An A-Z Index of Apple macOS (bash) commands

afconvert Audio File Convert

afinfo Audio File Info

afplay Audio File Play

airport Manage Apple AirPort

alias Create an alias •

alloc List used and free memory

apropos Search the whatis database for strings

asr Apple Software Restore

atsutil Font registration system utility

automator Run an Automator workflow

awk Find and Replace text within file(s)

base64 Encode or Decode a binary file

basename Convert a full pathname to just a filename

bash Bourne-Again SHell

bc Arbitrary precision calculator language

bg Send to background •

bind Set or display readline key and function bindings •

bless Set volume bootability and startup disk options

break Exit from a For, While, Until or Select loop •

brew Package manager

builtin Execute a shell builtin •

bzip2 Compress or decompress files

caffeinate Prevent the system from sleeping

cal Display a calendar

calendar Reminder Service

caller Return the context of a subroutine call •

cancel Cancel print jobs

case Conditionally perform a command •

cat Concatenate and print (display) the content of files

cd Change Directory •

chflags Change a file or folder’s flags

chgrp Change group ownership

chmod Change access permissions

chown Change file owner and group

chroot Run a command with a different root directory

chsh Add or change user database information, change default shell

cksum Print CRC checksum and byte counts

clear Clear terminal screen

cmp Compare two files

codesign Create and manipulate code signatures

col Filter reverse line feeds from input

comm Compare two sorted files line by line

command Run a command (not a function) •

complete Edit a command completion [word/pattern/list] •

continue Resume the next iteration of a loop •

cp Copy one or more files to another location

cpio Copy files to and from archives

createhomedir Create and populate home directories on the local computer

cron Daemon to execute scheduled commands

crontab Schedule a command to run at a later date/time

csplit Split a file into context-determined pieces

csrutil Configure System Integrity Protection (SIP)

cupsfilter Convert a file to another format using cups filters

curl Transfer data from or to a server

cut Divide a file into several parts

date Display or change the date & time

dc Desk Calculator

dd Data Duplicator - convert and copy a file, clone disks

declare Declare variable & set attributes •

defaults Set preferences, show hidden files

df Display free disk space

diff Display the differences between two files

diff3 Show differences among three files

dig DNS lookup

dirname Convert a full pathname to just a path

dirs Display list of remembered directories •

diskutil Disk utilities - Format, Verify, Repair

disown Unbind a job from the current login session •

ditto Copy files and folders

dot_clean Remove dot-underscore files

drutil Interact with CD/DVD burners

dscacheutil Query or flush the Directory Service/DNS cache

dseditgroup Edit, create, manipulate, or delete groups

dsenableroot Enable root access

dsmemberutil View user and groups rights

dscl Directory Service command line utility

du Estimate file space usage

echo Display text on screen •

ed A line-oriented text editor (edlin)

enable Enable and disable builtin shell commands •

env List or Set environment variables

eval Evaluate several commands/arguments •

exec Execute a command •

exit Exit the shell •

execsnoop Snoop new process execution

expand Convert tabs to spaces

expect Programmed dialogue with interactive programs Also see AppleScript

export Set an environment variable •

expr Evaluate expressions

false Do nothing, unsuccessfully

fc Fix command (history)

fdisk Partition table manipulator for Darwin UFS/HFS/DOS

fdesetup FileVault configuration, list FileVault users

fg Send job to foreground •

file Determine file type

find Search for files that meet a desired criteria

fmt Reformat paragraph text

fold Wrap text to fit a specified width

for Loop command •

fsck Filesystem consistency check and repair

fs_usage Filesystem usage (process/pathname)

