How to connect GitLab to Cursor

Checked against Cursor's documentation on Oct 26, 2026. Commands and config blocks are generated from the same install data as each listing page.

1. 1. Check what you need

   Cursor has to be able to run npx, which depends on Node.js. Confirm it with the node --version block.

   node --version

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   • It can take GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN and GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN (next step).

2. 2. Get GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN and GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN

   A personal token suits local use and a job token suits GitLab CI runs, per the listing's descriptions. Create whichever applies in your GitLab account and keep it private.

   • GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN (optional): GitLab personal access token for local stdio use. A non-empty value overrides GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN_FILE. One of this token, GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN_FILE, GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN, GITLAB_AUTH_COOKIE_PATH, or GITLAB_USE_OAUTH=true must be set. Create a token with the GitLab scopes the tools need, such as api or read_api.
   • GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN (optional): Optional GitLab CI job token to use instead of a personal access token when running inside GitLab CI.

3. 3. Add GitLab MCP Server to Cursor

   The JSON entry hands both variables to the server through an env block that reads from Cursor's own environment, and a shell export provides the values. The package itself is launched with npx.

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "gitlab-mcp": {
         "command": "npx",
         "args": [
           "-y",
           "@zereight/mcp-gitlab@2.3.7"
         ],
         "env": {
           "GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN": "${env:GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN}",
           "GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN": "${env:GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN}"
         }
       }
     }
   }

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   export GITLAB_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN="paste-your-value-here"
   export GITLAB_JOB_TOKEN="paste-your-value-here"

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   • Cursor expands ${env:NAME} from its own environment, so the variable has to be set where Cursor starts.

4. 4. Restart or reload if it does not appear

   If nothing appears in Cursor after saving the config, this step collects the restart wording and the tool-approval behavior from its docs.

   • The docs do not say whether editing mcp.json needs a restart. They tell you to restart Cursor after updating files of a custom local server.
   • Cursor asks for approval before an agent uses an MCP tool unless you allowlist it.