Command Reference

To see all commands in Nushell, run help commands.

Command Description
alias Alias a command (with optional flags) to a new name
all? Test if every element of the input matches a predicate.
ansi Output ANSI codes to change color.
ansi gradient Draw text with a provided start and end code making a gradient
ansi strip Strip ANSI escape sequences from a string
any? Tests if any element of the input matches a predicate.
append Append any number of rows to a table.
benchmark Time the running time of a block
build-string Create a string from the arguments.
cal Display a calendar.
cd Change directory.
char Output special characters (e.g., ‘newline’).
clear Clear the terminal.
collect Collect the stream and pass it to a block.
columns Show the columns in the input.
compact Creates a table with non-empty rows.
complete Complete the external piped in, collecting outputs and exit code
config Edit nushell configuration files
config env Edit nu environment configurations
config nu Edit nu configurations
cp Copy files.
dataframe Deprecated command
date Date-related commands
date format Format a given date using a format string.
date humanize Print a ‘humanized’ format for the date, relative to now.
date list-timezone List supported time zones.
date now Get the current date.
date to-record Convert the date into a structured table.
date to-table Convert the date into a structured table.
date to-timezone Convert a date to a given time zone.
db Database commands
db and Includes an AND clause for a query or expression
db as Creates an alias for a column selection
db col Creates column expression for database
db collect Query a database using SQL.
db describe Describes connection and query of the DB object
db fn Creates function expression for a select operation
db from Select section from query statement for a DB
db group-by Group by query
db join Joins with another table or derived table. Default join type is inner
db limit Limit result from query
db open Open a database
db or Includes an OR clause for a query or expression
db order-by Orders by query
db over Adds a partition to an expression function
db query Query a database using SQL.
db schema Show database information, including its schema.
db select Creates a select statement for a DB
db testing Create query object
db where Includes a where statement for a query
debug Debug print the value(s) piped in.
decode Decode bytes as a string.
def Define a custom command
def-env Define a custom command, which participates in the caller environment
default Sets a default row’s column if missing.
describe Describe the value(s) piped in.
detect columns Attempt to automatically split text into multiple columns
dfr Dataframe commands
dfr agg-groups creates an agg_groups expression
dfr aggregate Performs a series of aggregations from a group by
dfr all-false Returns true if all values are false
dfr all-true Returns true if all values are true
dfr append Appends a new dataframe
dfr arg-max Return index for max value in series
dfr arg-min Return index for min value in series
dfr arg-sort Returns indexes for a sorted series
dfr arg-true Returns indexes where values are true
dfr arg-unique Returns indexes for unique values
dfr as Creates an alias expression
dfr as-date Converts string to date.
dfr as-datetime Converts string to datetime.
dfr cache Caches operations in a new LazyFrame
dfr col Creates a named column expression
dfr collect Collect lazy dataframe into dataframe
dfr column Returns the selected column
dfr concatenate Concatenates strings with other array
dfr contains Checks if a pattern is contained in a string
dfr count-null Counts null values
dfr count-unique Counts unique values or creates a n-unique expression
dfr cumulative Cumulative calculation for a series
dfr describe Describes dataframes numeric columns
dfr drop Creates a new dataframe by dropping the selected columns
dfr drop-duplicates Drops duplicate values in dataframe
dfr drop-nulls Drops null values in dataframe
dfr dtypes Show dataframe data types
dfr explode creates an explode expression
dfr fetch collects the lazyframe to the selected rows
dfr fill-na Replaces NA values with the given expression
dfr fill-null Replaces NULL values with the given expression
dfr filter-with Filters dataframe using a mask or expression as reference
dfr first Creates new dataframe with first rows or creates a first expression
dfr flatten creates a flatten expression
dfr get Creates dataframe with the selected columns
dfr get-day Gets day from date
dfr get-hour Gets hour from date
dfr get-minute Gets minute from date
dfr get-month Gets month from date
dfr get-nanosecond Gets nanosecond from date
dfr get-ordinal Gets ordinal from date
dfr get-second Gets second from date
dfr get-week Gets week from date
dfr get-weekday Gets weekday from date
dfr get-year Gets year from date
