GitLab MCP Server Introduction
Advanced GitLab MCP server providing AI agents with comprehensive access to the GitLab API.
Features
- 44 tools across 18 entity types covering the full GitLab API
- CQRS pattern —
browse_*for read operations,manage_*for writes - Multi-instance — Connect to multiple GitLab instances with per-instance OAuth and rate limiting
- Multiple transports — stdio, SSE, and StreamableHTTP
- OAuth 2.1 — Per-user authentication for teams via Claude Custom Connector
- Read-only mode — Safe operation for production environments
- Auto-discovery — Detects GitLab config from git remotes
- Fine-grained control — Enable/disable tool groups, filter actions, customize descriptions
- Tier detection — Automatically enables features based on your GitLab tier (per-namespace on gitlab.com)
Requirements
- Node.js >= 24.0.0 (required for native fetch with Undici dispatcher pattern)
- GitLab — Compatible with GitLab.com and self-hosted instances
Architecture
The server uses a CQRS (Command Query Responsibility Segregation) pattern:
| Pattern | Prefix | Purpose | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Query | browse_* | Read-only operations | browse_merge_requests |
| Command | manage_* | Write operations | manage_merge_request |
Each tool accepts an action parameter that selects the specific operation. This consolidates what would be many individual tools into a manageable set optimized for AI context windows.
Next Steps
- Quick Start — Get running in under a minute
- Installation — Detailed setup for your platform
- Configuration — Environment variables and options
- Multi-Instance — Connect to multiple GitLab instances
- Tool Reference — Complete list of available tools