ftp Internet file transfer program

function Define Function Macros

fuser List processes that have one or more files open

GetFileInfo Get attributes of HFS+ files

getopt Parse positional parameters

getopts Parse positional parameters •

goto Jump to label and continue execution

gpt GUID partition table maintenance utility

grep Search file(s) for lines that match a given pattern

groups Print group names a user is in

gzip Compress or decompress files

halt Stop and restart the Operating System

hash Refresh the cached/remembered location of commands •

head Display the first lines of a file

hdiutil Manipulate iso disk images

history Command History •

hostname Print or set system name

iconv Convert the character set of a file

id Print user and group names/id’s

if Conditionally perform a command •

ifconfig Configure network interface parameters

iostat Report CPU and i/o statistics

ipconfig View and control IP configuration state

info Help info

install Copy files and set attributes

installer System software and .pkg package installer tool

iosnoop Snoop I/O events as they occur

jobs List active jobs •

join Join lines on a common field

jot Print sequential or random data

kextfind List kernel extensions

kextstat Display status of loaded kernel extensions (kexts)

kextunload Terminate driver instances and unload kernel extensions.

keytool Key and certificate management tool

kickstart Configure Apple Remote Desktop

kill Kill a process by specifying its PID

killall Kill processes by name

klist List cached Kerberos tickets

l List files in long format (ls -l)

last Indicate last logins of users and ttys

launchctl Load or unload daemons/agents

ll List files in long format, showing invisible files (ls -la)

leave Remind you when you have to leave

less Display output one screen at a time

let Evaluate expression •

lipo Convert a universal binary

ln Make links between files (hard links, symbolic links)

local Set a local (function) variable •

locate Find files

log Access system wide log messages

logname Print current login name

logout Exit a login shell (bye) •

look Display lines beginning with a given string

lp Print files

lpr Print files

lprm Remove jobs from the print queue

lpstat Printer status information

ls List information about file(s)

lsregister Reset the Launch Services database

lsbom List a bill of materials file

lsof List open files

man Help manual

md5 Calculate a checksum for a file

mdfind Spotlight search

mdimport Import file hierarchies into the Spotlight datastore.

mdls List the metadata attributes for a specified file

mdutil Manage Spotlight metadata store

mkdir Create new folder(s)

mkfifo Make FIFOs (named pipes)

mkfile Make a file

mktemp Make a temporary file

more Display output one screen at a time

mount Mount a file system

mount_smbfs Mount a file share from a remote SMB server.

msgs System messages

mtree Map a directory hierarchy

mv Move or rename files or directories

nano Simple text editor

nc/netcat Read and write data across networks

net Manage network resources

netstat Show network status

networkQuality Network quality testing tool

networksetup Network and System Preferences

nice Set the priority of a command

nl Number lines and write files

nohup Run a command immune to hangups

ntfs.util NTFS file system utility

nvram Manipulate firmware variables

onintr Control the action of a shell interrupt

open Open a file/folder/URL/Application

opensnoop Snoop file opens as they occur

openssl OpenSSL command line

osacompile Compile AppleScript

osascript Execute AppleScript

passwd Modify a user password

paste Merge lines of files

pbcopy Copy data to the clipboard

pbpaste Paste data from the Clipboard

pbs General helper tool

pfctl Firewall - Control the packet filter and NAT device.

pgrep List processes by a full or partial name

ping Test a network connection

pkill Kill processes by a full or partial name

pkgbuild Build a macOS Installer component package

pkgutil Query and manipulate installed packages

plutil Property list utility

pmset Power Management settings

popd Restore the previous value of the current directory •

powermetrics Display CPU and power usage stats

pr Convert text files for printing

printenv List environment variables

printf Format and print data •

profiles Profiles Tool

ps Process status

purge Force disk cache to be purged (flushed and emptied)

pushd Save and then change the current directory

pwd Print Working Directory •

qlmanage Quick Look Server debug and management tool

quota Display disk usage and limits

rcp Copy files between machines

read Read one line from standard input •

readonly Mark a variable or function as read-only •

realpath Return resolved physical path

reboot Stop and restart the system

ReportCrash Enable/Disable crash reporting

return Exit a function •

rev Reverse lines of a file

rm Remove files

rmdir Remove folder(s)

