CLI overview

craft [OPTIONS] [COMMAND]

Commands

Command	Aliases	Does
install	i	Install the project's dependencies; with package names, add them like craft add
add		Add packages to package.json and install them
remove	rm, uninstall, un	Remove packages from package.json and node_modules
update	up, upgrade	Update dependencies within their specifiers, or to their latest versions with --latest
outdated		Show direct dependencies with newer versions available
list	ls	List the project's dependencies, and theirs with --depth
why		Show every chain of dependencies that installs a package
run		Run a package.json script, or list them when no name is given
start		Run the start script
test	t	Run the test script
exec		Run a bin from the project's dependencies
dlx	x	Run a package's bin without adding it to the project
trust		Allow packages to run install scripts, then install
init		Create a package.json in the current directory
ci		Remove node_modules and install exactly what craft.lock records
cache clean		Remove every stored package and cached registry response

Any other word runs the script of that name, or else the dependency bin of that name: craft build, craft vitest --run. See craft run.

With no command, craft runs craft install.

Global options

These work with every command, before or after it.

Option	Does
-v, --version	Print the version
-h, --help	Print help; craft <command> --help for a command
--debug	Print debug logs of what craft is doing. Credentials are redacted.
-s, --silent	Print nothing but warnings and errors
--offline	Use only cached registry metadata and stored packages; never touch the network
--prefer-offline	Use cached registry metadata without revalidating it; fetch only what is missing

--debug and --silent can't be combined, and neither can --offline and --prefer-offline.

Output

On a terminal, craft shows one live status line while it works (Resolving dependencies… 143 packages, Linking 218 packages), then a summary of what changed in your direct dependencies:

+ react 19.2.0
+ vitest 3.2.4 (dev)
- lodash 4.17.21
~ typescript 5.6.3 → 5.9.3
218 packages installed in 1.9s

When stderr isn't a terminal, in CI, or with --debug, the status line is replaced by plain output. Warnings and errors always go to stderr.

Exit codes

Code	Meaning
0	Success
1	craft failed; the message says why
other	A script or bin failed with this code, which craft passes through. A script killed by a signal reports 128 + the signal number.