Slack CLI

A command-line tool for sending messages to Slack using the Slack API.

Installation

npm install -g @urugus/slack-cli

Configuration

You need to configure your Slack API token on first use:

slack-cli config set --token YOUR_SLACK_API_TOKEN

Usage

Managing Multiple Workspaces (Profiles)

# Set tokens for different workspaces
slack-cli config set --profile work --token xoxb-work-token
slack-cli config set --profile personal --token xoxb-personal-token

# Show all profiles
slack-cli config profiles

# Switch default profile
slack-cli config use work

# Show current active profile
slack-cli config current

# Show configuration for specific profile
slack-cli config get --profile personal

# Clear specific profile
slack-cli config clear --profile work

Sending Messages

# Basic usage (uses default profile)
slack-cli send -c channel-name -m "Your message here"

# Using specific profile
slack-cli send -c channel-name -m "Your message here" --profile personal

# Using channel ID
slack-cli send -c C1234567890 -m "Your message here"

# Multi-line message
slack-cli send -c general -m "Line 1\nLine 2\nLine 3"

# Send message from file
slack-cli send -c random -f message.txt

# Reply to a thread
slack-cli send -c channel-name -m "Reply message" --thread 1719207629.000100

# Reply to a thread (short option)
slack-cli send -c channel-name -m "Reply message" -t 1719207629.000100

List Channels

# List all channels (uses default profile)
slack-cli channels

# List channels from specific profile
slack-cli channels --profile work

# List public channels only
slack-cli channels --type public

# List private channels only
slack-cli channels --type private

# List all channel types including IMs and MPIMs
slack-cli channels --type all

# Include archived channels
slack-cli channels --include-archived

# Limit number of channels displayed
slack-cli channels --limit 20

# Output in different formats
slack-cli channels --format json
slack-cli channels --format simple

View Message History

# Get latest 10 messages (default)
slack-cli history -c general

# Specify number of messages
slack-cli history -c general -n 20

# Get messages since specific date
slack-cli history -c general --since "2024-01-01 00:00:00"

# Use specific profile
slack-cli history -c general --profile work

Get Unread Messages

# Get all unread messages across all channels
slack-cli unread

# Get unread messages from specific channel
slack-cli unread -c general

# Show only unread counts (no message content)
slack-cli unread --count-only

# Mark messages as read after fetching
slack-cli unread --mark-read

# Mark messages as read for specific channel
slack-cli unread -c general --mark-read

# Limit number of channels displayed
slack-cli unread --limit 10

# Output in different formats
slack-cli unread --format json
slack-cli unread --format simple

Other Commands

# Show help
slack-cli --help

# Show version
slack-cli --version

# Show current configuration
slack-cli config get

# Update token for default profile
slack-cli config set --token NEW_TOKEN

Options

Global Options

Option	Short	Description
--profile	-p	Use specific workspace profile

send command

Option	Short	Description
--channel	-c	Target channel name or ID (required)
--message	-m	Message to send
--file	-f	File containing message content
--thread	-t	Thread timestamp to reply to

channels command

Option	Short	Description
--type		Channel type: public, private, im, mpim, all (default: public)
--include-archived		Include archived channels
--format		Output format: table, simple, json (default: table)
--limit		Maximum number of channels to list (default: 100)

history command

Option	Short	Description
--channel	-c	Target channel name or ID (required)
--number	-n	Number of messages to retrieve (default: 10)
--since		Get messages since specific date (YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS)

unread command

Option	Short	Description
--channel	-c	Get unread for specific channel
--format		Output format: table, simple, json (default: table)
--count-only		Show only unread counts
--limit		Maximum number of channels to display (default: 50)
--mark-read		Mark messages as read after fetching

Required Permissions

Your Slack API token needs the following scopes:

• chat:write - Send messages
• channels:read - List public channels
• groups:read - List private channels
• channels:history - Read channel message history
• groups:history - Read private channel message history
• im:history - Read direct message history
• users:read - Access user information for unread counts

Advanced Features

Rate Limiting

The CLI includes built-in rate limiting to handle Slack API limits:

• Concurrent requests: 3
• Automatic retry with exponential backoff (max 3 retries)
• Graceful error handling for rate limit errors

Output Formats

Most commands support multiple output formats:

• table (default) - Human-readable table format
• simple - Simplified text output
• json - Machine-readable JSON format

Markdown Support

Messages sent via the send command automatically support Slack's mrkdwn formatting:

• *bold* for bold text
• _italic_ for italic text
• ~strikethrough~ for strikethrough
• `code` for inline code
• ```code blocks``` for multiline code
• Links are automatically hyperlinked
• User mentions: <@USER_ID>
• Channel mentions: <#CHANNEL_ID>

License

MIT