The Cloudinary CLI (Command Line Interface) enables you to interact with Cloudinary through the command line. For example, you can perform Admin and Upload API operations by typing commands into a terminal without having to spend time setting up a formal coding environment. Additional helper commands are provided to help you to try out transformations, optimizations, and other common actions with minimal effort. You can also combine CLI commands in a batch file to automate laborious tasks.
It is fully documented at https://cloudinary.com/documentation/cloudinary_cli.
Your own Cloudinary account. If you don't already have one, sign up at https://cloudinary.com/users/register/free.
Python 3.8 or later. You can install Python from https://www.python.org/. Note that the Python Package Installer (pip) is installed with it.
The CLI is published on PyPI as cloudinary-cli. The package name (cloudinary-cli) is what you install; the command it provides is cld (it also installs a cloudinary alias). Pick the method that fits your setup. If you just want a working cld command and aren't sure, use pipx or uv — they install the CLI in its own isolated environment, so it won't conflict with other Python packages and you don't need to manage a virtual environment yourself.
pipx installs Python CLI tools into isolated environments and puts the cld command on your PATH automatically.
# Install pipx if you don't have it:
# macOS: brew install pipx && pipx ensurepath
# Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt install pipx && pipx ensurepath
# Any platform: python3 -m pip install --user pipx && python3 -m pipx ensurepath
pipx install cloudinary-cli
# Upgrade later with:
pipx upgrade cloudinary-cliAfter pipx ensurepath, open a new terminal so the updated PATH takes effect.
uv is a fast Python package manager. Its uv tool command installs CLIs in isolation, like pipx:
uv tool install cloudinary-cli
# Upgrade later with:
uv tool upgrade cloudinary-cliOr run it once without installing. The package's command is cld, so name it with --from:
uvx --from cloudinary-cli cld --help # uvx is shorthand for `uv tool run`A plain pip install also works. Prefer a virtual environment so the CLI and its dependencies don't collide with your system or other projects:
python3 -m venv ~/.venvs/cloudinary-cli
source ~/.venvs/cloudinary-cli/bin/activate # Windows: .\.venvs\cloudinary-cli\Scripts\activate
pip install cloudinary-cliTo install without a virtual environment, use a per-user install (avoids needing sudo and keeps it out of system Python):
python3 -m pip install --user cloudinary-cliIf cld is not found afterwards, the user scripts directory is not on your PATH. See Troubleshooting.
If you'd rather not install Python at all, run the CLI from the official Docker image. See Docker Usage below.
cld --versionIf your shell reports cld: command not found after installing:
-
pipx / uv: run
pipx ensurepath(oruv tool update-shell), then open a new terminal. -
pip
--userinstall: the user scripts directory is not on yourPATH. Find it withpython3 -m site --user-base(the scripts live in itsbinsubdirectory on macOS/Linux, orScriptson Windows) and add that to yourPATH. For example, on macOS/Linux add this to~/.zshrcor~/.bash_profile:export PATH="$PATH:$(python3 -m site --user-base)/bin"
-
As a fallback, you can always invoke the CLI through Python:
python3 -m cloudinary_cli.cli <command>.
Once installed, point your cld commands at a Cloudinary account using either of the following.
Option A — Log in with OAuth (recommended). Run:
cld loginThis opens your browser to authorize the CLI, then saves the login as a configuration (named after the cloud) and sets it as the default. The CLI refreshes the token automatically, and you can remove the login at any time with cld logout.
Option B — Set your CLOUDINARY_URL environment variable. For example:
- On Mac or Linux:
export CLOUDINARY_URL=cloudinary://123456789012345:abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzA@cloud_name - On Windows (cmd.exe):
set CLOUDINARY_URL=cloudinary://123456789012345:abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzA@cloud_name - On Windows (PowerShell):
$Env:CLOUDINARY_URL="cloudinary://123456789012345:abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzA@cloud_name"
Note: you can copy and paste your account environment variable from the Account Details section of the Dashboard page in the Cloudinary console.
Then check your configuration by running cld config. A response of the following form is returned:
cloud_name: <CLOUD_NAME>
api_key: <API_KEY>
api_secret: ***************<LAST_4_DIGITS>
private_cdn: <True|False>
If cld itself is not found, see Troubleshooting the cld command.
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Usage: cld [cli options] [command] [command options] [method] [method parameters]
cld --help # Lists available commands.
cld login # Logs in to a Cloudinary account via OAuth in your browser.
cld logout # Revokes and removes a saved OAuth login.
cld search --help # Shows usage for the Search API.
cld admin # Lists Admin API methods.
cld uploader # Lists Upload API methods.
The Cloudinary CLI is also available as a Docker image, perfect for containerized environments, CI/CD pipelines, or when you prefer not to install Python locally.
# Check configuration
docker run --rm -e CLOUDINARY_URL cloudinary/cli config
# Upload files from your local machine
docker run --rm -e CLOUDINARY_URL \
-v /path/to/your/images:/app/images \
cloudinary/cli uploader upload /app/images/sample.jpg
# Search for assets
docker run --rm -e CLOUDINARY_URL \
cloudinary/cli search "resource_type:image" --max_results 5
# Interactive mode for multiple commands
docker run --rm -it -e CLOUDINARY_URL --entrypoint /bin/bash cloudinary/cliDocker Image: cloudinary/cli • Base: Debian 12 • Size: ~175MB • Multi-arch: amd64, arm64
For comprehensive Docker usage, examples, and troubleshooting, see DOCKER.md.
