firebase-cli — Firebase Command Line Interface
Keyword: firebase · firebase deploy · firebase init · firebase emulators The Firebase CLI (firebase-tools) manages your Firebase project from the terminal: deploy, emulate, import/export data, manage users, configure services, and automate CI/CD.
When to use this skill
- Deploy Firebase Hosting, Cloud Functions, Firestore rules/indexes, Realtime Database rules, Cloud Storage rules, Remote Config, or Extensions
- Set up a new Firebase project with
firebase init - Run the Firebase Emulator Suite locally for development and testing
- Manage preview/staging channels for Hosting
- Import or export Firebase Authentication users in bulk
- Distribute app builds to testers via App Distribution
- Manage Firebase Extensions (install, configure, update, uninstall)
- Deploy Next.js / Angular apps via Firebase App Hosting
- Use Firebase CLI in CI/CD pipelines with service account credentials
Instructions
- Install the Firebase CLI:
npm install -g firebase-tools - Authenticate:
firebase login (browser OAuth) or GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS for CI - Initialize project:
firebase init (creates firebase.json and .firebaserc) - Deploy:
firebase deploy or firebase deploy --only hosting,functions - Run emulators:
firebase emulators:start - For detailed command reference, see references/commands.md
- For installation and setup scripts, see scripts/install.sh
CI/CD: Use GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS=/path/to/service-account.json firebase deploy instead of the deprecated --token / FIREBASE_TOKEN method.
Examples
Deploy everything
firebase deploy
Deploy only Hosting and Functions
firebase deploy --only hosting,functions
Run all emulators with data persistence
firebase emulators:start --import ./emulator-data --export-on-exit
Create a preview channel and deploy
firebase hosting:channel:create staging --expires 7d
firebase hosting:channel:deploy staging
Import users from JSON
firebase auth:import users.json --hash-algo=BCRYPT
Distribute Android build to testers
firebase appdistribution:distribute app-release.apk \
--app "1:1234567890:android:abcd1234" \
--release-notes "Sprint 42 build" \
--groups "qa-team"
Quick Start
# Install
npm install -g firebase-tools
# Authenticate
firebase login
# Initialize project (interactive)
firebase init
# Deploy
firebase deploy
# Run emulators
firebase emulators:start
Installation
npm (recommended — all platforms)
npm install -g firebase-tools
firebase --version
Standalone binary (macOS/Linux — no Node.js required)
curl -sL firebase.tools | bash
CI/CD — service account authentication (recommended)
# Set environment variable pointing to service account JSON key
export GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS="/path/to/service-account-key.json"
firebase deploy --non-interactive
Via skill script
bash scripts/install.sh
Core Usage
Authentication
firebase login # OAuth browser login
firebase login --no-localhost # Copy-paste code flow
firebase login:ci # Generate CI token (deprecated — use service account)
firebase login:list # List all authorized accounts
firebase login:use user@example.com # Set default account
firebase logout # Sign out
Project Management
firebase init # Set up Firebase features in current directory
firebase use <project_id> # Set active project
firebase use --add # Add a project alias
firebase projects:list # List all Firebase projects
firebase open hosting:site # Open Firebase console in browser
Deployment
# Deploy everything
firebase deploy
# Deploy specific targets
firebase deploy --only hosting
firebase deploy --only functions
firebase deploy --only firestore
firebase deploy --only hosting,functions
# Deploy sub-targets
firebase deploy --only functions:myFunction
firebase deploy --only hosting:my-site
firebase deploy --only firestore:rules
firebase deploy --only firestore:indexes
# Exclude targets
firebase deploy --except functions
# With message
firebase deploy --message "v2.3.1 release"
Firebase Emulator Suite
# Start all configured emulators
firebase emulators:start
# Start specific emulators
firebase emulators:start --only auth,firestore,functions
# With data import/export
firebase emulators:start --import ./emulator-data --export-on-exit
# Run tests against emulators then shut down
firebase emulators:exec "npm test" --only firestore,auth
# Enable Functions debugger (Node.js inspector on port 9229)
firebase emulators:start --inspect-functions
Local Development Server
firebase serve # Hosting + HTTPS Functions
firebase serve --only hosting
firebase serve --port 5000
Hosting Commands
# Preview channels
firebase hosting:channel:create staging --expires 7d
firebase hosting:channel:deploy staging
firebase hosting:channel:list
firebase hosting:channel:open staging
firebase hosting:channel:delete staging --force
firebase hosting:clone my-app:live my-app-staging:staging
