Command Line Reference¶

This guide provides a comprehensive reference for the readme-ai CLI, including all available options and their descriptions.

Core Options¶

Option	Short	Values	Default	Description
`--version`	`-V`	-	-	Show the version and exit
`--help`	-	-	-	Show help message and exit
`--repository`	`-r`	`TEXT`	-	Repository URL (GitHub, GitLab, BitBucket) or local path (required)
`--output`	`-o`	`TEXT`	`README.md`	Output file path for the generated README

Option	Short	Values	Default	Description
`--api`	-	`anthropic` `gemini` `ollama` `openai` `offline`	`openai`	LLM API service provider
`--base-url`	-	`TEXT`	-	Base URL for the LLM API service
`--model`	`-m`	`TEXT`	varies by provider	LLM model to use
`--context-window`	`-cw`	`INTEGER`	-	Maximum tokens for model’s context window
`--rate-limit`	`-rl`	`1-25`	-	Requests per minute for the LLM API
`--temperature`	`-t`	`0.0-2.0`	`0.7`	Temperature for text generation
`--top-p`	-	`0.0-1.0`	`1.0`	Top-p sampling probability
`--system-message`	`-sm`	`TEXT`	-	Custom system message for the LLM

Option	Short	Values	Default	Description
`--align`	`-a`	`center` `left` `right`	`left`	Alignment for README header sections
`--header-style`	`-hs`	`ASCII` `ASCII_BOX` `BANNER` `CLASSIC` `CLEAN` `COMPACT` `CONSOLE` `MODERN`	`CLEAN`	README header style template
`--navigation-style`	`-ns`	`ACCORDION` `BULLET` `NUMBER` `ROMAN`	`BULLET`	Navigation menu style for table of contents

Option	Short	Values	Default	Description
`--badge-color`	`-bc`	`TEXT`	-	Primary color for badge icons (hex code or name)
`--badge-style`	`-bs`	`default` `flat` `flat-square` `for-the-badge` `plastic` `skills` `skills-light` `social`	`flat`	Visual style of badge icons
`--logo`	`-l`	`ANIMATED` `BLACK` `BLUE` `GRADIENT` `ORANGE` `METALLIC` `PURPLE` `RAINBOW` `TERMINAL` `CUSTOM` `LLM`	`GRADIENT`	Project logo style
`--logo-size`	`-ls`	`TEXT`	-	Project logo size

Option	Short	Values	Default	Description
`--emojis`	`-e`	`default` `minimal` `ascension` `fibonacci` `harmony` `prism` `quantum` `monochrome` `unicode` `atomic` `cosmic` `crystal` `earth` `fire` `forest` `nature` `water` `gradient` `rainbow` `solar` `fun` `vintage` `zen` `random`	`default`	Emoji theme for header sections
`--tree-max-depth`	`-td`	`INTEGER`	`3`	Maximum depth of directory tree

Using Short Options

Many commands have short versions (e.g., -r instead of --repository). Use these for quicker typing in the terminal.

Default Values

When an option is not specified, readme-ai will use sensible defaults optimized for most use cases.