install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install circleci

local Homebrew formula metadata

overview

Package summary

Enables you to reproduce the CircleCI environment locally

Project links

Commands and aliases

circleci

history

Project history and usage

CircleCI CLI is CircleCI's official command-line interface for validating and processing configuration, running local jobs, querying CircleCI APIs, managing orbs and contexts, and, in newer preview builds, managing runs, workflows, deployments, environment variables, and MCP integration.

Project history

The CircleCI-Public/circleci-cli repository was created in June 2018. CircleCI's installation docs identify it as the newer open-source CLI and include migration instructions for users who had the old CLI installed before October 2018.

The current main-branch README states that main tracks a preview rewrite and that the stable CLI remains separately installable. That same README describes the v1 preview as a ground-up rewrite with run, deploy, workflow, pipeline, envvar, JSON-output, shell-completion, and MCP support.

Adoption history

CircleCI's docs recommend package managers for most installations and document Homebrew for macOS, Snap for Linux, Chocolatey for Windows, manual GitHub release downloads, and a curl-based installer. The README adds winget and a CircleCI tap for preview builds.

Homebrew currently packages stable v0.1.38646 from the official Git repository and reports thousands of 90-day install-on-request events, reflecting routine developer-tool usage among CircleCI users.

How it is used

Official docs emphasize validating .circleci/config.yml before pushing, processing and packing configs, running local jobs in containers, managing orbs, managing contexts, and using an API token generated from CircleCI account settings during setup.

Why package nerds care

CircleCI CLI is important to package-manager culture because it is the local companion binary for a hosted CI/CD platform. Its packaging has to track both stable and preview channels, multiple OS package managers, authentication setup, and a fast-moving cloud API surface.

Timeline

2018-06-19: CircleCI-Public/circleci-cli repository created.
2018-10: CircleCI docs describe switching users from the pre-October-2018 legacy CLI to the newer open-source CLI.
2026: Main branch README documents a preview v1 rewrite.
2026-06-29: GitHub releases include v1.0 preview builds.
2026: Homebrew packages stable v0.1.38646.

Related projects

circleci/local-cli is the old CLI referenced by CircleCI's upgrade instructions.
CircleCI orbs and the orb development kit are major workflows exposed through the CLI.
FYAML is the configuration packing scheme linked from CircleCI CLI docs.
CircleCI's VS Code extension is presented in the docs as another way to validate CircleCI configuration.

Sources

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

local files

Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.

Configuration files

Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.

Unix: ~/.circleci/cli.yml

Credential files

Credential-bearing paths to review before unattended agent runs.

Unix: ~/.circleci/cli.yml

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`circleci`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08

manager version0.1.38646

manager updated2026-06-03

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

https://github.com/CircleCI-Public/circleci-cli

infoNo cached GitHub release or tag data was available.https://github.com/CircleCI-Public/circleci-clinone confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:circleci
Version	0.1.38646
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/circleci
Homepage	https://circleci.com/docs/guides/toolkit/local-cli/
Repository	https://github.com/CircleCI-Public/circleci-cli
Upstream docs	https://circleci.com/docs/guides/toolkit/local-cli
License	MIT
Source archive	https://github.com/CircleCI-Public/circleci-cli.git
Last updated	2026-06-03T18:42:25Z
Pulse	updated
Build dependencies	go
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	circleci
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Head Version	HEAD
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	head stable

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/circleci.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
Nucleus package database
av.db category and tag curation
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated configuration and credential file locations
curated package history
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment

Install circleci with Homebrew