Getting Started
Your first 10 minutes with MinusX
This tutorial walks you through MinusX from first login to your first insight.
Click the Try Demo Mode button in the MinusX sidebar to follow along with a pre-configured sample environment.
Prerequisites
- MinusX is installed and running, or you have access to a hosted instance
- A database connection is configured (the sample AdventureWorks database works great for this tutorial)
Step 1: Log in and explore
After logging in, you'll see the sidebar with your file tree. This is where all your questions, dashboards, and contexts live.
Step 2: Try the Explore page
Click Explore in the sidebar to open the full-page AI chat. Try asking a natural language question about your data:
"What are the top 10 products by revenue?"
The AI will write a SQL query, execute it, and display the results.
Step 3: Look around
Take a moment to explore the interface:
- Sidebar — your file tree with folders, questions, and dashboards
- SQL Editor — where queries are written and edited
- Visualization — switch between table and chart views
- Chat — the AI assistant sidebar
Step 4: Connect your tools
MinusX integrates with the tools you already use:
- MCP — connect Claude Desktop, Cursor, or Windsurf to query your data from your AI coding assistant
- Slack — add the MinusX bot so your team can ask data questions directly in channels
Set these up in Settings → Integrations. Learn more about integrations →
Next steps
Now that you're oriented, try building your first question.