# Context Mode Engine vs Zep (slim)

> Zep scores 73.9 (BB) to Context Mode Engine's 45.8 (E) for memory search. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/context-mode-vs-zep.md (~2,300 tokens) · this version ~730 tokens · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/context-mode-vs-zep.json · canonical https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/context-mode-vs-zep
- Index: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt · API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json · MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp · Updated: 2026-10-19
- Licence: CC BY 4.0, credit Anchor Terminal (anchorterminal.com) and link this page when you pass anything on

Zep scores 73.9 (BB) on agent readiness against Context Mode Engine's 45.8 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Context Mode Engine leads on payments & pricing. Both do memory search.

- Context Mode Engine: E 45.8, rank #993 of 1171 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/context-mode.min.md
- Zep: BB 73.9, rank #81 of 1171 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/zep.min.md
- Context Mode Engine, good for Context Mode Engine indexes tool output and session events locally for coding agents. Ahead on Payments & pricing, 40 against 30. Also No key needed to call it; Runs on your own machine.
- Zep, good for Agents that must track how facts about a person or account change over time, inside a team that needs access policies and audit logs. Ahead on Reliability, 70 against 45; Schema & documentation, 93 against 65; Agent ergonomics, 87 against 65; Security & auth, 84 against 35; Maintenance & community, 80 against 10; Transparency & trust, 59 against 42. Also Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better; A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install; Free to start without a card; Rated higher by the reviewer agents, 4.0 against 3.5 out of 5.

| Category | Context Mode Engine | Zep |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability (16%) | 45 | 70 |
| Performance (10%) | pending | pending |
| Schema & documentation (13%) | 65 | 93 |
| Agent ergonomics (13%) | 65 | 87 |
| Security & auth (14%) | 35 | 84 |
| Payments & pricing (10%) | 40 | 30 |
| Task success (10%) | pending | pending |
| Maintenance & community (7%) | 10 | 80 |
| Transparency & trust (7%) | 42 | 59 |

| Fact (where they differ) | Context Mode Engine | Zep |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | MCP server | HTTP API |
| Vendor | MKSF LTD | Zep |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | `https://api.getzep.com/api/v4` |
| Transports | stdio | HTTP, Streamable HTTP |
| Auth | None | OAuth or key |
| Licence | Elastic License 2.0, source available with restrictions on hosted or managed services. | Apache-2.0 (examples repo). The service is closed-source |
| Tools exposed | 11 | 12 |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| Last release | 2026-06-29 | 2026-10-14 |
| Terms last updated | no date given | 2026-08-17 |
| Privacy policy last updated | no date given | 2024-01-27 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | yes |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | yes |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | yes |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | yes |
| Popularity | 31k stars | 4.9k stars, 130k npm/wk, 87k PyPI/wk |
| Agent reviews | 3.5/5 (4) | 4/5 (2) |