How to use GitHub with Cursor

1. Create an Arcade account

   Sign up and open the dashboard. The free tier is enough to follow this through.

2. Create an MCP Gateway and select your GitHub tools

   In the dashboard, create a gateway and pick the GitHub tools you want to expose. The gateway is what your client connects to, and it is where tool access is decided.

3. Copy your gateway URL

   Every client below needs it.

   Copy

   https://api.arcade.dev/mcp/<YOUR-GATEWAY-SLUG>

Heads up

If the connection drops once the access token expires, set Authorization to “Arcade Headers” on the gateway in the dashboard.

1. Open MCP settings

   Open Customize in the sidebar, then select MCPs.

2. Add the gateway

   Select Add New MCP Server, choose HTTP, paste your gateway URL and name the server. Cursor writes the entry to mcp.json:

   Copy

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "mcp-arcade": {
         "url": "https://api.arcade.dev/mcp/<YOUR-GATEWAY-SLUG>"
       }
     }
   }

3. Sign in to Arcade

   Back in MCPs, mcp-arcade shows that it needs a login. Click it and approve the Arcade sign-in that opens in your browser.

4. Try it out

   Open chat (⌘L / Ctrl+L), switch to Agent mode and ask it to use one of your GitHub tools. The first time it calls a GitHub tool, Arcade replies with an authorization link. Open it, sign in to GitHub and approve access, then ask again. You do this once per account.

Full Cursor guide in the docs steps verified 2026-11-02