Which Mode Should I Use?

cesium-mcp offers four integration paths that share the same Cesium command layer. Choose based on where the agent runs and who owns the model connection.

Decision tree

What are you trying to do?
│
├─ Let a compatible browser agent use tools from the current page
│   └─→ Path 1: WebMCP
│
├─ Try AI + Cesium quickly with a ready-made chat UI
│   └─→ Path 2: Hosted Browser Agent demo
│
├─ Embed your own AI assistant into an existing web app
│   └─→ Path 3: Bridge + function calling
│
└─ Call Cesium from Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Dify, or n8n
    └─→ Path 4: MCP runtime

Side-by-side

Aspect	WebMCP	Hosted Browser Agent	Function calling	MCP runtime
Agent runs in	Compatible browser	Web application	Your web application	Desktop client or workflow platform
MCP service required	No	No	No	Yes
Model required by package	No	Demo provides one	Yes, application-owned	MCP client-owned
Tool surface	15 core or 61 browser-safe tools	Auto-routed bundles up to 20, or all 61 + 61 WebMCP tools	Application-selected	Runtime toolsets
Best for	Agent-ready websites	Evaluation and demonstrations	Product AI assistants	MCP ecosystem integration
Start here	WebMCP guide	Live demo	Browser Agent source	Getting Started

Path 1: WebMCP

Install cesium-mcp-webmcp in the page and register the tools on document.modelContext. A compatible browser agent discovers and executes them without a backend MCP server.

Choose this when:

• You want your website itself to expose Cesium capabilities to browser agents.
• You do not want to run cesium-mcp-runtime for each user.
• Your application will remain useful in browsers without WebMCP support.

WebMCP does not provide an AI model or chat interface. See the WebMCP browser integration guide.

Path 2: Hosted Browser Agent

Try the Cesium Agent Lab to experience natural-language map control without installing a local MCP service. Its built-in AI chat and WebMCP registration are independent features.

Choose this for product evaluation, teaching, demonstrations, and a reference deployment.

Path 3: Bridge + function calling

Use cesium-mcp-bridge as the execution layer and connect it to the model provider and agent loop owned by your application.

Choose this when you need full control over prompts, model selection, authentication, tool selection, logs, and usage limits. Keep model API keys behind your own server-side /api/chat endpoint instead of exposing them in the browser.

Path 4: MCP runtime

npx cesium-mcp-runtime
npx cesium-mcp-runtime --transport http --port 3211

Choose this for Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Dify, n8n, or any external MCP client. This path runs a Node.js MCP service and connects to the browser bridge over WebSocket.

Still unsure?

Try the hosted demo first. If your goal is to make your own website discoverable to browser agents, continue with WebMCP. If an external MCP client must control the globe, use the MCP runtime.