bkt

---
name: bkt
description: Bitbucket CLI for Data Center and Cloud. Use when users need to manage repositories, pull requests, branches, issues, webhooks, or pipelines in Bitbucket. Triggers include "bitbucket", "bkt", "pull request", "PR", "repo list", "branch create", "Bitbucket Data Center", "Bitbucket Cloud", "keyring timeout".
license: MIT
---

# Bitbucket CLI (bkt)

`bkt` is a unified CLI for **Bitbucket Data Center** and **Bitbucket Cloud**. It mirrors `gh` ergonomics and provides structured JSON/YAML output for automation.

## Before You Start

**1. Verify installation** — always check before running any `bkt` command:

```bash
bkt --version
```

If not installed:

| Platform | Command |
|----------|---------|
| macOS/Linux | `brew install avivsinai/tap/bitbucket-cli` |
| Windows | `scoop bucket add avivsinai https://github.com/avivsinai/scoop-bucket && scoop install bitbucket-cli` |
| Go | `go install github.com/avivsinai/bitbucket-cli/cmd/bkt@latest` |
| Binary | Download from [GitHub Releases](https://github.com/avivsinai/bitbucket-cli/releases) |

**2. Check authentication** — most commands require an active session:

```bash
bkt auth status
```

**Bitbucket Cloud Token Requirements:**
- Create an "API token with scopes" (not a general API token)
- Select **Bitbucket** as the application
- Required scope: **Account: Read** (`read:user:bitbucket`)
- Additional scopes as needed: Repositories, Pull requests, Issues

For config-free use in containers and CI pipelines, see [headless authentication](rules/headless.md).

If not authenticated, log in:

```bash
# Data Center (PAT-based)
bkt auth login https://bitbucket.example.com --username alice --token <PAT>

# Bitbucket Cloud — OAuth (official binaries open browser out of the box)
bkt auth login https://bitbucket.org --kind cloud --web

# Bitbucket Cloud — API token (--web-token opens Atlassian's token creation page)
bkt auth login https://bitbucket.org --kind cloud --web-token
```

For source and Nix builds, set `BKT_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID` and `BKT_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET` env vars before running `--web`.

**3. Set up a context** — contexts bind a host to a project/workspace and optional default repo, so you don't repeat flags on every command:

```bash
# Data Center
bkt context create dc-prod --host bitbucket.example.com --project ABC --set-active

# Cloud
bkt context create cloud-team --host bitbucket.org --workspace myteam --set-active
```

## Platform Awareness

Some commands are **Data Center only** or **Cloud only** — check the command reference for `*(DC)*` and `*(Cloud)*` badges. Key splits:

| Feature | Data Center | Cloud |
|---------|:-----------:|:-----:|
| Pull requests | yes | yes |
| Repositories | yes | yes |
| Branches (list) | yes | yes |
| Branches (create/delete/protect) | yes | — |
| Issues | — | yes |
| Pipelines | — | yes |
| Permissions | yes | — |
| Webhooks | yes | yes |
| Auto-merge, tasks, reactions | yes | — |
| Variables | — | yes |

When a user's context is DC, do not suggest Cloud-only commands (and vice versa). If the platform is unknown, ask or check with `bkt auth status`.

## Common Workflows

### Create a PR from the current branch

```bash
bkt pr create --title "feat: add caching" --target main
```

Source branch, title, and target default to sensible values from git state. Add `--draft` for work-in-progress, `--reviewer alice` to request review.

### Review cycle

```bash
bkt pr checks 42 --wait          # Wait for CI to pass
bkt pr approve 42                # Approve
bkt pr merge 42                  # Merge (closes source branch by default)
```

### Checkout a colleague's PR locally

```bash
bkt pr checkout 42               # Creates pr/42 branch
```

### Structured output for scripting

All commands support `--json`, `--yaml`, `--jq`, and `--template`:

```bash
bkt pr list --mine --json | jq '.pull_requests[].title'
```

### Raw API escape hatch

For endpoints without a dedicated command:

```bash
bkt api /rest/api/1.0/projects --param limit=100 --json
```

## Global Flags

Every command accepts these inherited flags:

| Flag | Short | Purpose |
|------|-------|---------|
| `--context` | `-c` | Use a specific named context |
| `--json` | | JSON output |
| `--yaml` | | YAML output |
| `--jq` | | Apply a jq expression (requires `--json`) |
| `--template` | | Render with Go template |

## References

- [headless / env vars](rules/headless.md) — Config-free CI/container auth (BKT_TOKEN, BKT_HOST) and full env var reference

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- [admin](rules/admin.md) — Administrative operations for Bitbucket *(DC)*
- [auth](rules/auth.md) — Manage Bitbucket authentication credentials
- [branch](rules/branch.md) — Inspect and manage branches
- [commit](rules/commit.md) — Work with commits
- [context](rules/context.md) — Manage Bitbucket CLI contexts
- [extension](rules/extension.md) — Manage bkt CLI extensions
- [issue](rules/issue.md) — Work with Bitbucket Cloud issues *(Cloud)*
- [mcp](rules/mcp.md) — Model Context Protocol server for agents
- [perms](rules/perms.md) — Manage Bitbucket permissions *(DC)*
- [pipeline](rules/pipeline.md) — Run and inspect Bitbucket Cloud pipelines *(Cloud)*
- [pr](rules/pr.md) — Manage pull requests
- [project](rules/project.md) — Work with Bitbucket projects *(DC)*
- [repo](rules/repo.md) — Work with Bitbucket repositories
- [status](rules/status.md) — Inspect commit and pull request statuses
- [variable](rules/variable.md) — Manage pipeline variables *(Cloud)*
- [webhook](rules/webhook.md) — Manage Bitbucket webhooks
- [other](rules/other.md) — api

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