Snowflake MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI agents to execute SQL queries against Snowflake databases.

Users can use natural language to query Snowflake databases, like:

• "Get me the top 10 products by revenue"
• "Show me the total revenue for the last 30 days"
• "Describe the structure of the orders table"
• "Explore the database and summarize what data is available"
• "Build a query to find customers who haven't ordered in 90 days"

Features

• Execute SQL queries directly from AI agents like Cursor, Claude Desktop, etc.
• Schema Discovery: Browse databases, schemas, tables, and views
• Table Inspection: Describe table structures, view sample data, check row counts
• Query Safety: Readonly mode, row limits, and query timeouts
• Multiple Output Formats: Table, JSON, or CSV
• Query Explanation: Get execution plans for queries
• MCP Prompts: Guided workflows for common tasks
• Support for both password and SSO (browser-based) authentication
• Configurable default warehouse, database, schema, and role

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18 or later

Usage

Cursor

Add to your Cursor MCP settings (~/.cursor/mcp.json):

SSO Authentication (Recommended)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowflake": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "snowflake-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "SNOWFLAKE_ACCOUNT": "your-org-your-account",
        "SNOWFLAKE_USERNAME": "your-username",
        "SNOWFLAKE_AUTHENTICATOR": "externalbrowser",
        "SNOWFLAKE_WAREHOUSE": "your-warehouse",
        "SNOWFLAKE_DATABASE": "your-database",
        "SNOWFLAKE_SCHEMA": "your-schema"
      }
    }
  }
}

A browser window will open for authentication on first query.

Password Authentication

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowflake": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "snowflake-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "SNOWFLAKE_ACCOUNT": "your-org-your-account",
        "SNOWFLAKE_USERNAME": "your-username",
        "SNOWFLAKE_PASSWORD": "your-password",
        "SNOWFLAKE_ROLE": "your-role",
        "SNOWFLAKE_WAREHOUSE": "your-warehouse",
        "SNOWFLAKE_DATABASE": "your-database",
        "SNOWFLAKE_SCHEMA": "your-schema",
        "SNOWFLAKE_READONLY": "true"
      }
    }
  }
}

Claude Desktop

Add to your Claude Desktop config (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowflake": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "snowflake-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "SNOWFLAKE_ACCOUNT": "your-org-your-account",
        "SNOWFLAKE_USERNAME": "your-username",
        "SNOWFLAKE_AUTHENTICATOR": "externalbrowser"
      }
    }
  }
}

Configuration

Variable	Required	Default	Description
SNOWFLAKE_ACCOUNT	Yes	-	Your Snowflake account identifier (e.g., ORG-ACCOUNT)
SNOWFLAKE_USERNAME	Yes	-	Snowflake username
SNOWFLAKE_AUTHENTICATOR	No	externalbrowser	Authentication method: externalbrowser (SSO) or snowflake (password)
SNOWFLAKE_PASSWORD	Conditional	-	Required if authenticator is snowflake, not needed for externalbrowser
SNOWFLAKE_ROLE	No	-	Role to use for the session (uses account default if not set)
SNOWFLAKE_WAREHOUSE	No	-	Warehouse to use (uses account default if not set)
SNOWFLAKE_DATABASE	No	-	Database to use (uses account default if not set)
SNOWFLAKE_SCHEMA	No	-	Schema to use (uses account default if not set)
SNOWFLAKE_READONLY	No	false	Set to true to block write operations (INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, etc.)

Finding Your Connection Settings

You can find your connection settings in Snowsight (Snowflake's web interface):

1. Sign in to Snowsight
2. Click on your username in the bottom-left corner to open the user menu
3. Select Connect a tool to Snowflake
4. Open the Config File tab
5. Select the Warehouse, Database, Schema you want to use
6. Copy values from the generated config file

Available Tools

Query Execution

execute_query

Execute a SQL query against Snowflake.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
query	string	Yes	-	The SQL query to execute
max_rows	number	No	100	Maximum number of rows to return
timeout	number	No	-	Query timeout in seconds
format	string	No	table	Output format: table, json, or csv

explain_query

Get the execution plan for a SQL query without running it.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
query	string	Yes	The SQL query to explain

Connection

test_connection

Test the connection to Snowflake and return connection info including current user, role, warehouse, database, schema, and version.

Schema Discovery

list_databases

List all accessible databases in Snowflake.

list_schemas

List all schemas in a database.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
database	string	No	Database name (uses current if not specified)

list_tables

List all tables in a schema.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
database	string	No	Database name
schema	string	No	Schema name

list_views

List all views in a schema.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
database	string	No	Database name
schema	string	No	Schema name

Table Inspection

describe_table

Get detailed information about a table's structure including columns, types, and constraints.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
table	string	Yes	Table name (can include database.schema.table)

get_table_sample

Get a sample of rows from a table to understand its data.

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
table	string	Yes	-	Table name
limit	number	No	5	Number of sample rows to return

get_table_row_count

Get the total number of rows in a table.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
table	string	Yes	Table name

get_primary_keys

Get primary key columns for a table.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
table	string	Yes	Table name

MCP Resources

schema://current

Returns information about the current database schema, including:

• Current database and schema names
• List of all tables
• List of all views

Access this resource to get a quick overview of the connected schema without running queries.

MCP Prompts

analyze_table

Analyze a table's structure, sample data, and get query suggestions.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
table_name	string	Yes	The table to analyze

explore_database

Explore and summarize the structure of a database.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
database_name	string	No	Database to explore (uses current if not specified)

query_builder

Help build a SQL query based on natural language description.

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
description	string	Yes	Natural language description of desired query
tables	string	No	Comma-separated list of relevant tables

Security Considerations

• SSO authentication is recommended for production use as it avoids storing passwords in configuration files
• Readonly mode (SNOWFLAKE_READONLY=true) is recommended when you only need to query data
• Never commit configuration files containing credentials to version control
• Consider using environment variables or a secrets manager for sensitive values
• The server executes queries with the permissions of the configured Snowflake user—ensure appropriate access controls are in place
• The max_rows parameter helps prevent accidentally returning massive result sets

License

MIT License