Cheatmongosh MongoDB shell
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Start here
mongosh "<uri>"
Connect
show dbsList databases
use <db>Switch database
show collections
List collections
db.<coll>.find()
Read documents
db.<coll>.insertOne({})
Add a document
db.<coll>.updateOne({}, {$set: {}})
Change a document
db.<coll>.aggregate([])
Run a pipeline
Concepts
Deployment server or cluster
Database db / use <db>
Collection db.users
Document BSON object
Connect
mongoshConnect to localhost:27017
mongosh
"mongodb://<host>:27017/<db>"
Connect with a URI
mongosh
"mongodb+srv://<host>/<db>"
Connect to an Atlas style SRV URI
mongosh --host <host> --port <port> -u
<user> -p
Connect with options, prompt for password
--authenticationDatabase admin
Database holding the user
--tlsConnect over TLS
--eval "<js>" <uri>
Run JavaScript and exit
mongosh <uri> <file.js>
Run a script file then exit
exit / quit()Leave the shell
Inspect
show dbsList databases
use <db>Switch database
dbPrint the current database name
show collections
List collections
show usersList users of this database
db.<coll>.countDocuments({})
Count matching documents
db.<coll>.estimatedDocumentCount()
Fast approximate count
db.<coll>.stats()
Size and storage figures
db.<coll>.getIndexes()
List indexes
db.stats()Database size summary
help / db.help() / db.<coll>.help()
List available commands
Read
db.<coll>.find()
All documents (first batch)
db.<coll>.find({ <field>: <value>
})
Match on equality
db.<coll>.findOne({ <filter> })
First match as one document
db.<coll>.find({}, { <f>: 1 })
Projection: pick fields
db.<coll>.find().sort({ <f>: -1 })
Sort, 1 ascending, -1 descending
db.<coll>.find().limit(<n>)
Cap results; chain .skip(<n>) to page
db.<coll>.distinct("<field>")
Unique values of a field
db.<coll>.find(<filter>).explain("executionStats")
Show how the query ran
itShow the next batch of a cursor
| Operator | Meaning |
|---|---|
$eq $ne |
equals, not equals |
$gt $gte $lt $lte |
comparison |
$in $nin |
value in / not in list |
$and $or $nor |
combine conditions |
$not |
negate an operator |
$exists |
field is present |
$type |
BSON type check |
$regex |
pattern match |
$elemMatch |
one array element matches all |
$size |
array length |
$all |
array holds every value |
$expr |
compare fields, use aggregation expressions |
Write
db.<coll>.insertOne({ <doc> })
Insert one document
db.<coll>.insertMany([{ }, { }])
Insert several documents
db.<coll>.updateOne(<filter>, { $set: {
<f>: <v> } })
Change first match
db.<coll>.updateMany(<filter>, { $set: { }
})
Change all matches
db.<coll>.replaceOne(<filter>, { <doc>
})
Replace a whole document
db.<coll>.updateOne(<filter>, <update>, {
upsert: true })
Insert if nothing matches
db.<coll>.deleteOne(<filter>)
Delete first match
db.<coll>.deleteMany(<filter>)
Delete all matches
deleteMany({}) empties the collection but keeps its indexes.
db.<coll>.drop()
Delete the collection
db.dropDatabase()
Delete the current database
| Operator | Effect |
|---|---|
$set $unset |
set or remove a field |
$inc $mul |
add to or multiply a number |
$min $max |
keep the lower or higher value |
$rename |
rename a field |
$push $addToSet |
append to array, only if new |
$pull $pop |
remove from array |
$currentDate |
set to now |
$setOnInsert |
only applied on upsert insert |
Aggregation
db.<coll>.aggregate([<stage>])
Run a pipeline of stages
{ $match: { <filter> } }
Filter documents early
{ $group: { _id: "$<f>", n: { $sum: 1 } }
}
Group and count
{ $sort: { <f>: -1 } }
Order the stream
{ $project: { <f>: 1, <new>:
"$<g>" } }
Reshape documents
{ $limit: <n> } / { $skip: <n> }
Cap or skip documents
{ $lookup: { from, localField, foreignField, as } }
Left join another collection
{ $unwind: "$<arrayField>" }
One document per array element
Indexes
db.<coll>.createIndex({ <f>: 1 })
Create an ascending index
db.<coll>.createIndex({ <a>: 1, <b>: -1
})
Compound index, order matters
db.<coll>.createIndex({ <f>: 1 }, { unique:
true })
Enforce uniqueness
db.<coll>.dropIndex("<name>")
Remove an index
Users & Admin
db.createUser({ user: "<u>", pwd:
passwordPrompt(), roles: ["readWrite"] })
Create a user, ask for password
Shell & Output
printjson(<value>)
Print a value as JSON
config.set("displayBatchSize", <n>)
Documents per batch (default 20)
ObjectId("<hex>")
Build an _id value
ISODate("2026-01-01")
Build a date value
TabAutocomplete commands and fields
Dump & Restore
mongodump --uri="<uri>"
--out=<dir>
Dump databases to BSON files
mongodump --db=<db> --collection=<c> --gzip
--archive=<f>
Dump one collection to a gzip archive
mongorestore --uri="<uri>" <dir>
Restore from a dump directory
Recipes
db.orders.aggregate([ { $group: { _id: "$status", n: { $sum: 1 } } }, { $sort: { n: -1 } }, { $limit: 5 }])mongosh "$MONGO_URI" --quiet \ --eval 'printjson(db.users.find({active:true}).limit(3).toArray())'db.users.aggregate([ { $group: { _id: "$email", ids: { $push: "$_id" }, n: { $sum: 1 } } }, { $match: { n: { $gt: 1 } } }])mongodump --uri="mongodb://old:27017/app" --gzip --archive=app.gzmongorestore --uri="mongodb://new:27017" --gzip --archive=app.gz
