Comparisons · Facts checked 3 September 2026
Pomeroy vs iMCP
iMCP is a free, open-source Mac app that gives Claude your Calendar, Contacts, Location, Maps, Messages, Reminders, Shortcuts and Weather; it has no Mail or Notes and no automatic updates. Pomeroy is $19 once, covers 8 apps including Mail and Notes, updates itself, and cannot send anything. Pick iMCP if you like open source and the terminal; pick Pomeroy if you want Mail and Notes from something that looks after itself.
Free for 50 actions a week. No account, no card. Or visit iMCP.
Side by side
Pomeroy’s column is read from the same source as its pricing page. iMCP’s column was checked against the sources listed at the foot of this page on 3 September 2026; if something has changed since, tell us and it will be corrected.
| Facet | Pomeroy | iMCP |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19 once, no subscription. Free for 50 actions a week with no account or card. 14-day refund. | Free. MIT licence. |
| Apps | 8 Apple apps: Mail, Calendar, Reminders, Notes, Contacts, Messages, Maps and Shortcuts. | 8 services: Calendar, Contacts, Location, Maps, Messages, Reminders, Shortcuts and Weather. No Mail, no Notes. |
| Reading and writing | Read-mostly. Claude can create events, reminders and notes, and run Shortcuts you already made. It cannot send mail or a message, and it cannot edit or delete a contact. | Creates calendar events and reminders and runs Shortcuts. Reads Messages and Contacts; cannot send a message or edit a contact. |
| Works with | Claude Desktop. | Claude Desktop and any MCP client that runs a local command. |
| Requires | macOS 15 or later. | macOS 15.3 or later. |
| Setup | Open the app, switch on the apps you want, press one button. The Claude extension installs itself: no Terminal, no config file. | Download the app or install the Homebrew cask, then choose Configure Claude Desktop from the menu bar; it writes the server into Claude's config file. Restart Claude and approve the connection. |
| Updates | Signed automatic updates, which you can switch off. | No in-app updater. New builds come from GitHub releases or the Homebrew cask. |
| Maintenance | Actively developed. Every release is listed on the changelog and reaches installed copies by itself. | Last release 1.4.1 on 7 May 2025. Commits resumed on the main branch in September 2026 after a quiet year; 34 issues open, one of them asking about the project's future. |
| Source | Closed source. The privacy pledge is enforced by tests, not read. | Open source, MIT. About 1,500 GitHub stars. |
| Privacy | Your app data never leaves your Mac. The only requests are a licence check, an update check and four pseudonymous usage counts, all listed on the privacy page; a test fails if the code and that page disagree. | Runs locally in a sandboxed, signed menu-bar app. Open source, so what it does with your data is there to read. |
What iMCP does well
- Free, and open source under the MIT licence: you can read every line, build it yourself and fix what bothers you.
- Weather and your current location, which Pomeroy does not offer.
- Works with any MCP client, not only Claude Desktop.
- A sandboxed, Developer ID-signed app written in Swift by a well-known maintainer.
What Pomeroy does well
- Mail and Notes, the two apps most people ask for first, which iMCP does not cover.
- Signed automatic updates, so a macOS release does not leave you on a build nobody has touched.
- One-button setup with no config file to edit and no Terminal.
- A read-mostly design: no tool exists that can send mail, send a message or edit a contact.
- A privacy pledge held by tests, not just a README.
Choose iMCP if…
- You prefer open source you can read, build and patch yourself.
- You want Weather and your current location alongside Calendar, Contacts, Maps, Messages and Reminders.
- You do not need Mail or Notes.
- You use an MCP client other than Claude Desktop.
Choose Pomeroy if…
- You want Claude in Mail and Notes as well as Calendar, Messages and Reminders.
- You want an app that updates itself and keeps working across macOS releases without you checking GitHub.
- You want a firm guarantee that Claude cannot send anything from your Mac.
- You are happy to pay $19 once for something maintained.
Is iMCP still maintained?
Yes, at the time of writing. The last tagged release is 1.4.1 from 7 May 2025, and for about a year afterwards issues went unanswered, to the point that users opened one titled “Status and future of iMCP”. Commits started landing on the main branch again in September 2026. Check the repository before you rely on it; this page states what was true on the date at the top.
Does iMCP work with Apple Mail or Notes?
No. iMCP covers Calendar, Contacts, Location, Maps, Messages, Reminders, Shortcuts and Weather. It has no Mail or Notes service. Pomeroy covers Mail and Notes, and does not cover Weather or your current location.
Is iMCP free and Pomeroy paid?
Yes. iMCP is MIT-licensed, and Pomeroy is a commercial app whose source is not published. Pomeroy costs $19 once after a free allowance of 50 actions a week. What Pomeroy sends over the network is listed on its privacy page and checked by tests, which is the closest a closed-source app can come to letting you read the code.
Is Pomeroy an iMCP alternative?
Yes, if you use Claude Desktop and want Mail and Notes. Pomeroy covers the same Calendar, Contacts, Maps, Messages, Reminders and Shortcuts as iMCP, adds Mail and Notes, and leaves out Weather and your current location. It installs from one button, updates itself, and cannot send anything. It costs $19 once where iMCP is free, and it works only with Claude Desktop, so it is not a replacement if you use another MCP client.
Try Pomeroy free and decide for yourself.
Get 50 actions every week. No Pomeroy account or payment card required. Requires macOS 15 or later.