Gemini CLI – The Best Free AI Coding Assistant That Runs in Your Terminal

The command-line interface has long been a developer’s most powerful tool. Now, with "Gemini CLI," Google introduces a groundbreaking open-source AI coding assistant designed to supercharge your terminal.

Gemini CLI brings the full power of Google’s Gemini models directly to your command line. Lightweight, efficient, and open-source, it provides seamless access to AI-driven coding, content generation, research, and task automation—right from your terminal.

Built to support both casual and professional developers, Gemini CLI integrates with Gemini Code Assist, enabling an AI-first development experience across VS Code and the command line. Whether you’re using the Free, Standard, or Enterprise plan, you’ll benefit from intelligent code completion, generation, and refactoring powered by Gemini.

gemini-cli

What Are the Features of Gemini CLI?

More than just a coding assistant, this innovative tool acts as an all-in-one work partner. Whether you're tackling complex code analysis or need to quickly generate new applications, Gemini CLI delivers precise AI support. Best of all, it's completely free to use; all you need is a Google account to get started.

Powerful Code Understanding

Gemini CLI can query and edit large codebases, even surpassing the 1 million token context window limit of Gemini 1.5 Pro. This means you can effortlessly handle enterprise-grade projects, receiving deep AI insights and suggestions from overall architecture down to implementation details.

Multimodal Innovation

Leveraging Gemini's multimodal processing capabilities, this tool supports generating new applications directly from PDF documents or even sketches. This innovative approach makes product prototyping more intuitive and efficient.

Automated Task Management

From querying pull requests to handling complex code merges, Gemini CLI automates many tedious DevOps tasks, significantly boosting your workflow efficiency.

Google Search Integration

With a built-in Google Search tool, you can fetch web information and provide the model with real-time external context. This ensures that the advice you receive is always based on the latest technical information and best practices.

Installation & Usage Guide: Get Started in Three Minutes

System Requirements

Before you begin, ensure you have Node.js version 18 or higher installed.

How to Install Gemini CLI: Quick Installation Methods for Developers

Method 1: Direct Run

npx https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli

Method 2: Global Installation

npm install -g @google/gemini-cli

Authentication Setup

After installation, simply log in with your personal Google account. Free accounts receive an allowance of 60 model requests per minute and 1,000 requests per day, one of the most generous free usage policies in the industry.

For higher usage capacity or specific model access, you can:

Generate an API key from Google AI Studio
Utilize Vertex AI for usage-based billing
Upgrade to Gemini Code Assist Standard or Enterprise editions

How to Use Gemini CLI ?

Code Development & Maintenance

$ cd your-project/
$ gemini
> Analyze the main architectural components of this system.
> Draft an implementation for GitHub issue #123.
> Help me migrate this codebase to the latest Java version.

Project Management & Collaboration

> Create a slide deck showing the git history for the past 7 days, grouped by feature and team member.
> Create a full-screen web app to display our most interacted GitHub issues.

File Processing & Automation

> Convert all images in this directory to PNG format and rename them using the date from their EXIF data.
> Organize my PDF invoices by month of expenditure.

Cost Structure: Industry's Most Favorable AI Tool Pricing

For ordinary developers, Gemini CLI is almost completely free. According to Google:

“To use Gemini CLI free-of-charge, simply login with a personal Google account to get a free Gemini Code Assist license. That free license gets you access to Gemini 2.5 Pro and its massive 1 million token context window. To ensure you rarely, if ever, hit a limit during this preview, we offer the industry’s largest allowance: 60 model requests per minute and 1,000 requests per day at no charge.”
— Google Gemini CLI Documentation

This official statement reinforces that Gemini CLI is not only powerful but also developer-friendly and freely accessible during its preview period.

Free Version

Usage Limit: 60 requests per minute, 1,000 requests per day
Model Access: Full Gemini 1.5 Pro functionality
Context Window: 1 million tokens
Additional Costs: Absolutely free

Paid Versions

For professional developers requiring higher usage or specific features:

Google AI Studio API: Billed based on usage.
Vertex AI: Enterprise-grade solutions.
Gemini Code Assist Standard/Enterprise: Includes additional IDE integration features.

Open-Source Advantage: Transparency & Community-Driven Development

As an open-source project under the Apache 2.0 license, Gemini CLI offers complete code transparency. Developers can:

Inspect the source code to understand its workings.
Verify security implementations.
Contribute code for improvements and new features.
Report issues and suggest functionalities.

This openness ensures continuous improvement and fosters community trust.

Seamless Integration with VS Code

Gemini CLI shares the same underlying technology with Google's AI coding assistant, Gemini Code Assist. In VS Code, you can enjoy the same powerful AI agent capabilities, including:

Multi-step reasoning and planning
Automatic error recovery
Intelligent solution recommendations

Extensibility & Customization

The tool supports various extension methods:

Model Context Protocol (MCP): Integrate third-party tools and services.
Custom Prompts: Tailor AI behavior for specific workflows.
Script Integration: Call non-interactively within automation scripts.

Start Your AI Coding Journey

With its seamless integration, open-source flexibility, and direct access to Google’s powerful Gemini models, Gemini CLI is redefining how developers interact with AI at the command line. Whether you're building code, generating content, or solving complex problems, this free AI assistant is the perfect tool to boost your productivity—right from your terminal.

Gemini CLI represents the future of command-line tools. It's more than just a coding assistant; it's an intelligent work partner capable of understanding your intent, learning your preferences, and continuously improving.

Visit the GitHub repository now to get started. With just an email address, you can unlock nearly limitless AI assistance right in your terminal. Whether you're an independent developer, a startup member, or part of a large enterprise tech team, Gemini CLI can revolutionize your development workflow.

Start experiencing this game-changing tool today and let AI become your most reliable coding companion!

Gemini CLI FAQ：

Is Gemini CLI really free?

Yes, Gemini CLI is 100% free for personal use, with generous limits of 60 requests/minute and 1,000/day.

Can Gemini CLI work with large codebases?

Absolutely. It supports up to 1 million tokens of context, making it suitable for enterprise-scale projects.

What do I need to install Gemini CLI?

You just need Node.js 18+, and then run one npx or npm install command.

More Resources...

GitHub repository: https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli

Google Doc: https://blog.google/technology/developers/introducing-gemini-cli-open-source-ai-agent/

YouTube: Google Gemini CLI Is FREE & Crazy Powerful

YouTube: How to Install & Use Gemini CLI + MCP: A Step-by-Step Tutorial