Databricks MCP servers: which one to use
Use Databricks' own MCP servers: Genie for questions, SQL for queries. Choose a community server for Unity Catalog lineage or a token setup.
- Servers
- 6
- active
- Official
- 1
- by Databricks
- Hosted
- 3
- nothing to install
- Local
- 2
- runs on your machine
- OAuth
- 1
- sign in, no key
Databricks provides its own MCP servers inside your workspace, so start there. Its Genie One server answers business questions in plain language, and its SQL server runs specific queries using your Unity Catalog permissions. Rafael Cartenet's, JordiNeil's and victoprincipe's run on your machine with a personal access token. Rafael Cartenet's focuses on Unity Catalog metadata and lineage, and victoprincipe's allows only SELECT queries by default.
Good for
- Analysts asking Claude business questions over governed data
- Data engineers running and checking SQL on a warehouse
- Data owners tracing table lineage and the notebooks behind it
- Teams that want an assistant limited to read queries
Which Databricks MCP server to use
Use Databricks' own servers first: they keep your Unity Catalog permissions in force and need nothing installed. Pick Rafael Cartenet for lineage, or victoprincipe for a small server that only runs SELECT by default.
| Server | Official | Runs | Sign-in | Can change things | GitHub stars |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For Databricks | |||||
| Databricks MCPThis page | Official | Hosted | Account | Yes | – |
| RafaelCartenet Databricks | Community | Local | Token | Yes | 43 |
| victoprincipe Databricks | Community | Local | Token | No | 0 |
| pramodbhat Databricks | Community | Local | Token or OAuth | Yes | 0 |
| mcp-dir Databricks | Community | Hosted | Magic link | Yes | 0 |
| Other tools for the same job | |||||
| JordiNeil Databricks | Community | Local | Token | – | – |
All Databricks MCP servers
6 active · 1 official · official first, then by GitHub stars
- Databricks managed MCP serversOfficialHostedOAuth
Databricks-hosted MCP servers for Genie, Databricks SQL, AI Search and Unity Catalog functions, served from your own workspace URL.
mcp-databricks-serverModel Context Protocol (MCP) server for Databricks that empowers AI agents to autonomously interact with Unity Catalog metadata. Enables data discovery, lineage analysis, and intelligent SQL execution. Agents explore catalogs/schemas/tables, understand relationships, discover notebooks/jobs, and exe
43 GitHub stars- databricks-mcpLocal
Standalone MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for Databricks SQL using @databricks/sql
0 GitHub stars - DatabricksHosted
Your Databricks Lakehouse in natural language: run SQL on your SQL warehouses, track long-running qu
0 GitHub stars - Databricks Field Guide by TechFabricHosted
Interactive Databricks learning, certification practice and sourced engineering guidance.
0 GitHub stars - Databricks MCP ServerLocal
263 tools for Databricks: Unity Catalog, SQL, Compute, Jobs, Serving, and more.
0 GitHub stars
Questions
Is there an official Databricks MCP server?
Yes. Databricks provides MCP servers in your workspace, including Genie One for analytics, Databricks SQL, web search and a code sandbox. Claude's connector directory also lists a Databricks Genie connector made by Databricks.
Does the official Databricks server work in Claude?
Yes. Claude's connector directory lists a Databricks Genie connector made by Databricks. It requires sign-in, and its tools ask Genie a question, poll for the answer and fetch query results.
What is the Databricks MCP server URL?
Each workspace has its own address. For the servers Databricks provides, the docs give https://<workspace-hostname>/ai-gateway/mcp-services/<mcp-name>, for example system.ai.dbsql.
Which official server should I start with?
Start with Genie One. The docs recommend it for natural-language analytics across your workspace, and it answers using Genie Ontology, your governed semantic layer.
Do the official servers respect my data permissions?
Yes. The docs say the SQL server runs with the caller's Unity Catalog and warehouse permissions, and the Claude connector page says Unity Catalog permissions are always enforced.
Is the official SQL server on by default?
Not yet. The docs say an account admin must enable the Unity Gateway beta before you can use the SQL, sandbox or web search servers. Genie One is generally available.
Do the community servers need a token?
JordiNeil's and victoprincipe's do: their READMEs ask for a personal access token, a host and a SQL warehouse path. pramodbhat delegates sign-in to the Databricks SDK, so it accepts a token or OAuth.
Can a community server be limited to reading?
victoprincipe's execute_query allows only SELECT by default, and you can allow INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE and more through a setting. Use a token whose Databricks permissions are also read-only.
What does Rafael Cartenet's server add?
It reads Unity Catalog descriptions and lineage so the assistant writes better SQL, and it can find notebooks and jobs that read or write a table. It also runs arbitrary SQL, so limit the token.
Is mcp-dir's hosted server safe to use?
It is run by a third party at api.mcp.ai, and its README says it can read and write. Prefer Databricks' own servers when your data is sensitive.