A command-line interface (CLI) is a way to control a computer by typing simple text commands instead of clicking buttons, dragging objects, or pulling down menus. It’s the plain-text alternative to the graphical user interface (GUI)—the icons, windows, and menus you point and click through on Microsoft Windows, Apple macOS, and Linux operating systems.
Command-line tools remain popular with developers and system administrators for a few reasons. Typing commands can be faster than clicking, and multistep commands can be saved into scripts that run automatically. CLIs also allow full control of remote servers that lack a screen or graphical interface. Interest in the command-line interface has also risen with the recent release of CLI-based coding tools from Microsoft and Anthropic.
Here’s how CLI tools work, the key benefits of using them, and how they’re deployed in modern software development.
What is a command-line interface?
A command-line interface is a way to execute computing tasks using simple text commands. If you’ve ever watched a software developer at work—or you remember the DOS prompt used by 1980s-era personal computers—you’ve seen a command-line interface in action.
All major computer operating systems offer a command line alongside their GUIs. You call up a CLI terminal or command prompt window, type the command you want the machine to execute, and hit Enter. When that command finishes, you type the next, and so on.
The range of tasks you can accomplish with a CLI is broad. You can manage files and folders, run programs, install or update software, configure applications, and automate repetitive tasks by chaining commands together into a script.
CLIs vs GUIs
Performing a task using a GUI usually means waiting for the graphical interface to load, launching the program you need to execute commands, finding the appropriate pull-down menu or button to click, and selecting the command.
CLIs thus need fewer system resources than GUIs, making them more responsive. Users familiar with the syntax of text commands often find it faster than navigating a visual interface—especially when combining multiple text commands into a script that can be initiated with one keystroke. That’s a big reason why CLI tools are popular with software developers and system administrators.
Many of the tools developers interact with through polished graphical interfaces are themselves powered by CLI workflows running underneath. The Publish button in a content management system, the Deploy button in a hosting dashboard, the automated email that fires when a customer abandons their cart—these are all, at some level, triggering sequences of CLI commands.
How does a command-line interface work?
While specific commands may differ slightly between operating systems, all command-line interfaces work in essentially the same way. You start with the name of the action you want to perform, any options you might want to specify, and where the action should be applied—a file, a folder, or a setting. For example, you can tell a computer to copy file X, using option Y, to destination Z.
The first step is opening a terminal window. These steps differ by operating system. For example:
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Microsoft Windows. Press Windows key + R, type cmd, and press Enter. That opens the Windows Command Prompt. Alternatively, search for PowerShell in the Start menu.
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macOS. Click the Spotlight icon in the menu bar (or Command + Spacebar), type Terminal in the search field, then press Enter. You can also find it in Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
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Linux. On most Linux distributions, you can press Ctrl + Alt + T. If that doesn’t work, right-click the desktop and look for “Open Terminal” in the menu, or search for Terminal in your application launcher.
For a simple example, here’s how to create a new folder (called “my-project”) across all three command-line interfaces:
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At the command prompt, type mkdir my-project. The command mkdir stands for “make directory” (a directory is what each operating system calls a folder) and is followed by the name of the new directory. After the task finishes, the terminal returns you to the command prompt.
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To verify the new folder was created successfully, type dir at the next command prompt (on Windows) or ls (on Mac or Linux). The CLI should display a list of all your directories and folders, including “my-project.”
If you make a mistake—say you type mkdr instead of mkdir, or misspell a file name—the terminal window displays the error messages “Command not found” or “No such file or directory.”
You can also perform multiple tasks at once. Typing mkdir my-project images documents assets creates four new folders at the same time; typing mkdir -p my-project/documents creates a folder named “my-project” with a subfolder (“documents”) nested inside it.
How command-line scripts work
Scripting is one of the CLI’s most powerful features, turning a multistep manual process into something fast and repeatable. You can create a sequence of CLI commands, save them to a text file, and trigger those commands to execute with a single instruction.
For example, if every folder you create contains the same subdirectory structure, you can open a text editor and create a script that looks like this:
mkdir my-project
mkdir my-project/images
mkdir my-project/documents
mkdir my-project/assets
echo “Project folders created.”
