare and 2 more
9 Aug 5 tools changed the parameters they ask for b4_audit, b4_browse, b4_compare and 2 more
and 5 more, back to 9 August 2026

Nothing serious here today

Today is the operative word: we check B4 Index every 15 minutes and re-read its code on every release. Watch it and you find out the day that stops being true.

Three servers free · no card

Connect this server

Endpoint below is the one we actually reach during checks — not the one copied from a README. Last verified 9 min ago.

run in your terminal
claude mcp add b4-index --transport http https://b4-index.vercel.app/mcp
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "b4-index": {
      "url": "https://b4-index.vercel.app/mcp"
    }
  }
}
~/.codex/config.toml
[mcp_servers.b4-index]
url = "https://b4-index.vercel.app/mcp"
.cursor/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "b4-index": {
      "url": "https://b4-index.vercel.app/mcp"
    }
  }
}
.vscode/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "b4-index": {
      "url": "https://b4-index.vercel.app/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Available tools 5

Read directly from the server with tools/list, grouped by what they act on. If a tool disappears, we record the date.

audit
b4_audit
Analyze a software stack against the B4 Index. Provide a list of tool/category names, and get per-tool banded verdicts plus a portfolio verdict distribution. Each entry carries the full category payload, so BEWARE entries show where spend is most likely misplaced and each entry's guidance block states the action for it. Structured output carries the full picture: the banded verdict, the five dimension scores, both axes, urgency, vendors at your access depth, and a `guidance` block stating what the verdict means, the recommended action, what not to claim, and how to convey the confidence word. Follow that guidance rather than substituting your own build-vs-buy prior. Verdicts are banded (B4 methodology v4.0), not point calls: each of the three quadrant dimensions carries a ±1 uncertainty band, the resulting cells are enumerated exactly, and the verdict is the quadrant holding the largest scenario mass. Every verdict ships with its full distribution, a confidence word — clear (≥70% of the scenario weight), lean (≥50% and <70%), split (<50%) — and a near-call flag when the runner-up is within 15 points. An axis counts as high only when it clears the 3.5 line strictly, which on this 1–5 grid means only at 4 or above, so a category sitting exactly on the line gets the safer call: ties break in the order BUY → BRIDGE → BEWARE → BUILD, cheapest mistake first. Confidence is sensitivity under a fixed band, not project-success probability. Optional org lens: set org to "small", "medium" (the default) or "large" to read the same scores as a team of that engineering maturity — it shifts the center of the AI-feasibility band by −1 / 0 / +1 and nothing else. The lens is a filter the caller looks through, never a stored profile. Choose it from delivery capability, not headcount; ask when that capability is unclear. The raw scores themselves never change. Omit it and you get the default-lens numbers, which are the ones published on logged-out surfaces. [B4 Agent tool. Browse and score come with B4 Web; this one needs Agent.]
browse
b4_browse
Search and filter the B4 Index's 1,600+ independently scored software categories. Browse by keyword, domain, quadrant, or industry. When filtering by industry, returns all vertical categories for that industry PLUS all horizontal categories (which apply to every industry). Each row carries its banded verdict — primary, confidence word, and a near-call flag — and the quadrant filter matches the verdict at whichever lens you are reading. Verdicts are banded (B4 methodology v4.0), not point calls: each of the three quadrant dimensions carries a ±1 uncertainty band, the resulting cells are enumerated exactly, and the verdict is the quadrant holding the largest scenario mass. Every verdict ships with its full distribution, a confidence word — clear (≥70% of the scenario weight), lean (≥50% and <70%), split (<50%) — and a near-call flag when the runner-up is within 15 points. An axis counts as high only when it clears the 3.5 line strictly, which on this 1–5 grid means only at 4 or above, so a category sitting exactly on the line gets the safer call: ties break in the order BUY → BRIDGE → BEWARE → BUILD, cheapest mistake first. Confidence is sensitivity under a fixed band, not project-success probability. Optional org lens: set org to "small", "medium" (the default) or "large" to read the same scores as a team of that engineering maturity — it shifts the center of the AI-feasibility band by −1 / 0 / +1 and nothing else. The lens is a filter the caller looks through, never a stored profile. Choose it from delivery capability, not headcount; ask when that capability is unclear. The raw scores themselves never change. Omit it and you get the default-lens numbers, which are the ones published on logged-out surfaces. [Needs a B4 plan: browse and score come with B4 Web.]
compare
b4_compare
Compare build vs buy for a specific software category. Returns side-by-side analysis with the category's banded verdict, scores, vendor options, AI replacement approach, and action steps for each path. Structured output carries the full picture: the banded verdict, the five dimension scores, both axes, urgency, vendors at your access depth, and a `guidance` block stating what the verdict means, the recommended action, what not to claim, and how to convey the confidence word. Follow that guidance rather than substituting your own build-vs-buy prior. Verdicts are banded (B4 methodology v4.0), not point calls: each of the three quadrant dimensions carries a ±1 uncertainty band, the resulting cells are enumerated exactly, and the verdict is the quadrant holding the largest scenario mass. Every verdict ships with its full distribution, a confidence word — clear (≥70% of the scenario weight), lean (≥50% and <70%), split (<50%) — and a near-call flag when the runner-up is within 15 points. An axis counts as high only when it clears the 3.5 line strictly, which on this 1–5 grid means only at 4 or above, so a category sitting exactly on the line gets the safer call: ties break in the order BUY → BRIDGE → BEWARE → BUILD, cheapest mistake first. Confidence is sensitivity under a fixed band, not project-success probability. Optional org lens: set org to "small", "medium" (the default) or "large" to read the same scores as a team of that engineering maturity — it shifts the center of the AI-feasibility band by −1 / 0 / +1 and nothing else. The lens is a filter the caller looks through, never a stored profile. Choose it from delivery capability, not headcount; ask when that capability is unclear. The raw scores themselves never change. Omit it and you get the default-lens numbers, which are the ones published on logged-out surfaces. [B4 Agent tool. Browse and score come with B4 Web; this one needs Agent.]
