What is basic-memory?
basic-memory is a MCP server by basicmachines-co that local-first AI memory: a semantic knowledge graph of Markdown files that humans and LLMs both read and write, with optional cloud sync and team workspaces. It is listed under Knowledge & memory and has 4,260 GitHub stars.
| Type | Mcp server |
|---|---|
| Author | basicmachines-co |
| Repository | basicmachines-co/basic-memory |
| Popularity | 4,260 GitHub stars |
| Category | Knowledge & memory |
| Security | Review before installing (72/100) |
| Rank | #97 of 4,418 MCP servers; #6 in Knowledge & memory |
| License | AGPL-3.0 |
| Last commit | 2026-10-16 |
| Stars this week | +118 |
| Runs | Locally and in the cloud |
| Language | Python |
| Platforms | macOS, Windows, Linux |
Is basic-memory safe to install?
basic-memory scores 72/100 on the MCPMods security check: Review before installing. Things to review: sends your data to a cloud service; can take actions such as send, write or deploy. It passed 3 of 6 checks.
MCP server results come from listing signals: who publishes it, where your data goes and what it can do. The code itself is not scanned yet.
| Check | Result |
|---|---|
| Community-built server | Note |
| Sends your data to a cloud service | Review |
| No credentials mentioned | Pass |
| Can take actions such as send, write or deploy | Review |
| No code execution | Pass |
| Source on GitHub | Pass |
How do I install basic-memory?
- Find the launch command. The README says how the server starts (npx, uvx, docker or a remote URL) and which API keys it needs.
https://github.com/basicmachines-co/basic-memory
- Add it to Claude Code. Replace the part after -- with the command from the README. Remote servers use --transport http with a URL.
claude mcp add basic-memory -- <command from README> claude mcp add --transport http basic-memory <server-url>
- Check it connected. This lists your MCP servers and their status.
claude mcp list
Or ask Claude to set it up
Paste this into Claude Code and it installs basic-memory for you:
Add the "basic-memory" MCP server from https://github.com/basicmachines-co/basic-memory to Claude Code. Read its README for the launch command and any API keys I need, run claude mcp add, then check that it connects.