This guide gets the Sequel MCP server running inside your AI tool. By the end you'll have a connected data source and an agent answering questions against it.
Create an account and connect a data source
Sign up at sequel.sh and create or join an organization. Then add a data source — a cloud Postgres or MySQL database, a warehouse like BigQuery, or a SaaS source like Stripe or Google Analytics. See Connecting your first data source for the full walkthrough. Everything you connect becomes available to the MCP server.
Install the Sequel CLI
The CLI is the fastest way to wire Sequel into a coding agent — it creates the API key and writes the config for you. One line installs it:
curl -fsSL https://sequel.sh/install | shThen sign in:
sequel loginInstall Sequel into your agent
Run install and pick your agent — Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Zed, Codex, or Claude Desktop — or pass its slug directly:
sequel install # interactive
sequel install cursor # or target one directlyThe CLI runs over the same hosted MCP endpoint every tool uses — https://api.sequel.sh/mcp — so you never touch the URL or key by hand. Prefer to configure a tool manually (or using ChatGPT, Claude.ai, or Gemini)? See Install Sequel MCP for copy-paste setup.
Ask your first question
Restart the agent, then try “What tables do we have, and how many rows are in each?” Go deeper with Chatting with your data.
Authentication: two ways to connect
Sequel supports two authentication methods for the MCP server. Pick whichever your tool supports best.
| Method | Best for | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| API key (Bearer token) | CLIs and editors — Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Zed, Codex, Gemini | You paste a static key into an Authorization: Bearer … header in the tool's config. |
| OAuth 2.0 | Connector-style clients — ChatGPT, Claude.ai | The tool registers itself and sends you through a sign-in + consent screen. No key to copy. |
API key
Create a key in the Sequel dashboard under Settings → API Keys. Keys look like sql_… and are shown once at creation — copy it then. Add it as a Bearer token:
Authorization header
Authorization: Bearer sql_your_api_keyWhen you install from the dashboard, Sequel auto-provisions a key named sequel_mcp and drops it straight into the snippet for you.
OAuth
For clients that support it, OAuth avoids copying keys around. The flow is standard OAuth 2.0 with PKCE: the client registers itself automatically, you sign in on a Sequel consent screen, and Sequel issues a short-lived access token (refreshed automatically) scoped to your organization. Revoke access any time from the dashboard.
Either method only ever exposes the data sources your organization has connected — see API keys & authentication for the full details.
Next step
Head to Install Sequel MCP for copy-paste setup instructions for every supported AI tool.