What is FastMCP?
Latest launch Apache-2.0
Summary
Prefect's Apache-2.0 Python framework for building MCP servers, clients and apps; version 4 targets the 2026-07-28 MCP protocol revision.
- Category
- MCP servers
- Open source
- Yes
- License
- Apache-2.0
- MCP
- Yes
- Pricing
- Apache-2.0 and free to install from PyPI.
FastMCP is a Python framework for the server side and client side of the Model Context Protocol, maintained by Prefect at PrefectHQ/fastmcp under Apache-2.0. A server is a FastMCP object plus functions decorated with @mcp.tool. The framework builds the schemas, validates input and runs the transport. The same package has a Client(url) that negotiates the protocol from the other side, and a generate-cli command that turns a server into a command-line tool.
FastMCP 4 went stable on August 31, 2026. Per its release notes, it is built on the 2026-07-28 MCP revision and Python SDK v2. Modern requests are sessionless, so any replica behind a load balancer can answer them, and one deployment negotiates the protocol version for each connection.
Latest release covered: FastMCP 4.1.4, October 26, 2026. For ready-made servers instead of a framework, see the MCP reference servers and the GitHub MCP server.
FastMCP alternatives
| Tool | License | Pricing note |
|---|---|---|
FastMCPThis pagePrefect's Apache-2.0 Python framework for building MCP servers, clients and apps; version 4 targets the 2026-07-28 MCP protocol revision. | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 and free to install from PyPI. |
Model Context Protocol ServersGitHub repository of Model Context Protocol servers, shipped as npm and PyPI packages such as filesystem and git. | — | Not stated |
GitHub MCP serverGitHub's official MCP server: 92 tools in 22 toolsets, 45 on by default. Version 2.1.0 shipped November 3, 2026 with opt-in issue artifact tools. | Open source | The server repository is public. GitHub product charges, if any, are your existing GitHub plan. |
Launches and updates
FastMCP 4.1.4 adds rotating Redis credentials for tasks
FastMCPFastMCP 4.1.4 (October 26, 2026) supports rotating Redis credentials for tasks, excludes Redis 8.1.0 and fixes generated CLIs and mounted servers.
Category: MCP servers
Pricing: Open source
Questions
What is FastMCP?
A Python framework from Prefect for MCP servers, clients and interactive apps. You declare a tool as a decorated Python function, and FastMCP generates the schema, validation and docs and handles transports and auth.
Is FastMCP the same as the MCP Python SDK?
No. The README says FastMCP 1.0 was folded into the official MCP Python SDK in 2024, and the standalone project kept going. FastMCP 4, stable since August 31, 2026, is built on MCP Python SDK v2 and the 2026-07-28 protocol revision.
How do I install FastMCP?
pip install fastmcp. PyPI lists version 4.1.4 (October 26, 2026), Apache-2.0, requiring Python 3.10 or later.