# Connect to an instance

The four routes to an instance: SurrealDB Studio, the CLI, a client SDK, and the HTTP API. Includes where to find the connection details.

An instance exposes one endpoint, and every client reaches it the same way.

What differs is the tool you use and how you authenticate.

| Route | Use it for |
| --- | --- |
| [SurrealDB Studio](/docs/manage/instances/connect/via-studio.md) | Running queries and browsing data in a graphical interface. |
| [CLI](/docs/manage/instances/connect/via-cli.md) | An interactive SurrealQL shell, and one-off queries from a terminal or a script. |
| [SDK](/docs/manage/instances/connect/via-sdk.md) | Application code in Rust, JavaScript, Python, .NET, PHP, and the other supported languages. |
| [HTTP](/docs/manage/instances/connect/via-http.md) | cURL, Postman, and any HTTP client, including bulk import. |

## Before you begin

You need:

- An account. See [Accounts and sign-in](/docs/manage/organisations/sign-in.md).
- A running instance. See [Create an instance](/docs/manage/instances/create.md).
- A **namespace** and a **database** to work in. SurrealDB needs both to know where a query runs. See [system structure](/docs/concepts.md#system-structure).
- Credentials, unless you connect from SurrealDB Studio, which authenticates with your own session.

## Finding the connection details

The **Connect** menu of the instance in [SurrealDB Studio](https://app.surrealdb.com) holds the endpoint. It also produces a ready-made command or snippet for each route, with the details of your instance already filled in. Copying from there avoids transcription mistakes in the hostname.

`surrealctl instance endpoint` prints the same endpoint, and `surrealctl instance token` issues a token for it. Both are useful in scripts and in CI, where opening a browser is not an option. See [surrealctl instances](/docs/manage/surrealctl/instances.md).