dfr group-by Creates a groupby object that can be used for other aggregations
dfr is-duplicated Creates mask indicating duplicated values
dfr is-in Checks if elements from a series are contained in right series
dfr is-not-null Creates mask where value is not null or creates a is-not-null expression
dfr is-null Creates mask where value is null or creates a is-null expression
dfr is-unique Creates mask indicating unique values
dfr join Joins a lazy frame with other lazy frame
dfr last Creates new dataframe with tail rows or creates a last expression
dfr list Aggregates a group to a Series
dfr lit Creates a literal expression
dfr ls Lists stored dataframes
dfr max Aggregates columns to their max value or creates a max expression
dfr mean Aggregates columns to their mean value or creates a mean expression
dfr median Aggregates columns to their median value or creates a median expression
dfr melt Unpivot a DataFrame from wide to long format
dfr min Aggregates columns to their min value or creates a min expression
dfr not Inverts boolean mask or creates a not expression
dfr open Opens csv, json or parquet file to create dataframe
dfr pivot Performs a pivot operation on a groupby object
dfr quantile Aggregates the columns to the selected quantile
dfr rename Renames a series
dfr rename-col Rename a dataframe column
dfr replace Replace the leftmost (sub)string by a regex pattern
dfr replace-all Replace all (sub)strings by a regex pattern
dfr reverse Reverses the LazyFrame
dfr rolling Rolling calculation for a series
dfr sample Create sample dataframe
dfr select Selects columns from lazyframe
dfr set Sets value where given mask is true
dfr set-with-idx Sets value in the given index
dfr shape Shows column and row size for a dataframe
dfr shift Shifts the values by a given period
dfr slice Creates new dataframe from a slice of rows
dfr sort Creates new sorted dataframe or series
dfr sort-by sorts a lazy dataframe based on expression(s)
dfr std Aggregates columns to their std value
dfr str-lengths Get lengths of all strings
dfr str-slice Slices the string from the start position until the selected length
dfr strftime Formats date based on string rule
dfr sum Aggregates columns to their sum value or creates a sum expression
dfr take Creates new dataframe using the given indices
dfr to-csv Saves dataframe to csv file
dfr to-df Converts a List, Table or Dictionary into a dataframe
dfr to-dummies Creates a new dataframe with dummy variables
dfr to-lazy Converts a dataframe into a lazy dataframe
dfr to-lowercase Lowercase the strings in the column
dfr to-nu Convert expression to a nu value for access and exploration
dfr to-parquet Saves dataframe to parquet file
dfr to-uppercase Uppercase the strings in the column
dfr unique Returns unique values from a series
dfr value-counts Returns a dataframe with the counts for unique values in series
dfr var Aggregates columns to their var value
dfr when Creates a when expression
dfr with-column Adds a series to the dataframe
do Run a block
drop Remove the last number of rows or columns.
drop column Remove the last number of columns. If you want to remove columns by name, try ‘reject’.
drop nth Drop the selected rows.
du Find disk usage sizes of specified items.
each Run a block on each element of input
echo Echo the arguments back to the user.
empty? Check for empty values.
enter Enters a new shell at the given path.
env Display current environment variables
error make Create an error.
every Show (or skip) every n-th row, starting from the first one.
exec Execute a command, replacing the current process.
exit Exit a Nu shell or exit Nu entirely.
export Export custom commands or environment variables from a module.
export alias Define an alias and export it from a module
export def Define a custom command and export it from a module
export def-env Define a custom command that participates in the environment and export it from a module
export env Export a block from a module that will be evaluated as an environment variable when imported.
export extern Define an extern and export it from a module
extern Define a signature for an external command
fetch Fetch the contents from a URL.
find Searches terms in the input or for elements of the input that satisfies the predicate.
first Show only the first number of rows.
flatten Flatten the table.
fmt Format a number
for Loop over a range
format Format columns into a string using a simple pattern.
format filesize Converts a column of filesizes to some specified format
from Parse a string or binary data into structured data
from csv Parse text as .csv and create table.
from eml Parse text as .eml and create table.
from ics Parse text as .ics and create table.
from ini Parse text as .ini and create table
from json Convert from json to structured data
from nuon Convert from nuon to structured data
from ods Parse OpenDocument Spreadsheet(.ods) data and create table.
