gemini-api-cli

1The `gemini-api` CLI exposes every Gemini API resource as a shell subcommand. Compared to `curl`: media and transcription commands decode output to disk and print only the file path, `-i` attaches local files or `files/<id>` URIs, `--jq` extracts fields in-process (raw strings by default, no external `jq`), `--dry-run` previews redacted HTTP requests offline, and list endpoints auto-paginate with `--all` (cap pages with `--max-pages N`; `--page-size` sets server page size).
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3## CLI vs SDK
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5**CLI for shell work, SDK for application code.** Use `gemini-api` from terminals, scripts, and CI jobs to generate media files, analyze local PDFs or recordings, run Deep Research, and manage agent sandboxes (`gemini-api` is a stateless Gemini API client, distinct from the interactive `@google/gemini-cli` coding agent). Use the Google GenAI SDKs (`gemini-api-dev`, `gemini-live-api-dev`) when calls live inside application source or need bidirectional Live API WebSockets.
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7## Install and auth
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9```sh
10# macOS / Linux (set GEMINI_VERSION=<tag> to pin a release)
11curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/google-gemini/gemini-api-cli/main/scripts/install.sh | bash
12```
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14Credentials resolve in order (first match wins): `--api-key` / `--access-token` flags, `GEMINI_API_KEY` / `GEMINI_ACCESS_TOKEN` env vars, the OS keychain, then `~/.config/gemini-api/config.yaml`.
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16- Env var (agents and CI): `export GEMINI_API_KEY="..."`
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