CLI

The Keel CLI is your primary tool for developing, testing, and deploying Keel applications. It handles everything from project initialization to local development, testing, and self-hosted deployments.

Installing Keel CLI

The Keel CLI can be installed from NPM:

npm install -g keel

To verify the installation and check your version:

keel --version

Global flags

These flags are available on all commands:

Flag	Short	Description
`--dir`	`-d`	Directory containing a Keel project (defaults to current directory)
`--version`	`-v`	Print the Keel CLI version

Commands overview

Command	Description
`keel init`	Initialize a new Keel project
`keel run`	Start a local development server
`keel generate`	Generate SDK and scaffold functions
`keel validate`	Validate your schema and config
`keel test`	Run your test suite
`keel client`	Generate a TypeScript client SDK
`keel db`	Manage your development database
`keel secrets`	Manage local development secrets

keel init

Initialize a new Keel project with an interactive setup wizard.

keel init

The init command guides you through:

Directory — Choose where to create your project
Template — Start with a blank project or a starter template
Package Manager — Select npm or pnpm
Version Control — Optionally initialize a Git repository

What gets created

For a blank project, keel init creates:

my-keel-app/
├── schema.keel        # Your Keel schema
├── keelconfig.yaml    # Project configuration
├── .gitignore         # Git ignore rules
├── package.json       # Node.js dependencies
└── node_modules/      # Installed packages

The command also runs keel generate automatically to create the @teamkeel/sdk and @teamkeel/testing packages.

Starter templates

When you select "Starter template", the CLI downloads templates from the teamkeel/starter-templates (opens in a new tab) repository and lets you choose from available options.

keel run

Start a local development server for your Keel project.

keel run