sverklo
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Sverklo vs codebase-memory-mcp

Both are code intelligence MCP servers that index your codebase locally for AI agents. Sverklo combines hybrid search with PR review workflows and persistent memory. codebase-memory-mcp is a single C binary that builds a knowledge graph with sub-millisecond query speed across 66 languages. This page is an honest comparison to help you pick the right tool for your project.

Feature comparison

Sverklo codebase-memory-mcp
License MIT Free for all use MIT Free for all use
GitHub stars Growing 1.6k
Install npm install (Node.js, pure JS, no native bindings) Single C binary (no runtime dependencies)
Search Hybrid BM25 + vector embeddings + PageRank scoring Knowledge graph queries, sub-ms response time
Memory system Git-pinned (memories tied to SHA, staleness detection) Knowledge graph acts as persistent memory
PR review Diff-aware with risk scoring and CI gate (--fail-on) Not included
Blast-radius analysis Yes (trace impact of changes through dependency graph) Not included
Languages 10 via tree-sitter 66 via tree-sitter (C parser)
Indexing speed Incremental reindex with live file watching Linux kernel in ~3 minutes
Web dashboard Yes No
GitHub Action Yes (open-source) No
Runtime Node.js None (static C binary)

When to use each

Choose Sverklo when

  • Your workflow includes PR review with automated risk scoring
  • You need hybrid search that combines text, vector, and graph signals
  • Git-pinned memory with staleness detection matters for your team
  • Blast-radius analysis is important for understanding change impact
  • You want a web dashboard for browsing code intelligence
  • You need a CI-integrated GitHub Action for automated review

Choose codebase-memory-mcp when

  • You work with many languages (66 supported vs 10)
  • You want a single binary with zero runtime dependencies
  • Raw indexing speed is critical (massive codebases)
  • Sub-millisecond query response time matters
  • You prefer minimal tooling: one binary, one knowledge graph
  • You want to avoid Node.js as a dependency

Architecture notes

Sverklo uses SQLite with a hybrid retrieval pipeline (BM25 + ONNX embeddings + PageRank graph centrality). It includes diff-aware PR review, git-pinned memory, and a web dashboard. The trade-off: it requires Node.js and currently supports 10 languages.

codebase-memory-mcp uses a single C binary that builds a knowledge graph from your codebase using tree-sitter parsing across 66 languages. Its focus is speed and simplicity: no runtime dependencies, sub-millisecond queries, and the ability to index massive codebases like the Linux kernel in minutes. The trade-off: no PR review, no git-aware memory, and no web interface.

Try Sverklo

MIT licensed. One command. Works with every MCP client.

$ npm install -g sverklo && sverklo init

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