GitHub Copilot CLI

GitHub Copilot CLI is a terminal-based AI coding assistant from GitHub. It helps developers understand repositories, plan changes, edit and debug code, and carry out development tasks through natural-language conversations. It integrates local project context with GitHub repositories, issues, and pull requests.

Main features

• Ask questions about code, develop a plan, and request implementation, debugging, or refactoring in your terminal.
• Use interactive sessions or prompt-driven workflows; inspect tool calls and approve permissions before allowing actions.
• Work with GitHub context through the included GitHub MCP integration, and add custom MCP servers for other tools.
• Configure custom agents, skills, hooks, and supported language servers for project-specific workflows.
• Choose supported models and manage session context; available models depend on your account or configured provider.
• Use command sandboxing and permission settings to control execution, network access, and file access.

Installation and first use

Install brew install --cask copilot-cli. This installs the copilot executable and supported shell completions, rather than a graphical Mac app. In a project folder, run copilot and follow /login if GitHub authentication is required. Start with a code question or /plan, review the proposed actions, and grant only the permissions appropriate for the task.

Requirements, dependencies, and conflicts

The current Homebrew Mac cask requires macOS 13 or later and has separate native Apple Silicon and Intel downloads. It declares no additional formula dependency and conflicts with copilot-cli@prerelease, which provides an alternative executable. The native archive can be installed without separately installing Node.js; the npm installation route instead requires Node.js 22 or later. Windows use requires PowerShell 6 or later. Official distributions also cover Linux and Windows; the Mac archive is not their installer.

GitHub CLI (gh) is optional for authentication fallback and GitHub command workflows. Git, language runtimes, build tools, and MCP servers must be available when a task needs them. Language servers are not bundled and must be installed and configured separately. An organization's administrator can disable CLI access or restrict tools and domains. Avoid managing the same executable through multiple package managers.

Accounts, costs, and license

For GitHub-hosted Copilot usage, authenticate with an eligible GitHub account and Copilot entitlement; organization-provided access also requires its CLI policy to be enabled. Usage allowances and paid consumption depend on your plan and selected model, so consult current plans rather than assuming unlimited requests. Installing the CLI does not itself grant service access.

Current documentation also supports bringing your own model-provider API keys (BYOK) without GitHub authentication for model requests. Provider charges and availability then apply separately. GitHub-hosted features such as cloud delegation, the GitHub MCP server, and GitHub code search still require GitHub authentication. Offline mode avoids GitHub contact but only provides an isolated environment when the configured model provider is also local or isolated.

The CLI uses the custom GitHub Copilot CLI License, not an open-source license. Its public repository supplies releases, documentation, and issue tracking; the software license and the terms of any connected service apply separately.

References: official repository, installation, authentication and BYOK, plans, and CLI license.