MongoDB Getting Started

Installing MongoDB

MongoDB Community Edition is free and available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. The installation method varies by platform:

Platform	Method	Command / Notes
Windows	MSI Installer	Download from mongodb.com, run installer, add to PATH
macOS	Homebrew	`brew tap mongodb/brew && brew install mongodb-community`
Ubuntu/Debian	apt package manager	Import GPG key, add repo, `apt install mongodb-org`
RHEL/CentOS	yum package manager	Add repo file, `yum install mongodb-org`
Any platform	Docker	`docker run -d -p 27017:27017 mongo:latest`

Installing on Ubuntu and Starting mongod

// Ubuntu 22.04 installation
// 1. Import MongoDB public GPG key
curl -fsSL https://www.mongodb.org/static/pgp/server-7.0.asc | \
  sudo gpg -o /usr/share/keyrings/mongodb-server-7.0.gpg --dearmor

// 2. Add the repository
echo "deb [ arch=amd64,arm64 signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/mongodb-server-7.0.gpg ] \
  https://repo.mongodb.org/apt/ubuntu jammy/mongodb-org/7.0 multiverse" | \
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/mongodb-org-7.0.list

// 3. Install MongoDB
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y mongodb-org

// 4. Start the mongod service
sudo systemctl start mongod
sudo systemctl enable mongod   // start on boot

// 5. Check status
sudo systemctl status mongod

// macOS with Homebrew
brew services start mongodb/brew/mongodb-community

Connecting with mongosh

The MongoDB Shell (mongosh) is the official interactive JavaScript interface for MongoDB. It replaces the legacy mongo shell and provides a modern REPL environment.

Connecting and Basic mongosh Commands

// Connect to local MongoDB (default port 27017)
mongosh

// Connect to a specific host and port
mongosh "mongodb://localhost:27017"

// Connect with authentication
mongosh "mongodb://username:password@localhost:27017/mydb"

// Connect to MongoDB Atlas
mongosh "mongodb+srv://username:password@cluster0.abc123.mongodb.net/mydb"

// --- Basic mongosh commands ---

// Show all databases
show dbs

// Switch to (or create) a database
use myapp

// Show current database
db

// Show all collections in current database
show collections

// Get database statistics
db.stats()

// Get collection statistics
db.users.stats()

// Get MongoDB server version
db.version()

// Exit the shell
exit

Your First Collection

Creating Your First Documents

use myapp

// Insert a document (creates the collection automatically)
db.users.insertOne({ name: "Alice", age: 29, city: "New York" })

// Read all documents
db.users.find()

// Pretty-print results
db.users.find().pretty()

// Insert more documents
db.users.insertMany([
  { name: "Bob",   age: 34, city: "London" },
  { name: "Carol", age: 27, city: "Tokyo" }
])

// Count documents
db.users.countDocuments()

// Find with a filter
db.users.find({ city: "London" })

MongoDB Compass GUI

MongoDB Compass is the official graphical interface for MongoDB. It lets you visually explore your data, run queries, build aggregation pipelines, manage indexes, and analyze schema — all without writing shell commands. Download it free from mongodb.com/products/compass.

To connect Compass to a local instance, use the connection string: mongodb://localhost:27017

MongoDB Atlas Free Tier

MongoDB Atlas is the fully managed cloud database service. The free tier (M0 cluster) gives you 512MB of storage with no credit card required — perfect for learning and small projects. Sign up at cloud.mongodb.com, create a free cluster, and get a connection string to use with mongosh or any driver.