Get started with the Algolia CLI

The Algolia CLI lets you work with Algolia’s APIs from your terminal. It’s great for interactive commands, scripts, and continuous integration workflows.

Before you begin

You’ll need an Algolia account. If you don’t have one yet, create one from the CLI while you sign in.

Install the Algolia CLI

You can install the CLI with your favorite package manager, or download binaries from the Releases page in the GitHub repository. The CLI runs on macOS, Linux, and Windows, on both AMD64 and ARM64 platforms.

npm
macOS
Linux
Windows

If you have Node.js installed, you can run the CLI with npx — no installation required:

npx @algolia/cli --help

Or install it globally with npm:

npm install -g @algolia/cli

The Algolia CLI is available on Homebrew. To install it, run:

brew install algolia

Or download the latest archive for your Mac: algolia_*_macOS_*.tar.gz. Unpack it by running tar xf algolia_*_macOS_*.tar.gz.

The Algolia CLI is available as DEB and RPM packages. Download the appropriate *.deb and *.rpm file for your platform. To install it, run:

# DEB-based distributions
sudo dpkg -i /path/to/algolia_*.deb
# RPM-based distributions
sudo rpm -i /path/to/algolia_*.rpm

Or download the latest archive for Linux: algolia_*_linux_*.tar.gz. Unpack it by running tar xf algolia_*_linux_*.tar.gz.

The Algolia CLI is available for the Chocolatey package manager. To install it, run:

choco install algolia

Or download the latest archive: algolia_*_windows_*.zip. Then unpack it. If you’re using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), follow the instructions for Linux.

Authenticate the CLI with your Algolia account. This opens your browser so you can sign in or create a new account:

algolia auth login

If you’re running the CLI in an environment without a browser, such as an SSH session or container, run algolia auth login --no-browser. The CLI prints an authorization URL and waits for you to complete the sign-in process. To check your authentication status, run algolia auth status.

Select an application

Set the application for your commands:

algolia application list     # list your applications
algolia application select   # pick the current one interactively

algolia application select creates a local profile and an API key for the application if needed, so you don’t have to pass --application-id or --api-key with every command.

Index and search your first records

With an application selected, import some records and search them:

algolia objects import MOVIES -F movies.ndjson   # import newline-delimited JSON records
algolia search MOVIES --query "toy story"        # search the index

Explore other commands

Type algolia to list the available commands. Add --help to any command to get more information about it and its options. For example, to list all indices in your Algolia application, run:

algolia indices list

If you’re running the CLI in a CI pipeline or script, or if you prefer to manage credentials yourself, use the --application-id and --api-key options or environment variables instead of signing in. For more information, see Authentication.

Next steps

Set up command completion. Enable shell completion for Bash, Zsh, Fish, or PowerShell.
Authenticate CLI commands. Sign in with OAuth, or use environment variables and command-line flags for your credentials.
Use the CLI in automation. Tips for running the CLI in scripts, CI, and agent workflows with structured output, exit codes, and dry runs.
Opt out of telemetry collection. Learn what the CLI reports and how to turn off telemetry and update checks.
Usage examples for the Algolia CLI. Follow recipes for importing, exporting, comparing, and copying Algolia data.

​Before you begin

​Install the Algolia CLI

​Sign in

​Select an application

​Index and search your first records

​Explore other commands

​Next steps

Before you begin

Install the Algolia CLI

Sign in

Select an application

Index and search your first records

Explore other commands

Next steps