from ssv Parse text as space-separated values and create a table. The default minimum number of spaces counted as a separator is 2.
from toml Parse text as .toml and create table.
from tsv Parse text as .tsv and create table.
from url Parse url-encoded string as a table.
from vcf Parse text as .vcf and create table.
from xlsx Parse binary Excel(.xlsx) data and create table.
from xml Parse text as .xml and create table.
from yaml Parse text as .yaml/.yml and create table.
from yml Parse text as .yaml/.yml and create table.
g Switch to a given shell.
get Extract data using a cell path.
glob Creates a list of files and/or folders based on the glob pattern provided.
grid Renders the output to a textual terminal grid.
group Groups input into groups of group_size.
group-by Create a new table grouped.
gstat Get the git status of a repo
hash Apply hash function.
hash base64 base64 encode or decode a value
hash md5 Hash a value using the md5 hash algorithm
hash sha256 Hash a value using the sha256 hash algorithm
headers Use the first row of the table as column names.
help Display help information about commands.
hide Hide symbols in the current scope
histogram Creates a new table with a histogram based on the column name passed in.
history Get the command history
if Conditionally run a block.
ignore Ignore the output of the previous command in the pipeline
inc Increment a value or version. Optionally use the column of a table.
input Get input from the user.
insert Insert a new column.
into Commands to convert data from one type to another.
into binary Convert value to a binary primitive
into bool Convert value to boolean
into datetime Convert text into a datetime
into decimal Convert text into a decimal
into duration Convert value to duration
into filesize Convert value to filesize
into int Convert value to integer
into string Convert value to string
keep Deprecated command
keep until Deprecated command
keep while Deprecated command
keybindings Keybindings related commands
keybindings default List default keybindings
keybindings list List available options that can be used to create keybindings
keybindings listen Get input from the user.
kill Kill a process using the process id.
last Show only the last number of rows.
length Count the number of elements in the input.
let Create a variable and give it a value.
let-env Create an environment variable and give it a value.
lines Converts input to lines
load-env Loads an environment update from a record.
ls List the files in a directory.
match Deprecated command
math Use mathematical functions as aggregate functions on a list of numbers or tables.
math abs Returns absolute values of a list of numbers
math avg Finds the average of a list of numbers or tables
math ceil Applies the ceil function to a list of numbers
math eval Evaluate a math expression into a number
math floor Applies the floor function to a list of numbers
math max Finds the maximum within a list of numbers or tables
math median Gets the median of a list of numbers
math min Finds the minimum within a list of numbers or tables
math mode Gets the most frequent element(s) from a list of numbers or tables
math product Finds the product of a list of numbers or tables
math round Applies the round function to a list of numbers
math sqrt Applies the square root function to a list of numbers
math stddev Finds the stddev of a list of numbers or tables
math sum Finds the sum of a list of numbers or tables
math variance Finds the variance of a list of numbers or tables
merge Merge a table into an input table
metadata Get the metadata for items in the stream
mkdir Make directories, creates intermediary directories as required.
module Define a custom module
move Move columns before or after other columns
mv Move files or directories.
n Switch to the next shell.
nth Deprecated command
nu-highlight Syntax highlight the input string.
open Load a file into a cell, converting to table if possible (avoid by appending ‘—raw’).
overlay Commands for manipulating overlays.
overlay add Add definitions from a module as an overlay
overlay list List all active overlays
overlay remove Remove an active overlay
p Switch to the previous shell.
par-each Run a block on each element of input in parallel
parse Parse columns from string data using a simple pattern.
path Explore and manipulate paths.
path basename Get the final component of a path
path dirname Get the parent directory of a path
path exists Check whether a path exists
path expand Try to expand a path to its absolute form
path join Join a structured path or a list of path parts.
path parse Convert a path into structured data.
path relative-to Get a path as relative to another path.
path split Split a path into parts by a separator.
path type Get the type of the object a path refers to (e.g., file, dir, symlink)
pivot Deprecated command
post Post a body to a URL.
prepend Prepend any number of rows to a table.
print Prints the values given
ps View information about system processes.
