Both connection types are available on Free, Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans. On Business and Enterprise plans, workspace admins control who can create connections and clients. On Enterprise plans, this setting defaults to No one for each connection type until an admin changes it. See Who can create connections and clients.
With GitLab API, your app can:
- List projects, branches, commits, and repository files
- Create and update issues and merge requests
- Read pipelines and their status
- Build dashboards and automations on top of GitLab data
This connector gives an app access to the GitLab REST API. It does not export or synchronize your Lovable project’s code.
To two-way sync your Lovable project with a GitLab repository, use GitLab Git sync.
Common use cases and example apps
Use these examples to decide whether your app needs one shared GitLab connection or per-user access.
For a shared connection, you can start with a prompt like:
Prerequisites
Before creating an app + chat connection, make sure you have:- Access to GitLab.com, GitLab Self-Managed, or GitLab Dedicated
- A GitLab personal, project, or group access token with the scopes and resource access your app needs
- Permission to create connections in your Lovable workspace, as described in Who can create connections and clients
- For a restricted Self-Managed or Dedicated instance, network rules that allow traffic from Lovable’s connector gateway IP ranges
Building the integration uses workspace build credits. Requests from a published app run through its built-in backend and contribute to Cloud usage. GitLab controls its own plan requirements, API quotas, rate limits, and billing. Gateway requests also have a per-project usage limit.
How GitLab API connections work
An app + chat connection uses one GitLab access token. Everyone who uses the connection acts with that token’s identity, permissions, and resource access. You can create multiple connections with different tokens to separate teams, projects, or environments. Lovable sends requests through the connector gateway. The gateway stores the token securely, adds it to GitLab requests, and keeps it out of your project code and published app. For GitLab Self-Managed and GitLab Dedicated, the connection also stores your instance URL. Lovable sends API requests to that instance instead of GitLab.com.Connect GitLab API with an access token
Step 1: Create a GitLab access token
The connector accepts three GitLab access token types:
Choose the narrowest token type that covers your app’s use case. See the GitLab token overview for the requirements and availability of each token type.
1
Open the token settings in GitLab
For a personal access token, sign in to GitLab, select your avatar, and open Edit profile → Access → Personal access tokens.For a group or project access token, open the relevant group or project settings and follow GitLab’s access token documentation.
2
Choose the minimum required scope
Select
read_api if your app only reads GitLab data. Select api if the app creates or changes projects, issues, merge requests, pipelines, or repository files.Your token also inherits the permissions and resource access of the user or bot account that owns it. A scope cannot grant access that account does not already have.3
Set an expiration date
Choose an expiration date that follows your organization’s security policy. Before the token expires, plan to rotate it and update the Lovable connection.
4
Generate and copy the token
Generate the token and copy it when GitLab displays it. GitLab does not show the token again after you leave or refresh the page.
Step 2: Connect GitLab API to Lovable
Add and verify the shared connection in Lovable.1
Open GitLab API in Connectors
Open Connectors and select GitLab API.See Where to find connectors for the other places you can open the catalog.
2
Add an app + chat connection
Click Add connection, then select App + chat connector.
3
Configure the connection
- Display name (optional): name the connection, for example
GitLab Production. Leave it blank and Lovable generates a name. - Access token: paste the personal, project, or group access token you created.
- Instance URL (optional): leave this empty for GitLab.com. For GitLab Self-Managed or GitLab Dedicated, expand Advanced settings and enter the instance’s HTTPS root URL, for example
https://gitlab.example.com. Do not add/api/v4or a resource path.
4
Choose who can use the connection
Under Who can use this connection, keep the connection private, add specific workspace members, or invite the entire workspace.Everyone with access can link the connection to projects and use the GitLab data available to its token. See Who can use connections and clients.
5
Connect
Click Connect. Lovable verifies the access token with the configured GitLab instance before saving the connection.
6
Link the connection to a project
In the project’s chat, tell Lovable what you want to build with GitLab. Lovable links a connection you can access, then builds the feature.
The connection is ready when it appears in Connectors → GitLab API. After you link it to a project, it also appears under that project’s App connections.
Limitations
The GitLab app + chat connector documented on this page cannot:- Use GitLab OAuth for separate end-user accounts. For per-user OAuth, use the GitLab app user connector.
- Replace GitLab Git sync for exporting or two-way syncing your Lovable project’s codebase.
- Access resources outside the token owner’s membership, role, token type, or selected scopes.
- Refresh or rotate personal, project, or group access tokens automatically. Update the connection when a token expires, is revoked, or is rotated.
- Reach a Self-Managed or Dedicated instance that blocks Lovable’s connector gateway traffic.
- Bypass GitLab or Lovable gateway rate limits.
Troubleshooting
Use these checks if the connection or a GitLab API request fails.The connection says my access token is invalid
The connection says my access token is invalid
Confirm that the token is active, has not expired or been revoked, and belongs to the GitLab instance in Instance URL. Leave Instance URL empty for GitLab.com.
A request returns 429 Too Many Requests
A request returns 429 Too Many Requests
The GitLab account or instance has reached an API rate limit. Wait for the period in the
Retry-After response header, reduce polling frequency, and avoid retrying in a fast loop.A project or resource returns 404 even though it exists
A project or resource returns 404 even though it exists
GitLab can return
404 for private resources the token cannot access. Confirm the token owner’s membership, role, token type, and scope. When using a project path in an API call, make sure the namespace and project path are URL-encoded exactly once.Lovable cannot reach my GitLab instance
Lovable cannot reach my GitLab instance
Confirm that the instance uses HTTPS and is reachable from the public internet or from Lovable’s connector gateway IP ranges. If the instance stays private behind a VPN or firewall, the connector cannot call it.
Manage your connection
Connections are managed from Connectors: select , then open the connection.- Unlink projects to remove access from specific projects while keeping the connection available for others. See Unlink projects from a connection for the steps.
- Delete the connection to remove it from the workspace entirely. Deleting is permanent. It removes the credentials from all linked projects, and app features that use stop working until a new connection is added. See Delete a connection for the steps and who can delete.