PostgreSQL

by Model Context Protocol

v0.6.2

MIT

Repository Docs npm

Databases & Data

databasepostgressqlread-only

Summary

Read-only PostgreSQL access with automatic schema inspection — the reference MCP server for Postgres.

Features

Read-only SQL access to any PostgreSQL database
Automatic schema inspection for every table
Single-argument setup with a connection string

Installation

Set up this MCP server in your favorite AI agent — copy a ready-made configuration below.

Any MCP-compatible agent

Most agents (Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code, and more) read a standard mcpServers configuration.

Open your agent's MCP configuration file.
Merge the snippet below into it.
Restart the agent — the "PostgreSQL" tools will be available.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "postgres-reference": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres",
        "postgresql://localhost/mydb"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Claude Code

Add the server with a single CLI command.

claude mcp add postgres-reference -- npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres postgresql://localhost/mydb

Claude Desktop

Add the server to claude_desktop_config.json (Settings → Developer → Edit Config).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "postgres-reference": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres",
        "postgresql://localhost/mydb"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Cursor

{
  "command": "npx",
  "args": [
    "-y",
    "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres",
    "postgresql://localhost/mydb"
  ]
}

Windsurf

{
  "command": "npx",
  "args": [
    "-y",
    "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres",
    "postgresql://localhost/mydb"
  ]
}

VS Code

{
  "command": "npx",
  "args": [
    "-y",
    "@modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres",
    "postgresql://localhost/mydb"
  ]
}

Description

The reference PostgreSQL MCP server gives an assistant read-only access to a database, along with the schema information it needs to write correct queries.

What it does

Read-only query execution. Every statement runs inside a read-only transaction, so an assistant cannot modify data even if it decides to try.
Schema resources. Each table is exposed as a resource with its column names and types, so the model works from the actual schema rather than inferring one from table names.

Why the read-only constraint is the point

Giving a language model write access to a production database is a decision that deserves more thought than a config file entry. This server removes the question entirely, which makes it a sensible default for analysis, debugging, and answering questions about data.

Setup

One argument — the connection string — and you are running: npx -y @modelcontextprotocol/server-postgres postgresql://host/db. For write access or broader database support, DBHub and vendor-specific servers are better choices.

Part of the MCP reference server collection, now maintained in the archived servers repository.

Related MCP Servers

Featured

DBHub

by Bytebase

A universal database MCP server — one integration for PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server, SQLite, and MariaDB.

Databases & Data

databasesqlmulti-database

Featured

MongoDB

by MongoDB

MongoDB's official MCP server — query databases, explore schemas, and manage Atlas clusters from an AI client.

Databases & Data

databasenosqlmongodb

Upstash Redis

by Upstash

Run Redis commands against Upstash's serverless Redis over HTTP, with documentation search built in.

Databases & Data

redisserverlesscache

dbt

by dbt Labs

dbt Labs' official MCP server — explore project metadata, run dbt commands, and query the Semantic Layer.

Databases & Data

datadbtanalytics

Browse all MCP servers →