query Show all the query commands
query json execute json query on json file (open —raw <file>
query web execute selector query on html/web
query xml execute xpath query on xml
random Generate a random values.
random bool Generate a random boolean value
random chars Generate random chars
random decimal Generate a random decimal within a range [min..max]
random dice Generate a random dice roll
random integer Generate a random integer [min..max]
random uuid Generate a random uuid4 string
range Return only the selected rows.
reduce Aggregate a list table to a single value using an accumulator block.
register Register a plugin
reject Remove the given columns from the table. If you want to remove rows, try ‘drop’.
rename Creates a new table with columns renamed.
reverse Reverses the table.
rm Remove file(s).
roll Rolling commands for tables
roll down Roll table rows down
roll left Roll table columns left
roll right Roll table columns right
roll up Roll table rows up
rotate Rotates a table clockwise (default) or counter-clockwise (use —ccw flag).
run-external Runs external command
save Save a file.
select Down-select table to only these columns.
seq Print sequences of numbers.
seq char Print sequence of chars
seq date Print sequences of dates
shells Lists all open shells.
shuffle Shuffle rows randomly.
size Gather word count statistics on the text.
skip Skip the first n elements of the input.
skip until Skip elements of the input until a predicate is true.
skip while Skip elements of the input while a predicate is true.
sleep Delay for a specified amount of time.
sort Sort in increasing order.
sort-by Sort by the given columns, in increasing order.
source Runs a script file in the current context.
split Split contents across desired subcommand (like row, column) via the separator.
split chars Split a string’s characters into separate rows
split column Split a string into multiple columns using a separator
split row Split a string into multiple rows using a separator
split-by Create a new table splitted.
str Various commands for working with string data
str camel-case Convert a string to camelCase
str capitalize Capitalize first letter of text
str collect Concatenate multiple strings into a single string, with an optional separator between each
str contains Checks if string contains pattern
str downcase Make text lowercase
str ends-with Check if a string ends with a pattern
str find-replace Deprecated command
str index-of Returns start index of first occurrence of pattern in string, or -1 if no match
str kebab-case Convert a string to kebab-case
str length Output the length of any strings in the pipeline
str lpad Left-pad a string to a specific length
str pascal-case Convert a string to PascalCase
str replace Find and replace text
str reverse Reverse every string in the pipeline
str rpad Right-pad a string to a specific length
str screaming-snake-case Convert a string to SCREAMING_SNAKE_CASE
str snake-case Convert a string to snake_case
str starts-with Check if string starts with a pattern
str substring Get part of a string
str title-case Convert a string to Title Case
str to-datetime Deprecated command
str to-decimal Deprecated command
str to-int Deprecated command
str trim Trim whitespace or specific character
str upcase Make text uppercase
sys View information about the system.
table Render the table.
take Take the first n elements of the input.
take until Take elements of the input until a predicate is true.
take while Take elements of the input while a predicate is true.
term size Returns the terminal size
to Translate structured data to a format
to csv Convert table into .csv text
to html Convert table into simple HTML
to json Converts table data into JSON text.
to md Convert table into simple Markdown
to nuon Converts table data into Nuon (Nushell Object Notation) text.
to text Converts data into simple text.
to toml Convert table into .toml text
to tsv Convert table into .tsv text
to url Convert table into url-encoded text
to xml Convert table into .xml text
to yaml Convert table into .yaml/.yml text
touch Creates one or more files.
transpose Transposes the table contents so rows become columns and columns become rows.
tutor Run the tutorial. To begin, run: tutor
unalias Deprecated command
uniq Return the unique rows.
update Update an existing column to have a new value.
update cells Update the table cells.
upsert Update an existing column to have a new value, or insert a new column.
url Apply url function.
url host Get the host of a URL
url path Get the path of a URL
url query Get the query string of a URL
url scheme Get the scheme (e.g. http, file) of a URL
use Use definitions from a module
version Display Nu version.
view-source View a block, module, or a definition
watch Watch for file changes and execute Nu code when they happen.
where Filter values based on a condition.
which Finds a program file, alias or custom command.
window Creates a sliding window of window_size that slide by n rows/elements across input.
with-env Runs a block with an environment variable set.
wrap Wrap the value into a column.
zip Combine a stream with the input