On Windows, you save the file as new-project.bat (bat is short for “batch file”) and run it by typing the name of the file at the command prompt and pressing Enter.
On Mac and Linux, save the file as new-project.sh, then at the command line, type:
bash new-project.sh
“Bash” tells the computer system to run the following commands in sequence; the “echo” command tells the terminal window to display the words that follow in quotes, confirming that the script ran successfully.
Common uses for command-line interfaces
Command-line interfaces occupy a central role in how modern software is built, as well as how ecommerce sites are developed and managed. With the emergence of popular vibe coding tools like Claude Code and Cursor that use CLIs, command lines are becoming an increasingly common way for people to interact with machines.
Here are five of the most common use cases:
Software development
Developers use the CLI to write and test code, install libraries, and manage their codebase. You can set up an entire project environment in minutes using a handful of text commands—much faster than hunting through a graphical interface.
For example, a developer could issue a single command (npx create-react-app my-store) to automatically create a new project folder, including the file and folder structure needed by every React app. Then download and install all the software the project requires. Using a GUI to do the same thing would mean downloading an installer and manually locating and installing each component separately.
Cloud computing management
Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure all provide CLI tools that let admins create servers, configure infrastructure, and deploy applications.
Defining these processes as CLI commands means they run the same way every time, eliminating the inconsistencies that can arise when clicking through a dashboard manually.
Developers asked to deploy new cloud resources to handle spikes in traffic can use a single command to spin up a server with exactly the right specs each time. Then shut it down when it’s no longer needed, using another text command.
System administration
Sysadmins use the CLI to manage user accounts, monitor server performance, schedule automated tasks, and configure networks—often on remote servers with no graphical interface at all.
Command lines have been the backbone of IT operations for decades. A remote admin can issue a single Secure Shell (ssh) command to securely manage servers located thousands of miles away at any time of day or night, much faster than loading a GUI—if there is one—and hunting for the right information.
DevOps
DevOps teams use CLI-driven pipelines to automatically test, validate, and deploy new code whenever a developer makes a change. These pipelines run entirely in the background, keeping applications up to date without any manual intervention. A developer fixing a bug in a storefront app can issue a command to pull new code from a repository, run tests to make sure it still works, update the app, and deploy it to the live server automatically.
Ecommerce development
Shopify’s command-line interface is the primary way to build and manage themes, apps, and custom storefronts. For example:
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Theme development.Shopify’s CLI lets you build and preview custom storefront themes locally on your own computer before pushing changes live. You can run a local version of the store, make changes, see updates in real time, then deploy to the live store with a single command.
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App development. Developers building custom Shopify apps use the CLI to scaffold new projects, run a local development environment, and manage the connection between their app and the Shopify platform.
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Headless commerce. Creating and managing custom shopping experiences is entirely command-line driven. Developers can use the Shopify CLI to create a new Hydrogen project, run a local development server to preview the storefront, and deploy it to Shopify’s hosting platform with a single command.
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Dependency management. Most ecommerce applications rely on dozens of external software tools for handling payments, displaying images, managing customer data, and so on. CLIs let you manage all of these dependencies in one place, ensuring every member of the development team is working with the right version of each tool.
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Automation and deployment. Repetitive tasks like running automated tests and deploying updates can be reduced to scripts that run automatically, freeing up developer time and reducing the risk of human error.
Command-line interface FAQ
Why do developers use command-line interfaces?
CLIs give developers speed, precision, and the ability to automate repetitive tasks that would take far longer using a graphical interface. Most professional development and system administration tools are also designed to be used from the command line.
What are the advantages of a CLI?
CLIs are faster than graphical interfaces for users who know the commands. They allow complex, multistep tasks to be saved as scripts and run automatically, and provide access to the full power of a system or application, including options and capabilities that graphical interfaces often don’t expose.
Do I need to learn the command line to become a developer?
A working knowledge of the CLI is expected in professional software development; most tools and workflows assume you’re comfortable using it. But you don’t need to master it before you start. Learning a handful of basic commands is enough to get going, and you can pick up more as you need them.
