How to Connect to MongoDB Atlas

In this post, we’ll show you how to connect to MongoDB Atlas, MongoDB’s fully-managed cloud database, using Studio 3T.

If you’re having issues connecting to MongoDB Atlas, we recommend our troubleshooting guide instead.

Prerequisites

1. Get your first MongoDB Atlas cluster for free by following these steps.
2. Download the latest Studio 3T version on your Windows, Mac, or Linux machine.

1. Get the connection string from MongoDB Atlas

Log in to your MongoDB Atlas account. This will take you to your Clusters overview.

Click on Connect.

Choose Connect Your Application.

Choose your driver and driver version. We use Java and Version 3.7 or later in this example, but the latest version of any driver should also generate a compatible connection string.

Copy the generated connection string. This is what you’ll need to paste in Studio 3T.

2. Whitelist your IP address

If you have a dynamic IP address – which most of us do – it’s worth double-checking the MongoDB Atlas IP Whitelist tab.

Click on Network Access under the Security tab on the left-hand sidebar. This will take you to the IP Whitelist tab.

Click on Add IP Address in the top-right corner. This will open the Add IP Whitelist Entry dialog.

Click on Add current IP address. MongoDB will automatically detect your current address, then click Confirm.

3. Connect to Studio 3T

Open Studio 3T and click on Connect in the top-left corner of the toolbar. This will open the Connection Manager.

Click on New Connection in the top-left corner, which will open a new connection window.

Name your connection and click on the From URI button.

Paste the connection string you copied from MongoDB Atlas.

Replace the placeholder “<password>” with your actual password and “<dbname>” with the name of the database that connections will use by default. Make sure to replace the brackets too, and click OK.

Studio 3T will automatically extract the information and pre-populate the fields in the Server, Authentication, SSL, SSH Tunnel, and Advanced tabs. It will also save the connection for later use.

Click through the Server, Authentication, SSL, and SSH Tunnel tabs and verify that the information is correct.

Click Save. Then click Connect.

4. Import data in JSON, CSV, BSON/mongodump or SQL

If you have an empty cluster, you can easily import JSON, CSV, BSON/mongodump or SQL to MongoDB with Studio 3T’s Import and Export Wizard:

• Import JSON to MongoDB
• Import CSV to MongoDB
• Import BSON/mongodump to MongoDB
• Import SQL to MongoDB

5. Explore MongoDB data

Click on a collection in the Connection Tree to open a Collection Tab, which is the starting point of all data exploration in Studio 3T.

Here you can view the contents of your MongoDB collection in either Table View, Tree View, or JSON View:

Or access the Visual Query Builder, a drag-and-drop MongoDB query builder ideal for both newcomers and pros:

Once you’ve built your query, click on Query Code tab to see how it translates to Java, Node.js, PHP, C#, Python, Ruby, and the mongo shell language:

And that’s just one way of querying data in Studio 3T. There’s also IntelliShell, the built-in mongo shell with robust auto-completion; Aggregation Editor, the stage-by-stage aggregation query builder; and SQL Query, which lets you write SQL to query your MongoDB database.

Related reading

• A roundup of the best MongoDB Atlas tools for data migration, data modeling, performance tuning, and more
• Tips on how to reduce your MongoDB Atlas monthly bill
• Find MongoDB tutorials on the Studio 3T Knowledge Base
• Pressed for time? Subscribe to the Studio 3T YouTube Channel for quick MongoDB tips, tricks, and how-tos