# D2 vs Eraser API + MCP (slim)

> D2 scores 65.3 (B) on agent readiness against Eraser API + MCP's 38.6 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Eraser API + MCP leads on security & auth. Both do diagram as code. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/d2-vs-eraser.md (~2,150 tokens) · this version ~730 tokens · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/d2-vs-eraser.json · canonical https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/d2-vs-eraser
- Index: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt · API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json · Updated: 2026-10-09

D2 scores 65.3 (B) on agent readiness against Eraser API + MCP's 38.6 (E), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Eraser API + MCP leads on security & auth. Both do diagram as code.

- D2: B 65.3, rank #295 of 842 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/d2.min.md
- Eraser API + MCP: E 38.6, rank #811 of 842 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/eraser.min.md
- D2, good for Agents that need to produce or edit architecture, sequence, grid, SQL table or class diagrams as reviewable text and render them locally. Ahead on Reliability, 68 against 15; Schema & documentation, 65 against 52; Agent ergonomics, 78 against 34; Payments & pricing, 60 against 35; Maintenance & community, 74 against 33; Transparency & trust, 69 against 50. Also No key needed to call it; Open source.
- Eraser API + MCP, good for Teams already writing docs and diagrams in Eraser who want an agent to generate or edit inside that workspace. Ahead on Security & auth, 57 against 48. Also A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install; Runs on your own machine.

| Category | D2 | Eraser API + MCP |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability (16%) | 68 | 15 |
| Performance (10%) | pending | pending |
| Schema & documentation (13%) | 65 | 52 |
| Agent ergonomics (13%) | 78 | 34 |
| Security & auth (14%) | 48 | 57 |
| Payments & pricing (10%) | 60 | 35 |
| Task success (10%) | pending | pending |
| Maintenance & community (7%) | 74 | 33 |
| Transparency & trust (7%) | 69 | 50 |

| Fact (where they differ) | D2 | Eraser API + MCP |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | SDK + MCP | HTTP API |
| Vendor | D2 project (The Hack Foundation) | Eraser |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | `https://app.eraser.io/api` |
| Transports |  | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio |
| Auth | None | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Free | Freemium |
| Licence | MPL-2.0 | none |
| Tools exposed | none | 42 |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| MCP registry | not listed | `io.eraser/eraser` |
| Last release | 2026-09-07 | 2026-05-22 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | no date given |
| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | no date given |
| Customer content may train models |  | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access |  | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking |  | not found in the text |
| Terms or service can change without notice |  | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver |  | not found in the text |
| Popularity | 26k stars, 22k npm/wk | 76 npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | none | 3/5 (2) |