linear cli

a cli to list, start and create issues in the linear issue tracker. git and jj aware to keep you in the right views in linear. allows jumping to the web or the linear desktop app similar to gh.

here's how it works:

linear config               # setup your repo, it writes a config file

linear issue list           # list unstarted issues assigned to you
linear issue list -A        # list unstarted issues assigned to anyone
linear issue start          # choose an issue to start, creates a branch
linear issue start ABC-123  # start a specific issue
linear issue view           # see current branch's issue as markdown
linear issue pr             # makes a PR with title/body preset, using gh cli
linear issue create         # create a new issue

it aims to be a complement to the web and desktop apps that lets you stay on the command line in an interactive or scripted way.

screencast demos

linear issue create

linear issue start

install

homebrew

brew install schpet/tap/linear

deno via jsr

deno install -A --reload -f -g -n linear jsr:@schpet/linear-cli

binaries

https://github.com/schpet/linear-cli/releases/latest

local dev

git clone https://github.com/schpet/linear-cli
cd linear-cli
deno task install

setup

1. create an API key at linear.app/settings/account/security¹

2. add the API key to your shell environment:

   # in ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc:
   export LINEAR_API_KEY="lin_api_..."
   
   # or in fish:
   set -Ux LINEAR_API_KEY "lin_api_..."

3. run the configuration wizard:

   cd my-project-repo
   linear config

   this will create a .linear.toml config file in your repository with your workspace and team settings.

the CLI works with both git and jj version control systems:

• git: works best when your branches include Linear issue IDs (e.g. eng-123-my-feature). use linear issue start or linear UI's 'copy git branch name' button and related automations.
• jj: detects issues from Linear-issue trailers in your commit descriptions. use linear issue start to automatically add the trailer, or add it manually with jj describe.

commands

issue commands

the current issue is determined by:

• git: the issue id in the current branch name (e.g. eng-123-my-feature)
• jj: the Linear-issue trailer in the current or ancestor commits

note that Linear's GitHub integration will suggest git branch names.

linear issue view      # view issue details in terminal
linear issue view -w   # open issue in web browser
linear issue view -a   # open issue in Linear.app
linear issue id        # prints the issue id from current branch (e.g., "ENG-123")
linear issue title     # prints just the issue title
linear issue url       # prints the Linear.app URL for the issue
linear issue pr        # creates a GitHub PR with issue details via `gh pr create`
linear issue list      # list your issues in a table view (supports -s/--state and --sort)
linear issue list -w   # open issue list in web browser
linear issue list -a   # open issue list in Linear.app
linear issue start     # create/switch to issue branch and mark as started
linear issue create    # create a new issue (interactive prompts)
linear issue create -t "title" -d "description"  # create with flags
linear issue update    # update an issue (interactive prompts)
linear issue delete    # delete an issue
linear issue comment list          # list comments on current issue
linear issue comment add           # add a comment to current issue
linear issue comment add -p <id>   # reply to a specific comment
linear issue comment update <id>   # update a comment

team commands

linear team list       # list teams
linear team id         # print out the team id (e.g. for scripts)
linear team members    # list team members
linear team create     # create a new team
linear team autolinks  # configure GitHub repository autolinks for Linear issues

project commands

linear project list    # list projects
linear project view    # view project details

other commands

linear --help          # show all commands
linear --version       # show version
linear config          # setup the project
linear completions     # generate shell completions

configuration options

the CLI supports configuration via environment variables or a .linear.toml config file. environment variables take precedence over config file values.

option	env var	toml key	example	description
API key	LINEAR_API_KEY	api_key	"lin_api_..."	your Linear API key (required)
Team ID	LINEAR_TEAM_ID	team_id	"TEAM_abc123"	default team for operations
Workspace	LINEAR_WORKSPACE	workspace	"mycompany"	workspace slug for web/app URLs
Issue sort	LINEAR_ISSUE_SORT	issue_sort	"priority" or "manual"	how to sort issue lists
VCS	LINEAR_VCS	vcs	"git" or "jj"	version control system (default: git)
Download images	LINEAR_DOWNLOAD_IMAGES	download_images	true or false	download images when viewing issues

the config file can be placed at:

• ./linear.toml or ./.linear.toml (current directory)
• <repo-root>/linear.toml or <repo-root>/.linear.toml (repository root)
• <repo-root>/.config/linear.toml

why

linear's UI is incredibly good but it slows me down. i find the following pretty grating to experience frequently:

• switching context from my repo to linear
• not being on the right view when i open linear
• linear suggests a git branch, but i have to do the work of creating or switching to that branch
• linear's suggested git branch doesn't account for it already existing or having a merged pull request

this cli solves this. it knows what you're working on (via git branches or jj commit trailers), does the work of managing your version control state, and will write your pull request details for you.

Footnotes

1. creating an API key requires member access, it is not available for guest accounts. ↩