← Back to tools

Slack CLI

Build, test, and deploy Slack apps from the terminal

Homepage Repository
Cloud & Services Development linuxmacoswindows Go MIT

Description

Slack CLI is the official command-line tool for building and deploying Slack apps using the Slack Platform. It provides scaffolding, local development with hot-reloading, trigger management, deployment to Slack infrastructure, and activity logging for Slack automations and workflow apps.

Install

homebrewbrew install slack

AI Summary

Official Slack CLI for building, testing, and deploying Slack Platform apps with scaffolding, local development, trigger management, and deployment to Slack infrastructure.

Capabilities

  • + Scaffold new Slack app projects from templates
  • + Run Slack apps locally with hot-reloading for development
  • + Deploy apps to Slack managed infrastructure
  • + Manage triggers (event hooks) for app workflows
  • + View real-time activity logs from deployed apps
  • + Manage app collaborators and permissions

Use When

  • → Building Slack Platform apps and workflow automations
  • → Developing and testing Slack apps locally before deployment
  • → Deploying Slack apps to Slack managed hosting
  • → Managing triggers and workflows for Slack automations

Avoid When

  • x Not building Slack apps (just using Slack as a user)
  • x Building traditional Slack apps hosted on your own infrastructure
  • x Managing Slack workspace settings (use the web admin)

Usage Patterns

Create a new Slack app

slack create my-app

Scaffolds a new Slack app project with interactive template selection

Run the app locally

slack run

Starts the app in local development mode with hot-reloading

Deploy to Slack hosting

slack deploy

Deploys the app to Slack managed infrastructure

View app activity logs

slack activity --tail

Streams real-time logs from the deployed Slack app

Input / Output

stdin: Accepts interactive input for app creation, trigger setup, and confirmations
stdout: App status, deployment progress, and activity logs
stderr: Error messages and build warnings

Typical Pipelines

slack create my-app && cd my-app && slack run to scaffold and start developing
slack deploy && slack activity --tail to deploy and monitor the app
slack trigger create --trigger-def triggers/shortcut.ts to set up a new trigger

Related Tools

gh complementary

gh manages GitHub repos where Slack app source code is stored
railway alternative

Railway can host custom Slack bots that use the traditional Slack API
View AGENTS.md for Slack CLI