rsync Remote file copy - Sync file tree

say Convert text to audible speech

screen Multiplex terminal, run remote shells via ssh

screencapture Capture screen image to file or disk

scselect Switch between network locations

scutil Manage system configuration parameters

sdiff Merge two files interactively

security Administer Keychains, keys, certificates and the Security framework

sed Stream Editor

select Generate a list of items •

seq Print numeric sequences

serverinfo Server information

set Set a shell variable = value •

setfile Set attributes of HFS+ files

sharing Create share points for afp, ftp and smb services

shasum Print or Check SHA Checksums

shift Shift positional parameters •

shopt Set shell options •

shortcuts Manage macOS shortcuts

shutdown Shutdown or restart macOS

sips Scriptable image processing system

sleep Delay for a specified time

sntp Simple Network Time Protocol client program

softwareupdate System software update tool

sort Sort text files

source Execute commands from a file •

spctl Security assessment policy/Gatekeeper

split Split a file into fixed-size pieces

sqlite3 SQL database (download history)

srm Securely remove files or directories

stat Display the status of a file

stop Stop a job or process

su Substitute user identity

sudo Execute a command as another user

sum Print a checksum for a file

suspend Suspend execution of this shell •

sw_vers Print macOS Operating System version

sysctl Get or set kernel state

system_profiler Report system configuration

systemsetup Computer and display system settings

tabs Set terminal tabs

tab2space Expand tabs and ensure consistent cr/lf line endings

tail Output the last part of files

tar Tape ARchiver

taskpolicy

Control scheduling of processes

tccutil Manage the privacy database

tcpdump Dump traffic on a network

tee Redirect output to multiple files

test Condition evaluation •

textutil Manipulate text files in various formats (Doc,html,rtf)

time Measure Program Resource Use

times Print shell & shell process times •

tmutil Time Machine utility

top Display process information

touch Change file timestamps

tput Set terminal-dependent capabilities, colour, position

tr Translate, squeeze, and/or delete characters

trap Execute a command when the shell receives a signal •

traceroute Trace Route to Host

traceroute6 Trace IPv6 Route to Host

trash Move files and directories to the trash

trimforce Enable TRIM commands on third-party drives

true Do nothing, successfully

tty Print filename of terminal on stdin

type Describe a command •

ufs.util Mount/unmount UFS file system

ulimit limit the use of system-wide resources •

umask Users file creation mask

umount Unmount a device

unalias Remove an alias •

uname Print the Darwin OS Kernel version / release / machine name

unexpand Convert spaces to tabs

uniq Uniquify files

units Convert units from one scale to another

unset Remove variable or function names •

until Loop command •

uptime Show how long system has been running

users Print login names of users currently logged in

until Execute commands (until error)

uuencode Encode a binary file

uudecode Decode a file created by uuencode

uuidgen Generate a Unique ID (UUID/GUID)

uucp Unix to Unix copy

vi Text Editor

vifs Safely edit fstab

w Show who is logged on and what they are doing

wait Wait for a process to complete •

wait4path Wait for given path to show up in the namespace

wall Write a message to users

wc Print byte, word, and line counts

wdutil Wireless Diagnostics command line utility

whatis Search the whatis database for complete words

whence Locate a program file in the user’s path (zsh)

whereis Locate a program

which Locate a program file in the user’s path

while Loop command •

who Print all usernames currently logged on

whoami Print the current user id and name ('id -un')

write Send a message to another user

xargs Execute utility - passing arguments

xattr Display and manipulate extended attributes

xcode-select Install the command line developer tools

xcrun Run or locate development tools and properties

xxd Make a hexdump or do the reverse

yes Print a string until interrupted

zip Package and compress (archive) files

!! Run the last command again

# Comment / Remark

Commands marked • are bash built-in commands.

In macOS Catalina the default shell was changed to zsh and in time this page may be updated to include the zsh variants. The shells supplied by Apple are often years out of date, so many people prefer to install the latest bash shell using homebrew.

To scroll this page, press [ a – z ] on the keyboard, or '\' to Search.

See also: Websites, Books, Apps & Utilities for macOS.

"Mac OS X is a rock-solid system that’s beautifully designed. I much prefer it to Linux" ~ Bill Joy