Continue CLI cheat sheet
Every command, flag and slash command for cn — Continue's terminal agent — the same agent as its IDE extensions, with hub-based models, rules and MCP. 14+ commands, verified July 2026.
Continue was acquired by Cursor and the CLI is winding down — 1.5.47 is the last release. Its docs still list cn login / /login, but those aren't in the shipped binary — sign in via the first-run prompt or CONTINUE_API_KEY.
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/continuedev/continue/main/extensions/cli/scripts/install.sh | bash
npm i -g @continuedev/cli # cross-platform (needs Node 20+)
cn --versioncn # interactive TUI session
cn "explain this repo" # TUI, seeded with a prompt
cn -p "prompt" # headless: run once, print, exit
cn --resume # resume the most recent session
cn --model anthropic/claude-… # add a hub model at launch
git diff --staged | cn -p "write a commit message"Key flags
| Flag | What it does |
|---|---|
-p, --print | Headless: print the response and exit |
--format json | Output format (headless only) |
--silent | Strip <think> tags + whitespace (headless) |
--resume / --fork <id> | Resume the last session / fork one |
--config <path|slug> | Config file or hub slug |
--readonly / --auto | Plan mode / auto (all tools, no prompts) |
--allow / --ask / --exclude <tool> | Per-tool permissions (repeatable) |
--mcp / --model / --rule <slug> | Add a hub MCP / model / rule |
In-session commands
| Command / key | What it does |
|---|---|
/help · /clear · /info | Help · clear · token usage + cost |
/model · /config · /mcp | Model · config · MCP servers |
/init · /compact | Create an AGENTS.md · summarize history |
/resume · /sessions · /fork | Session management |
/skills · /import-skill <url> | List / import skills |
Shift+Tab · @ · ! | Cycle normal/plan/auto · file context · shell command |
Subcommands: cn ls, cn review [--base <ref>] [--fix], cn checks [pr-url], cn serve.
~/.continue/config.yaml # same schema as the IDE extensions
~/.continue/permissions.yaml # saved tool approvals
export CONTINUE_API_KEY=… # headless / CI auth (or first-run browser login)
# reference secrets in config as ${{ secrets.MY_API_KEY }}cn -p "Generate a conventional commit message for the staged changes" --silent | git commit -F -
cn -p "Fix all ESLint errors in src/" --allow Write --allow Edit --allow Bash
cat error.log | cn -p "Explain what went wrong"
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