jq-mcp-server

Provides an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that exposes `jq` as an MCP tool, executing jq expressions over provided JSON input. Communicates via JSON-RPC over stdin/stdout and is intended to run in a minimal container; jq is invoked via Go exec with context.

Evaluated Apr 04, 2026 (16d ago)

Repo ↗ Automation mcp json jq data-transformation go command-execution agent-tools

⚙ Agent Friendliness

/ 100

Can an agent use this?

🔒 Security

/ 100

Is it safe for agents?

⚡ Reliability

/ 100

Does it work consistently?

Score Breakdown

⚙ Agent Friendliness

MCP Quality

Documentation

Error Messages

Auth Simplicity

100

Rate Limits

🔒 Security

TLS Enforcement

100

Auth Strength

Scope Granularity

Dep. Hygiene

Secret Handling

README claims execution safety via Go `exec.CommandContext`, non-root user (UID 1000), minimal scratch-based container, and no shell injection vulnerabilities. However, there is no mention of auth, sandboxing/quotas for jq execution, resource limits, or how errors are returned. Scratch/minimal image reduces attack surface but does not by itself prevent denial-of-service from expensive jq expressions.

⚡ Reliability

Uptime/SLA

Version Stability

Breaking Changes

Error Recovery

Best When

You have an MCP-compatible host/agent and you want a lightweight, deterministic JSON transform/query primitive via jq.

Avoid When

You cannot control or constrain jq inputs/expressions (potential resource exhaustion) or you require network APIs/SDKs beyond MCP stdin/stdout.

Use Cases

• Use an LLM or MCP client to transform/query JSON using jq expressions
• Data extraction from JSON payloads (e.g., logs, API responses)
• On-the-fly JSON filtering without writing custom code
• Building MCP-based automations that need deterministic JSON transformation

Not For

• Executing untrusted jq expressions without sandboxing concerns
• Long-running/expensive jq operations without timeouts and limits
• Using as an HTTP/web service for external clients (stdin/stdout MCP only)

Interface

REST API

GraphQL

gRPC

MCP Server

Yes

SDK

Webhooks

Authentication

OAuth: No Scopes: No

No authentication described; the MCP server appears to be run locally (stdin/stdout) without auth mechanisms.

Pricing

Free tier: No

Requires CC: No

No pricing information provided.

Agent Metadata

Pagination

none

Idempotent

True

Retry Guidance

Not documented

Known Gotchas

⚠ jq expressions may fail on invalid JSON or syntax; server behavior and error payload format are not documented in the provided README
⚠ No documented resource/time limits: complex jq could cause high CPU/memory usage
⚠ No documented constraints/escaping rules beyond passing `content` as a string; agents should ensure proper JSON string encoding

Alternatives

Directly run jq in your own tooling/agent runtime Write a small custom API that wraps jq with explicit quotas and authentication Use another MCP tool provider for JSON transformation (if available) Use an embedded JSON query language/library in your application (e.g., JMESPath)

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Scores are editorial opinions as of 2026-04-04.