Railway
All agents

Cursor + Railway

Cursor is an AI-first code editor built on VS Code. Its Composer mode enables multi-file edits with AI assistance, and background agents can work autonomously on tasks. With integrated terminal access, Cursor works seamlessly with the Railway CLI.

Quick start

1

Download Cursor

Download and install Cursor from the official website

https://cursor.sh
2

Configure Railway MCP Server

Add to .cursor/mcp.json: {"mcpServers": {"railway-mcp-server": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "@railway/mcp-server"]}}}

3

Open Composer

Open Cursor's Composer for multi-file AI edits

Cmd+K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows)
4

Deploy a SaaS starter

Composer deploys railway.com/template/hono with Redis, production-ready in one prompt

Deploy the Hono API template with a Redis cache for sessions

Environment variables

VariableDescription
CURSOR_API_KEY
Cursor Pro API key (if using API access)

Example prompts

Deploy this Next.js app to Railway

Add a MySQL database to my project

Check deployment logs and diagnose the memory issue

Set up private networking between my API and database

Configure a custom Dockerfile for this monorepo

Add WebSocket support with proper health checks

Deploy Uptime Kuma for monitoring all my Railway services

Set up Ghost CMS with MySQL and persistent storage for a blog

Deploy the OpenClaw AI agent platform with vector database

Create a multi-region setup with Postgres replicas for low latency

Common workflows

1Deploy a MySQL database

  1. Ask Composer to add MySQL to your project
  2. Composer creates the MySQL service via MCP
  3. Composer retrieves and sets DATABASE_URL
  4. Composer updates your code to use the database

2Composer deployment workflow

  1. Open Composer with Cmd+K
  2. Describe your deployment needs
  3. Cursor generates railway.toml if needed
  4. Run railway up in integrated terminal

3Debug with Composer

  1. Ask Composer to check deployment logs
  2. Cursor runs railway logs in terminal
  3. Composer analyzes errors and suggests fixes
  4. Apply fixes and redeploy

4MCP-powered deployment

  1. Configure Railway MCP server in settings
  2. Ask Cursor to deploy via MCP
  3. Cursor uses native Railway API access
  4. Monitor deployment through MCP responses

Tips for success

  • Configure the Railway MCP server for native Railway integration
  • Use Composer to generate Railway configurations
  • Index your codebase for better context

Frequently asked questions

How do I give Cursor access to Railway for deployments?

Add the Railway MCP server to .cursor/mcp.json: {"mcpServers": {"railway-mcp-server": {"command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "@railway/mcp-server"]}}}. This gives Cursor native Railway API access.

Can Cursor deploy to Railway without leaving the IDE?

Yes! With the MCP server configured, ask Composer to deploy your project. Cursor handles authentication, deployment, and shows you the deployment URL.

How do I troubleshoot Railway build errors in Cursor?

Ask Composer to check your deployment logs. It will fetch logs via the MCP server or CLI, identify the issue, and can fix your code directly.

Troubleshooting

Issue:

Railway CLI not found in Cursor terminal

Solution:

Install Railway CLI globally and restart Cursor to refresh the PATH.

Issue:

MCP server not connecting

Solution:

Verify your .cursor/mcp.json configuration. Restart Cursor after making changes to the MCP config.

Issue:

Composer doesn't understand Railway context

Solution:

Add railway.toml and Railway docs to your project context. Use @railway.toml in Composer prompts.

Community resources

Ready to deploy with Cursor?

Get started in minutes. Railway handles the infrastructure.