MongoDB Atlas Admin

Manage MongoDB Atlas infrastructure programmatically via the Atlas Administration API v2.

Authentication

Atlas API uses HTTP Digest Authentication with API keys or OAuth2 with service accounts.

API Keys (Legacy but simpler)

# Set credentials
export ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY="your-public-key"
export ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY="your-private-key"

# All requests use digest auth
curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" \
  --digest \
  --header "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/..."

Service Accounts (OAuth2 - Recommended)

# Get access token
TOKEN=$(curl -s --request POST \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/oauth/token" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" \
  --data "grant_type=client_credentials&client_id=${CLIENT_ID}&client_secret=${CLIENT_SECRET}" \
  | jq -r '.access_token')

# Use token (valid 1 hour)
curl --header "Authorization: Bearer ${TOKEN}" \
  --header "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/..."

Quick Reference

Task	Endpoint	Method
List projects	/groups	GET
Create project	/groups	POST
List clusters	/groups/{groupId}/clusters	GET
Create cluster	/groups/{groupId}/clusters	POST
Get cluster	/groups/{groupId}/clusters/{clusterName}	GET
Update cluster	/groups/{groupId}/clusters/{clusterName}	PATCH
Delete cluster	/groups/{groupId}/clusters/{clusterName}	DELETE
List DB users	/groups/{groupId}/databaseUsers	GET
Create DB user	/groups/{groupId}/databaseUsers	POST
List IP access	/groups/{groupId}/accessList	GET
Add IP access	/groups/{groupId}/accessList	POST

---

Clusters

List All Clusters in Project

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters"

Get Cluster Details

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}"

Create Cluster (M10+)

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters" \
  -d '{
    "name": "my-cluster",
    "clusterType": "REPLICASET",
    "replicationSpecs": [{
      "regionConfigs": [{
        "providerName": "AWS",
        "regionName": "US_EAST_1",
        "priority": 7,
        "electableSpecs": {
          "instanceSize": "M10",
          "nodeCount": 3
        }
      }]
    }]
  }'

Create Free Tier Cluster (M0)

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters" \
  -d '{
    "name": "free-cluster",
    "clusterType": "REPLICASET",
    "replicationSpecs": [{
      "regionConfigs": [{
        "providerName": "TENANT",
        "backingProviderName": "AWS",
        "regionName": "US_EAST_1",
        "priority": 7,
        "electableSpecs": {
          "instanceSize": "M0",
          "nodeCount": 3
        }
      }]
    }]
  }'

Scale Cluster (Change Instance Size)

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X PATCH "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}" \
  -d '{
    "replicationSpecs": [{
      "regionConfigs": [{
        "providerName": "AWS",
        "regionName": "US_EAST_1",
        "priority": 7,
        "electableSpecs": {
          "instanceSize": "M20",
          "nodeCount": 3
        }
      }]
    }]
  }'

Delete Cluster

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -X DELETE "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}"

Pause/Resume Cluster

# Pause (M10+ only)
curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X PATCH "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}" \
  -d '{"paused": true}'

# Resume
curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X PATCH "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}" \
  -d '{"paused": false}'

---

Projects (Groups)

List All Projects

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups"

Create Project

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups" \
  -d '{
    "name": "my-project",
    "orgId": "YOUR_ORG_ID"
  }'

Delete Project

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -X DELETE "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}"

---

Database Users

List Database Users

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/databaseUsers"

Create Database User

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/databaseUsers" \
  -d '{
    "databaseName": "admin",
    "username": "myuser",
    "password": "securePassword123!",
    "roles": [{
      "databaseName": "admin",
      "roleName": "readWriteAnyDatabase"
    }]
  }'

Delete Database User

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -X DELETE "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/databaseUsers/admin/${USERNAME}"

---

IP Access List

List IP Access Entries

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/accessList"

Add IP Address

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/accessList" \
  -d '[{
    "ipAddress": "192.168.1.1",
    "comment": "Office IP"
  }]'

Allow All IPs (Development Only!)

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/accessList" \
  -d '[{
    "cidrBlock": "0.0.0.0/0",
    "comment": "Allow all - DEV ONLY"
  }]'

---

Backups & Snapshots

List Snapshots

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}/backup/snapshots"

Take On-Demand Snapshot

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}/backup/snapshots" \
  -d '{
    "description": "Pre-deployment snapshot",
    "retentionInDays": 7
  }'

Restore From Snapshot

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -X POST "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/clusters/${CLUSTER_NAME}/backup/restoreJobs" \
  -d '{
    "snapshotId": "SNAPSHOT_ID",
    "deliveryType": "automated",
    "targetClusterName": "restored-cluster",
    "targetGroupId": "${GROUP_ID}"
  }'

---

Alerts

List Alert Configurations

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/alertConfigs"

Get Active Alerts

curl --user "${ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY}:${ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY}" --digest \
  -H "Accept: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json" \
  "https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2/groups/${GROUP_ID}/alerts?status=OPEN"

---

Instance Sizes

Tier	vCPUs	RAM	Storage	Use Case
M0	Shared	Shared	512 MB	Free tier, dev/learning
M2	Shared	Shared	2 GB	Small dev projects
M5	Shared	Shared	5 GB	Larger dev projects
M10	2	2 GB	10 GB	Dev/staging, low traffic
M20	2	4 GB	20 GB	Light production
M30	2	8 GB	40 GB	Production
M40	4	16 GB	80 GB	High-traffic production
M50	8	32 GB	160 GB	Large production
M60+	16+	64+ GB	320+ GB	Enterprise

---

Helper Script

For convenience, use scripts/atlas.sh wrapper:

# Usage
./scripts/atlas.sh <command> [args]

# Examples
./scripts/atlas.sh projects list
./scripts/atlas.sh clusters list <project-id>
./scripts/atlas.sh clusters create <project-id> <name> <size> <region>
./scripts/atlas.sh clusters delete <project-id> <name>
./scripts/atlas.sh clusters pause <project-id> <name>
./scripts/atlas.sh users list <project-id>
./scripts/atlas.sh users create <project-id> <username> <password>

---

Environment Variables

# Required
export ATLAS_PUBLIC_KEY="..."
export ATLAS_PRIVATE_KEY="..."

# Optional (for service accounts)
export ATLAS_CLIENT_ID="..."
export ATLAS_CLIENT_SECRET="..."

# Common IDs
export ATLAS_ORG_ID="..."      # Organization ID
export ATLAS_GROUP_ID="..."    # Project/Group ID

---

API Reference

• Base URL: https://cloud.mongodb.com/api/atlas/v2
• Accept Header: application/vnd.atlas.2025-03-12+json
• Full Docs: https://www.mongodb.com/docs/atlas/reference/api-resources-spec/v2/
• OpenAPI Spec: https://github.com/mongodb/atlas-sdk-go/blob/main/openapi/atlas-api.yaml

For detailed endpoint documentation, see references/api-endpoints.md.

---

Author

Michael Lynn — Principal Staff Developer Advocate at MongoDB

• 🌐 Website: mlynn.org
• 🐙 GitHub: @mrlynn
• 💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mlynn

Issues & contributions welcome on GitHub!