mcpbeat Sign in

Socrata MCP Server

answering

Socrata MCP Server is answering right now. Last checked 14 min ago. 81 installs a week from npm. It exposes 6 tools. Last commit 23 Aug 2026.

Search and query government open-data portals (Socrata SODA API).

Installs per day peak 157 · avg 20 · -13% w/w
a month agotoday
Uptime history 47 days of history · worst day 0%
47 days agonow
100.0%
Uptime 24h
91 of 91 checks
6
Tools
read from the server
362 ms
Response time
average over 24h
81
Installs / week
npm and PyPI

What changed 8

Every tool that appeared, vanished or quietly changed what it asks for. Recorded since 23 August 2026. No other catalogue keeps this.

22 Aug 6 tools changed the parameters they ask for socrata_dataframe_describe, socrata_dataframe_query, socrata_find_datasets and 3 more
22 Aug a tool description was rewritten socrata_dataframe_describe
22 Aug a tool changed version

Nothing serious here today

Today is the operative word: we check Socrata MCP Server 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 14 min ago.

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

This one needs environment variables set before it will start: SOCRATA_APP_TOKEN (Socrata app token (X-App-Token header). Without a token, requests share a throttled pool per source IP. Free to register at any Socrata portal.), SOCRATA_DEFAULT_DOMAIN (Default portal domain when domain is omitted from tool calls (e.g. data.seattle.gov, data.cityofnewyork.us).), MCP_HTTP_HOST (The hostname for the HTTP server.), MCP_HTTP_PORT (The port to run the HTTP server on.), MCP_HTTP_ENDPOINT_PATH (The endpoint path for the MCP server.), MCP_AUTH_MODE (Authentication mode to use: 'none', 'jwt', or 'oauth'.), MCP_LOG_LEVEL (Sets the minimum log level for output (e.g., 'debug', 'info', 'warn').). The author declared them in the registry entry; get the values from the project itself.

Available tools 6

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

socrata
socrata_dataframe_describe
List registered tables in a DataCanvas session — schema, row count, and column names. Shows what datasets are available for SQL queries via socrata_dataframe_query. Only meaningful when CANVAS_PROVIDER_TYPE=duckdb is set. Use after socrata_query_dataset spills a large result set to canvas.
socrata_dataframe_query
Run SELECT-only SQL against a DataCanvas table populated by socrata_query_dataset. DuckDB infers types from spilled data, so numeric columns that SODA returned as strings become queryable with numeric comparisons (year > 2020, amount < 500). Only works when CANVAS_PROVIDER_TYPE=duckdb is set. Use socrata_dataframe_describe to see registered tables and their schemas.
socrata_find_datasets
Search for datasets across all Socrata-powered government open-data portals, or scope to one portal with the domain parameter. Returns dataset IDs, names, abbreviated column lists, domains, and update timestamps. Use socrata_get_dataset to fetch the full typed column schema before writing queries — columnNames here are preview-only and lack type information.
socrata_get_dataset
Fetch full metadata and column schema for a Socrata dataset by ID. Returns field names, data types, descriptions, row count, and licensing. Always call this before writing a socrata_query_dataset — the column types determine correct WHERE clause syntax: Number columns accept bare literals (year=2023) while Text columns require single-quoted strings (year='2023').
socrata_list_portals
List known Socrata-powered government open-data portals with their domain, organization name, and approximate dataset count. The catalog is a curated list of 40 well-known portals; dataset counts are fetched from the Discovery API and cached for ~24 hours. Filtering is client-side substring match on the query parameter. Use this first when you do not know which portal to target, then pass the domain to socrata_find_datasets.
socrata_query_dataset
Execute a SoQL query against any dataset on any Socrata portal. Use the search parameter for quick full-text lookup, or combine select/where/group/having/order for full analytical control. Returns rows plus the assembled SoQL string so you can learn the pattern. All SODA 2.1 row values are strings even for numeric columns — check dataType from socrata_get_dataset to determine correct WHERE quoting: Number columns use bare literals (year=2023), Text columns use single-quoted strings (year='2023'). To enumerate distinct values, use select="col, count(*) as n" with group="col" and order="n DESC". When CANVAS_PROVIDER_TYPE=duckdb and rows fill the limit, results spill to a DataCanvas table for SQL-based analysis.

Endpoints

URLTransportStateLatencyChecked
https://socrata.caseyjhand.com/mcp streamable-http answering 383 ms 14 min ago

Alternatives to Socrata MCP Server

same job, measured the same way
Data Seattle
by pipeworx-io

DataSeattle MCP — Seattle open data (data.seattle.gov, Socrata SODA API).

34 tools answering
Arcgis Hub
by pipeworx-io

ArcGIS Hub — open government geospatial data (search + Feature Service query).

34 tools answering
Meta Data MCP
by derekslinz

Query 76 open data APIs — government, science, finance, environment, and more.

167 installs/wk local only
Data Cincinnati
by pipeworx-io

DataCincinnati MCP — Cincinnati open data (data.cincinnati-oh.gov, Socrata SODA API).

34 tools answering
Data Calgary
by pipeworx-io

DataCalgary MCP — Calgary open data (data.calgary.ca, Socrata SODA API).

34 tools answering
Data Cambridge
by pipeworx-io

DataCambridge MCP — Cambridge open data (data.cambridgema.gov, Socrata SODA API).

34 tools answering
Data Ny
by pipeworx-io

data.ny.gov — New York State open-data Socrata portal

35 tools answering
Data Austin
by pipeworx-io

DataAustin MCP — Austin, TX open data (data.austintexas.gov, Socrata SODA API).

34 tools answering

Socrata MCP Server — questions

Answers built from our own checks of this server.

What can Socrata MCP Server do?
It exposes 6 tools, read directly from the server on our last check. Among them: socrata_dataframe_describe, socrata_dataframe_query, socrata_find_datasets, socrata_get_dataset, socrata_list_portals, socrata_query_dataset. 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 Socrata MCP Server working right now?
We send a real MCP handshake every 15 minutes. Over the last 24 hours 91 of 91 checks got a reply (100.0%), average response time 362 ms. The bar chart above shows every period we have measured.
How do I connect Socrata MCP Server?
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 Socrata MCP Server need an API key?
No. Socrata MCP Server completed a full MCP handshake with us as an anonymous client and listed its tools without asking for anything. All 6 of them are readable on this page. This is what we observed, not what the docs claim.
How fast is Socrata MCP Server?
It answers our handshake in 362 ms on average, which is faster than 42% of all working MCP servers we measure. The comparison comes from our own checks across the whole registry, every 15 minutes.
How many people use Socrata MCP Server?
The npm package @cyanheads/socrata-mcp-server was installed 81 times in the last week. Week over week that is -13%. We show installs rather than GitHub stars on purpose: a star is a bookmark, an install is someone actually running it.
Is Socrata MCP Server open source?
Yes — it is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, written in TypeScript, 3 stars on GitHub and 8 open issues. The source link is on this page, so you can read exactly what it does with your data before you connect it.