# MCP server marketplaces compared

> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://workpods.ai/llms.txt)

The MCP server marketplace listings worth your time are LobeHub, the Hermes marketplace and Manufact: their pages rank for product-name searches, AI answers read them, and all three link to your site with followed links. List there after the [Claude connector directory](https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution/claude-connector-directory) and the [ChatGPT apps directory](https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution/chatgpt-apps-directory), which put your server inside the assistants themselves.

## What is an MCP server marketplace?

An MCP server marketplace is a website that lists MCP servers so people and AI agents can find them, read what they do and connect to them. A few, such as LobeHub and Hermes, install a server for an agent; most are catalogues people browse.

## Which MCP marketplaces matter most?

LobeHub, mcpservers.org and mcpmarket.com matter most for search and AI answers, and Glama matters most inside ChatGPT. Their listing pages already rank and get cited, so a listing there puts your server where people asking for the best MCP server will look.

| Marketplace | Cited in Google's AI answers | Cited in ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|
| mcpmarket.com | 1,901 | 17 |
| LobeHub | 1,124 | 13 |
| mcpservers.org | 865 | 15 |
| mcp.so | 288 | 12 |
| Glama | 149 | 64 |
| PulseMCP | 121 | 1 |

For search, the listing pages that rank for the most terms are on mcpservers.org (about 2,560), LobeHub (about 2,310), PulseMCP (about 890) and Glama (about 720). They rank for product names plus "mcp", such as "filesystem mcp server" or "polygon mcp", and not for broad terms. AI answers lean far harder on GitHub and Reddit than on any directory, so a public repository with a clear README belongs in the plan too.

## Is Smithery worth listing on?

Smithery is worth it for search, less so for AI answers. Its pages rank for about 2,450 searches across the site, but Google's AI answers cite it 119 times and ChatGPT twice, far behind LobeHub and mcpmarket.com.

If you list there, check the link on your live page before you count it as a backlink.

## Is Glama worth it?

Glama is the MCP directory ChatGPT cites most, so a complete Glama page is worth having even though it doesn't link to your site. You don't submit to it. Glama copies servers from the [official MCP Registry](https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution/mcp-registry), and our page appeared there on its own.

mcprush works the same way, listing servers from the registry and npm and linking only to the npm package. Count both as mentions that help AI answers find you.

## Which MCP marketplaces link back?

LobeHub, the Hermes marketplace and Manufact link to your site with followed links. mcpservers.org gives a followed link only on its paid listing, mcp.so's free tier is nofollow, and mcpmarket.com links to your GitHub repository rather than your site.

A link that appears only after JavaScript runs, or sits on a page whose canonical points elsewhere, is worth less than it looks. Before you trust any directory's link, [check it the way crawlers see it](https://workpods.ai/guides/saas-distribution/dofollow-vs-nofollow).

## How do I list on LobeHub?

Publish from the command line with LobeHub's market CLI, after signing in and connecting GitHub. LobeHub builds the listing from your repository's README, so every link in the README appears on the page.

```bash
# Sign in, then connect GitHub so LobeHub can check you own the repository
npx -y @lobehub/market-cli login
npx -y @lobehub/market-cli github connect

# Draft a manifest from your live server, then publish it
npx -y @lobehub/market-cli plugin init --url https://mcp.example.com/mcp --dir ./lobehub
npx -y @lobehub/market-cli plugin publish https://github.com/your-org/your-repo --dir ./lobehub
```

LobeHub asks for broad GitHub access, including private repositories. Authorize it without granting your organization. The ownership check on a public repository still works, and your private code stays out of reach.

## How do I get into the Hermes marketplace?

Open a pull request to the NousResearch/hermes-agent repository that adds one YAML file to `plugin-catalog/`, pinned to an exact commit of your plugin. Ours was merged within a day.

```yaml
name: agent-ready
title: Agent Ready Website Audit
repo: https://github.com/WorkPodsAgents/agent-ready
sha: aef0165b94c98b8c14123888e0419dbbb9cd384c
subdir: hermes
version: "1.0.0"
maintainer: WorkPods
category: tools
requires_hermes: ">=0.21.6"
```

The plugin is three small files in your repository: `plugin.json`, an `mcp.json` that points at your remote server, and a skill. Run `hermes plugins validate` on that folder before you open the pull request, and say in the description what your server records.

![MCP server marketplace listing for the agent-ready plugin on the Hermes marketplace, showing its description, the publisher WorkPods and an install button](hermes-marketplace-mcp-server-listing.webp "Our Hermes marketplace listing, which links to workpods.ai five times with followed links. Checked 11 Nov 2026.")

The links on our [Hermes listing](https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/marketplace/agent-ready) are in the HTML the server sends, so every crawler sees them.

## How does Manufact earn a link?

Manufact scores any MCP server you paste into its leaderboard, and the score page links to your website if your server names one. Our first score was 68 with no link to us; adding a description, website and icon to the handshake took it to 83 and added a followed link.

Every directory reads the same fields, so the fix helps on all of them. Part 5, on [MCP server metadata](https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution/mcp-server-metadata), has the code.

## Is a paid listing worth it?

Usually not for the link alone. mcpservers.org charges $39 for a followed link and an "Official" badge, and the free listing gives the same page and mention with a nofollow link.

Pay only if that page ranks for searches your buyers make. The followed links from LobeHub, Hermes and Manufact cost nothing.

## Where should a new MCP server start?

Publish to the official MCP Registry first, because it feeds Glama, mcprush and other directories on its own. Then list on LobeHub and Hermes, score your server on Manufact, and submit a free mcpservers.org listing.

1. [Publish to the MCP Registry](https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution/mcp-registry).
2. Add a description, website and icon to your server, so every listing can link back.
3. List on LobeHub and open the Hermes catalog pull request.
4. Score your server on Manufact and fix what it flags.
5. A week after each listing goes live, check what it really links to.

The whole series is ranked in [MCP servers for SEO and GEO](https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution). To see how search engines, AI answers and agents read your own site, run [Agent Ready](https://workpods.ai/tools/agent-ready); if you'd rather have the listings done for you, that's our [agent platform listing work](https://workpods.ai/axo/agent-platforms).

## Sources

- Listing-page rankings and AI citations: DataForSEO Labs ranked keywords, filtered to each directory's listing URLs, and DataForSEO AI mention data, US, November 2026. Both are sampled, so read them as signals of where attention goes, not as traffic.
- Link statuses: our checks of live listings in Chrome and with curl, 5 to 11 November 2026.
- Manufact scores: our leaderboard page, 11 November 2026.

## Questions buyers ask

### What is the best MCP server marketplace?

For search and AI answers, LobeHub and mcpservers.org; for ChatGPT citations, Glama; for agents that install servers themselves, LobeHub and Hermes. No single marketplace covers all of it, so list on four or five.

### Which MCP marketplaces give a followed link?

LobeHub, the Hermes marketplace and Manufact gave followed links in our checks. mcpservers.org gives one only on its paid listing, and Glama and mcprush don't link to your site.

### Do I need to list on every MCP marketplace?

No. The official MCP Registry feeds several directories automatically, and four or five listings cover most of the search and AI-answer value.

By Prateek Tomar · Reviewed by Shefali Munjal · Published 2026-11-12

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Source: https://workpods.ai/guides/mcp-distribution/mcp-marketplaces · WorkPods.ai, updated 2026-11-12