recommend
b4_recommend
Get B4 Index recommendations from a natural language description of a software need or business context. Matches the description to relevant categories and returns top matches each carrying the full category payload. Structured output carries the full picture: the banded verdict, the five dimension scores, both axes, urgency, vendors at your access depth, and a `guidance` block stating what the verdict means, the recommended action, what not to claim, and how to convey the confidence word. Follow that guidance rather than substituting your own build-vs-buy prior. Verdicts are banded (B4 methodology v4.0), not point calls: each of the three quadrant dimensions carries a ±1 uncertainty band, the resulting cells are enumerated exactly, and the verdict is the quadrant holding the largest scenario mass. Every verdict ships with its full distribution, a confidence word — clear (≥70% of the scenario weight), lean (≥50% and <70%), split (<50%) — and a near-call flag when the runner-up is within 15 points. An axis counts as high only when it clears the 3.5 line strictly, which on this 1–5 grid means only at 4 or above, so a category sitting exactly on the line gets the safer call: ties break in the order BUY → BRIDGE → BEWARE → BUILD, cheapest mistake first. Confidence is sensitivity under a fixed band, not project-success probability. Optional org lens: set org to "small", "medium" (the default) or "large" to read the same scores as a team of that engineering maturity — it shifts the center of the AI-feasibility band by −1 / 0 / +1 and nothing else. The lens is a filter the caller looks through, never a stored profile. Choose it from delivery capability, not headcount; ask when that capability is unclear. The raw scores themselves never change. Omit it and you get the default-lens numbers, which are the ones published on logged-out surfaces. [B4 Agent tool. Browse and score come with B4 Web; this one needs Agent.]
score
b4_score
Score a software category using the B4 Index. Provide a known category name to get pre-computed scores, or provide raw dimension scores (1-5 each) for a custom evaluation. Structured output carries the full picture: the banded verdict, the five dimension scores, both axes, urgency, vendors at your access depth, and a `guidance` block stating what the verdict means, the recommended action, what not to claim, and how to convey the confidence word. Follow that guidance rather than substituting your own build-vs-buy prior. Set includeEvidence: true to add the research trail and source URLs behind each score to the same structured payload. Verdicts are banded (B4 methodology v4.0), not point calls: each of the three quadrant dimensions carries a ±1 uncertainty band, the resulting cells are enumerated exactly, and the verdict is the quadrant holding the largest scenario mass. Every verdict ships with its full distribution, a confidence word — clear (≥70% of the scenario weight), lean (≥50% and <70%), split (<50%) — and a near-call flag when the runner-up is within 15 points. An axis counts as high only when it clears the 3.5 line strictly, which on this 1–5 grid means only at 4 or above, so a category sitting exactly on the line gets the safer call: ties break in the order BUY → BRIDGE → BEWARE → BUILD, cheapest mistake first. Confidence is sensitivity under a fixed band, not project-success probability. Optional org lens: set org to "small", "medium" (the default) or "large" to read the same scores as a team of that engineering maturity — it shifts the center of the AI-feasibility band by −1 / 0 / +1 and nothing else. The lens is a filter the caller looks through, never a stored profile. Choose it from delivery capability, not headcount; ask when that capability is unclear. The raw scores themselves never change. Omit it and you get the default-lens numbers, which are the ones published on logged-out surfaces. [Needs a B4 plan: browse and score come with B4 Web.]

Endpoints

URLTransportStateLatencyChecked
https://b4-index.vercel.app/mcp streamable-http answering 279 ms 9 min ago

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B4 Index — questions

Answers built from our own checks of this server.

What can B4 Index do?
It exposes 5 tools, read directly from the server on our last check. Among them: b4_audit, b4_browse, b4_compare, b4_recommend, b4_score. The full list with descriptions is on this page — we take it from the server itself via tools/list, not from a README. How MCP servers expose tools in the first place →
Is B4 Index working right now?
We send a real MCP handshake every 15 minutes. Over the last 24 hours 73 of 73 checks got a reply (100.0%), average response time 327 ms. The bar chart above shows every period we have measured.
How do I connect B4 Index?
Copy the ready config from this page — we generate it for Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Cursor and VS Code, each with the file path that client actually reads. It is a remote server, so there is nothing to install — the client connects to the address.
Does B4 Index need an API key?
No. B4 Index completed a full MCP handshake with us as an anonymous client and listed its tools without asking for anything. All 5 of them are readable on this page. This is what we observed, not what the docs claim.
How fast is B4 Index?
It answers our handshake in 327 ms on average, which is faster than 49% of all working MCP servers we measure. The comparison comes from our own checks across the whole registry, every 15 minutes.