Command-line reference overview
The Buildkite CLI (bk) allows you to interact with the Buildkite platform through the command line. The comprehensive set of bk commands, along with categories of sub-commands, lets you manage Buildkite agents and their configuration, work with a Buildkite pipeline's builds, control job execution, and manipulate its artifacts. These command sets can be essential for managing your build infrastructure, automating tasks, and troubleshooting issues.
Commands
The following pages describe how to use the bk command, organized by its command category:
Global flags
These flags are available across commands:
| Flag | Behavior | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Flag |
-h, --help
|
Behavior | Show help for the selected command. |
| Flag | --org SLUG |
Behavior | Select the organization for this invocation without changing configuration files. |
| Flag |
-y, --yes
|
Behavior | Skip confirmation prompts. This does not supply missing arguments or other interactive selections. |
| Flag | --no-input |
Behavior | Disable interactive prompts. Provide required selections explicitly. |
| Flag |
-q, --quiet
|
Behavior | Suppress progress output. |
| Flag | --no-pager |
Behavior | Disable the pager for text output. |
| Flag |
--debug, --verbose
|
Behavior | Log HTTP API traffic to stderr. Bodies can contain sensitive data. |
For scripts, use --no-input and an explicit output format when the command supports it. Mutations that require confirmation also need --yes. See configuration for environment variables, output preferences, and organization selection.
Review debug logs before sharing
Debug logging redacts common credential headers and selected token, password, and private-key body fields. It omits query strings, fragments, URL user information, and cluster-secret create/update request bodies. Arbitrary bodies, URL paths, and other headers can still contain sensitive data. Review logs before sharing or retaining them.