GitLab MCP Server

MCP server for GitLab — supports both HTTP and stdio transport.

Features

• Search projects
• List & inspect merge requests + diffs
• Review, comment, approve / reject MR
• Open & merge MR
• Trigger & monitor pipelines

Quickstart (stdio — recommended for local use)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gitlab-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gd-gitlab-mcp", "--stdio"],
      "env": {
        "GITLAB_BASE_URL": "https://gitlab.example.com",
        "GITLAB_TOKEN": "YOUR_GITLAB_PAT"
      }
    }
  }
}

GITLAB_TOKEN — GitLab Personal Access Token with api scope.

Transport Modes

Mode 1: stdio (local, no server needed)

The MCP client spawns the process directly. Configure as shown above.

VS Code (mcp.json)

{
  "servers": {
    "gitlab-mcp": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gd-gitlab-mcp", "--stdio"],
      "env": {
        "GITLAB_BASE_URL": "https://gitlab.example.com",
        "GITLAB_TOKEN": "YOUR_GITLAB_PAT"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop / Claude Code (~/.claude/mcp.json)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "gitlab-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "gd-gitlab-mcp", "--stdio"],
      "env": {
        "GITLAB_BASE_URL": "https://gitlab.example.com",
        "GITLAB_TOKEN": "YOUR_GITLAB_PAT"
      }
    }
  }
}

Mode 2: HTTP server (shared / team deployment)

Run the server once, multiple users connect via URL. Each user provides their own PAT per request via header — the token is never stored server-side.

Requirements

• Node.js 20+

Environment

GITLAB_BASE_URL=https://gitlab.example.com
PORT=4000  # optional, default 4000

Run

npm install
npm run build
npm start

Server listens at http://localhost:4000/mcp.

Docker

docker build -t gd-gitlab-mcp:latest .
docker run --rm -p 4000:4000 \
  -e GITLAB_BASE_URL=https://gitlab.example.com \
  gd-gitlab-mcp:latest

VS Code (mcp.json)

{
  "servers": {
    "gitlab-mcp": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "http://localhost:4000/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "x-gitlab-token": "YOUR_GITLAB_PAT"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Code CLI

claude mcp add --transport http --scope user gitlab-mcp \
  http://localhost:4000/mcp --header "x-gitlab-token: YOUR_GITLAB_PAT"

Tools Available

| Tool | Description | |------|-------------| | search_projects | Search projects by name/path | | resolve_project | Resolve project query to project ID | | list_user_repositories | List repositories by access scope | | list_merge_requests | List MRs with optional filters | | get_merge_request | Get MR details including approvals | | get_merge_request_diff | Get MR diff/changes | | merge_readiness_check | Check if MR is ready to merge | | check_project_merge_requests | Resolve project + list open MRs in one call | | get_mr_discussions | Get MR discussion threads | | merge_request_action | comment / review / approve / merge / reject | | open_merge_request | Open a new MR | | merge_merge_request | Merge an MR | | reject_merge_request | Reject and close an MR | | run_staging_pipeline | Trigger staging pipeline | | check_pipeline_status | Check pipeline status | | list_pipeline_jobs | List jobs in a pipeline | | retry_pipeline_job | Retry a failed job |

Development

npm install
npm run dev  # HTTP mode with hot reload

Publish

npm run build
npm publish

Requires npm login with access to `` on npm registry.