# Multi-site management
firebase hosting:sites:list
firebase hosting:sites:create new-site-id
firebase hosting:disable --site my-old-site
Cloud Functions Commands
firebase functions:list # List deployed functions
firebase functions:log # View logs
firebase functions:log --only myFunction # Filter by function name
firebase functions:delete myFunction # Delete a function
firebase functions:shell # Local interactive shell
# Secrets (2nd gen — replaces functions:config)
firebase functions:secrets:set MY_SECRET
firebase functions:secrets:get MY_SECRET
firebase functions:secrets:prune
# Config (1st gen only)
firebase functions:config:set api.key="VALUE"
firebase functions:config:get
Firestore Commands
firebase firestore:delete /collection/doc --recursive
firebase firestore:indexes
firebase firestore:rules:get
Realtime Database Commands
firebase database:get /path --pretty
firebase database:set /path data.json
firebase database:push /messages --data '{"text":"Hello"}'
firebase database:update /users/uid --data '{"name":"New Name"}'
firebase database:remove /path --confirm
firebase database:profile --duration 30
Auth Import / Export
# Export all users
firebase auth:export users.json
# Import users (BCRYPT hashes)
firebase auth:import users.json --hash-algo=BCRYPT
# Import users (SCRYPT hashes — Firebase default)
firebase auth:import users.json \
--hash-algo=SCRYPT \
--hash-key=<base64-key> \
--salt-separator=<base64-separator> \
--rounds=8 \
--mem-cost=8
Remote Config
firebase remoteconfig:get
firebase remoteconfig:get --output config.json
firebase remoteconfig:versions:list --limit 20
firebase remoteconfig:rollback --version-number 5
App Distribution
# Distribute Android APK
firebase appdistribution:distribute app.apk \
--app APP_ID \
--release-notes "Bug fixes and improvements" \
--testers "qa@example.com" \
--groups "qa-team,beta-users"
# Manage testers
firebase appdistribution:testers:add alice@example.com --group-alias qa-team
firebase appdistribution:testers:remove alice@example.com
firebase appdistribution:groups:list
Extensions
firebase ext:list
firebase ext:info firebase/delete-user-data
firebase ext:install firebase/delete-user-data
firebase ext:configure delete-user-data
firebase ext:update delete-user-data
firebase ext:uninstall delete-user-data
firebase ext:export
App Hosting (Next.js / Angular)
firebase init apphosting
firebase apphosting:backends:create --location us-central1
firebase apphosting:backends:list
firebase deploy --only apphosting
firebase apphosting:rollouts:create BACKEND_ID --git-branch main
Deploy Targets (multi-site / multi-instance)
# Apply target name to a resource
firebase target:apply hosting prod-site my-app-prod
firebase target:apply storage prod-bucket my-app-bucket
firebase target:apply database default my-app-db
# Use target in deploy
firebase deploy --only hosting:prod-site
# Clear targets
firebase target:clear hosting prod-site
Best practices
- Use service accounts for CI/CD: Set
GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS instead of --token (deprecated). - Use
--only in deploy: Never deploy everything blindly in production — always scope with --only. - Emulators for development: Always run
emulators:start locally before deploying; use --import/--export-on-exit for persistence. - Preview channels before production: Use
hosting:channel:deploy for staging reviews before firebase deploy --only hosting. - Secrets over functions:config: For Cloud Functions 2nd gen, use
functions:secrets:set (Secret Manager) instead of deprecated functions:config:set. --non-interactive in scripts: Always add --non-interactive in automated scripts to avoid hanging on prompts..firebaserc in VCS: Commit .firebaserc (project aliases) but add secrets and service account keys to .gitignore.--debug for troubleshooting: Run any failing command with --debug for verbose output.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Solution |
|---|
command not found: firebase | Run npm install -g firebase-tools; check npm bin -g is in PATH |
| Authentication error in CI | Set GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS to service account JSON path |
FIREBASE_TOKEN warning | Migrate from token-based auth to service accounts |
| Deploy fails with permission error | Verify service account has required IAM roles (Firebase Admin, Cloud Functions Admin, etc.) |
| Emulators not starting | Check ports 4000/5000/5001/8080/9000/9099/9199 are available; run lsof -i:<port> |
| Functions deploy timeout | Use --only functions:specificFunction to deploy one at a time |
| Hosting deploy not reflecting changes | Check firebase.json public directory and ignore patterns |
ext:install fails | Check extension ID format: publisher/extension-id; try --debug |
| Database permission denied | Verify database rules and that CLI auth account has access |
References