Enables you to run any methods that can be called through the upload API.
You can find documentation for each of the Upload API methods at https://cloudinary.com/documentation/image_upload_api_reference.
The basic syntax using the Upload API is as follows:
cld [cli options] uploader [command options] [method] [method parameters]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Example: change the asset with public_id:"flowers" from type:upload to type:private and rename it using the rename method, which takes two parameters - from_public_id and to_public_id.
Use any of the following commands:
cld uploader rename flowers secret_flowers to_type=private
cld uploader rename flowers secret_flowers -o to_type private
cld rename flowers secret_flowers to_type=private
Note: you can omit 'uploader' from the command when calling an Upload API method.
Enables you to run any methods that can be called through the admin API.
You can find documentation for each of the Admin API methods at https://cloudinary.com/documentation/admin_api.
The basic syntax using the Admin API is as follows:
cld [cli options] admin [command options] [method] [method parameters]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Example: create a transformation and get information about that transformation:
cld admin create_transformation my_new_transformation w_500,h_500,c_crop,e_vectorize
cld admin transformation my_new_transformation
Note: you can omit 'admin' from the command when calling an Admin API method.
Runs the admin API search method, allowing you to use a Lucene query string as the expression.
You can find documentation for the Search API at https://cloudinary.com/documentation/search_api.
The basic syntax using the Search API is as follows:
cld [cli options] search [command options] [expression]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Generates a Cloudinary URL, which you can optionally open in your browser.
cld [cli options] url [command options] public_id [transformation]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Example: generate a URL that displays the image in your media library that has the public ID of 'sample', with a width of 500 pixels and transformed using the cartoonify effect, then open this URL in a browser.
cld url -rt image -t upload -o sample w_500,e_cartoonify
The URL that is returned is:
http://res.cloudinary.com/<YOUR CLOUD NAME>/image/upload/w_500,e_cartoonify/sample
Returns template code for implementing the specified Cloudinary widget.
cld [cli options] make [command options] [widget]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Example: output the HTML required to embed the Upload Widget on your website.
cld make upload_widget
Uploads a folder of assets, maintaining the folder structure.
cld [cli options] upload_dir [command options] [local_folder]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Example: upload the local folder, my_images, and all its contents and sub-folders to your Cloudinary folder my_images_on_cloudinary.
cld upload_dir -f my_images_on_cloudinary my_images
Synchronizes between a local folder and a Cloudinary folder, maintaining the folder structure.
cld [cli options] sync [command options] local_folder cloudinary_folder
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Example: push up changes from the local folder, my_images, to your Cloudinary folder, my_images_on_cloudinary/my_images.
cld sync --push my_images my_images_on_cloudinary/my_images
Migrates a list of external media files to Cloudinary. The URLs of the files to migrate are listed in a separate file and must all have the same prefix.
cld [cli options] migrate [command options] upload_mapping file
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
A configuration is a reference to a specified Cloudinary account or cloud name via its environment variable. You set the default configuration during setup and installation. Using different configurations allows you to access different Cloudinary cloud names, such as sub-accounts of your main Cloudinary account, or any additional Cloudinary accounts you may have.
The config command displays the current configuration and lets you manage additional configurations.
You can specify the environment variable of additional Cloudinary accounts either explicitly (-c option) or as a saved configuration (-C option).
For example, using the -c option:
cld -c cloudinary://123456789012345:abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzA@cloud_name admin usage
Whereas using the saved configuration "accountx":
cld -C accountx admin usage
Caution: Creating a saved configuration may put your credentials at risk as they are stored in a local plain text file. This applies to both API-key configurations and OAuth logins.
You can create, delete and list saved configurations using the config command.
cld config [options]
For details, see the Cloudinary CLI documentation.
Instead of saving an API key and secret, you can log in to a Cloudinary account through your browser. The CLI saves the resulting session as a named configuration and refreshes its token automatically.
cld login # Log in and save the configuration (named after the cloud).
cld login my-account # Save the login under a specific name.
cld logout # Choose a saved OAuth login to log out of.
cld logout my-account # Log out of a specific saved OAuth login.
The first login becomes the default automatically. When other configurations already exist, the new login is saved but not made the default; cld login tells you so and prints the command to make it the default. Once saved, an OAuth login is selected with -C <name> just like any other saved configuration.
cld logout revokes the login's token at the server and removes the saved configuration. If the token cannot be revoked (for example, you are offline), the saved configuration is still removed.
The default configuration is used when no -c/-C option is given and no CLOUDINARY_URL environment variable is set. The first OAuth login becomes the default automatically; you can change it at any time.
cld config -d <name> # Set an existing saved configuration as the default.
cld config --unset-default # Clear the stored default.
cld config -ls # List saved configurations, marking the default and the active one.
When creating a configuration with -n or --from_url, add --set-default to make it the default in the same step. Resolution precedence is: -c (inline URL) > -C (saved name) > stored default > CLOUDINARY_URL environment variable.
OAuth tokens are refreshed automatically as needed, but you can refresh them manually.
cld config --refresh <name> # Refresh a saved OAuth configuration's token.
cld config --refresh-all # Refresh every saved OAuth configuration whose token is stale.
cld config --refresh <name> --force # Refresh even if the token is still fresh.
If a token can no longer be refreshed (for example, the login was revoked), the CLI reports the configuration and the cld login command to use to log in again.