api2convert-cli

README

api2convert

Convert, compress and transform files from the command line — a single, self-contained binary for the api2convert API. No Node, Python or Java runtime to install.

• One download, run it — static binaries for Windows, macOS and Linux.
• Guided wizard for non-technical users, plus a full flag interface for scripts.
• Automation-ready — batch, recursive, folder watch, --json, stable exit codes.
• Everything the API does — convert, compress, merge, OCR, jobs, async + webhooks.

Install

Windows

Download and run — no installer, no runtime.

1. Grab api2convert_<version>_windows_amd64.zip from the Releases page (use the arm64 zip on ARM PCs).
2. Unzip it and run api2convert.exe — double-click for the guided wizard (it walks you through signing in on first run), or call it from PowerShell / CMD.

Prefer a one-liner that also adds api2convert to your PATH? Run in PowerShell:

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/QaamGo/api2convert-cli/main/install.ps1 | iex

_{Also on Scoop: scoop bucket add qaamgo https://github.com/QaamGo/scoop-bucket && scoop install api2convert}

macOS (Homebrew)

brew install qaamgo/tap/api2convert

Linux

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/QaamGo/api2convert-cli/main/install.sh | sh

Prefer native packages? Download the .deb / .rpm from the Releases page:

sudo dpkg -i api2convert_<version>_linux_amd64.deb   # Debian/Ubuntu
sudo rpm -i  api2convert_<version>_linux_amd64.rpm   # Fedora/RHEL

_{Homebrew works on Linux too: brew install qaamgo/tap/api2convert}

Quick start

api2convert login                          # save your API key (or set API2CONVERT_API_KEY)
api2convert convert report.docx --to pdf   # → report.pdf

Run api2convert with no arguments in a terminal to launch the interactive wizard.

Examples

# Convert from a URL or stdin
api2convert convert https://example-files.online-convert.com/raster%20image/jpg/example_small.jpg --to pdf -o out/
cat scan.tiff | api2convert convert - --to pdf -o scan.pdf

# Bulk + recursive, with per-format options (subfolders are preserved under --out-dir)
api2convert batch ./images --to webp --option quality=80 --out-dir web/ --recursive

# Force a value to stay a literal string (key:=value skips number/bool coercion)
api2convert convert in.png --to png --option zip_password:=080

# High-level verbs
api2convert compress big-scan.pdf
api2convert merge a.pdf b.pdf c.pdf --to pdf -o combined.pdf
api2convert thumbnail photo.png --option width=320
api2convert resize banner.png --option width=1200

# Watch a folder and convert anything dropped into it
api2convert watch ./inbox --to pdf --out-dir ./done

# Discover what's possible
api2convert formats search word
api2convert options pdf

# Automation
api2convert convert movie.mov --to mp4 --async        # prints a job id
api2convert jobs wait <job-id>
api2convert convert report.docx --to pdf --json --quiet
api2convert credits

Configuration

Settings resolve in the order flag → environment → config file → default.

• API key: --api-key, API2CONVERT_API_KEY, or api2convert login.
• Config file: api2convert config path (0600; ~/.config/api2convert/config.toml on Linux, %AppData%\api2convert on Windows, ~/Library/Application Support on macOS).

Updating

Upgrade in place, verifying the download's checksum and signature:

api2convert self-update

In an interactive terminal the CLI also checks for a newer release at most once every 7 days and asks whether to update; just press Enter to keep going. Silence the check with --no-update-check or API2CONVERT_NO_UPDATE_CHECK=1. Homebrew and Scoop installs are upgraded through the package manager (brew upgrade api2convert / scoop update api2convert) instead.

Exit codes

Every command exits with a stable, documented status — handy for scripting. In --json mode the same code is also in the error envelope (exit_code).

Code	Meaning
0	Success
1	Generic error
2	Usage error (unknown/invalid flag or argument)
3	Authentication — missing or rejected API key
4	Quota — out of credits, or rate-limited
5	Validation — bad target/option, or not found
6	Conversion failed
7	Timeout — job still running server-side (check jobs status)
8	Network — couldn't reach api2convert
130	Interrupted (Ctrl-C / SIGTERM)

Shell completion

api2convert completion bash|zsh|fish|powershell

--to, --category and option keys complete from the live formats catalog.

Why a single binary?

No runtime to install, nothing to keep updated — download one file and run it. You get an interactive wizard, progress bars, shell completion, async/webhooks and full job control out of the box, on every platform.

License

MIT — see LICENSE.

Documentation

Overview

Command api2convert is the official command-line tool for the api2convert file-conversion API — convert, compress and transform files from a single self-contained binary.