Install okta-aws-cli with Homebrew, Nix

Project links

• Homepage
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• okta-aws-cli

Project history

The repository was created on 2022-07-07 as a Go CLI for using Okta as the identity provider for AWS CLI operations. The README describes three primary commands: `web` for human/device authorization, `m2m` for headless machine-to-machine authorization, and `direct` for direct authorization with out-of-band MFA.

The 2.0.0 GA release on 2024-01-25 reorganized the CLI around subcommands, renamed environment variables under the `OKTA_AWSCLI_` prefix, added JSON process-credential output, added an `--exec` mode for running a follow-on command with credentials in the environment, and added support for collecting roles across AWS federation apps.

Subsequent 2.x releases improved multi-profile and multi-app support, non-admin user flows, role and IdP selection, credential formatting, cached-token handling, Chocolatey publishing, and security details such as moving a web SSO token out of the URL query parameter and into a POST body.

Adoption history

The tool addresses a long-standing enterprise operations problem: developers need AWS CLI access through federated identity without long-lived AWS access keys. Okta's own admin documentation tells administrators to get `okta-aws-cli` from GitHub or package managers such as Homebrew or Chocolatey when configuring Okta as the IdP for AWS CLI.

Homebrew usage is comparatively strong in this batch. The formula API generated on 2026-07-01 reported 5,821 installs over 365 days and 5,730 installs-on-request over the same period, reflecting the tool's practical role in developer workstation setup.

How it is used

In the human `web` flow, a user runs `okta-aws-cli web`, completes browser/device authorization through Okta, and receives AWS `Access Key ID`, `Secret Access Key`, and `Session Token` output. The tool can emit shell environment exports, write or overwrite AWS credentials-file profiles, or return JSON process credentials.

The README explains the SAML-backed path: an Okta OIDC Native Application is paired with an Okta AWS Federation integration app, the AWS federation app is paired with an AWS IAM identity provider, and the CLI presents a SAML assertion to AWS STS with `AssumeRoleWithSAML`. AWS STS returns temporary credentials; AWS documentation says those credentials consist of an access key ID, secret access key, and security token.

For automation, the `m2m` command uses an Okta API service application and private key, then presents an access token to AWS STS using `AssumeRoleWithWebIdentity`. The README warns that private-key handling needs state-of-the-art secrets management and that `m2m` is not intended for human use.

Why package nerds care

okta-aws-cli is a packaging marker for enterprise identity workflows moving into developer package managers. A Homebrew formula for this tool is not just a convenience CLI; it becomes part of how companies standardize short-lived cloud credentials on laptops.

The package is also a useful metadata case because it wraps several standards and services in one executable: OIDC, SAML, Okta Identity Engine, AWS IAM identity providers, AWS STS, credentials files, environment variables, and process credentials.

Timeline

• 2022-07-07: the `okta/okta-aws-cli` repository was created.
• 2024-01-25: version 2.0.0 reached GA with subcommands, process credentials, environment variable renames, and role/profile collection features.
• 2024-07-03: version 2.2.0 improved non-admin user support with the `okta.users.read.self` grant.
• 2025-01-31: version 2.4.0 reduced the scope needed for multiple apps and improved m2m/session handling.
• 2025-05-20: version 2.5.0 added the `direct` command for out-of-band MFA password grant authorization.
• 2026-07-01: Homebrew's formula API reported stable version 2.6.0.

Related projects

• The package is closely related to Okta AWS Account Federation, Okta OIDC Native Applications, AWS IAM identity providers, AWS STS `AssumeRoleWithSAML`, AWS STS `AssumeRoleWithWebIdentity`, and AWS SDK/CLI process credentials.

Sources

• https://api.github.com/repos/okta/okta-aws-cli
• https://docs.aws.amazon.com/STS/latest/APIReference/API_AssumeRoleWithSAML.html
• https://formulae.brew.sh/api/formula/okta-aws-cli.json
• https://github.com/okta/okta-aws-cli
• https://help.okta.com/oie/en-us/content/topics/deploymentguides/aws/aws-configure-cli.htm
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/okta/okta-aws-cli/master/CHANGELOG.md
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/okta/okta-aws-cli/master/README.md