Kite Command-Line Interface (CLI) is a keyboard-first trading platform for your terminal. It allows you to monitor markets, view charts, manage your portfolio, and place orders directly using keyboard shortcuts on your terminal without using a mouse. Kite CLI is free to use. However, standard brokerage and statutory charges apply to trades.
How to install and open Kite CLI
You can install Kite CLI on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
To install and open Kite CLI, follow these steps:
- Open your terminal.
-
Run the following installation command:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/zerodha/kite-cli/main/scripts/install.sh | sh
-
Type kite and press
Enter.
- Enter your Zerodha login credentials (user ID and password) and your two-factor authentication (2FA) code when prompted.
Workspaces in Kite CLI
Kite CLI organises your trading tools across seven dedicated workspaces. You can switch to any workspace by pressing its number key (1 to 7) on your keyboard:
| Key | Workspace | What it does |
| 1 | Overview | Displays your portfolio summary, day and total P&L, available funds, open positions, delivery holdings, market indices, and top gainers and losers. |
| 2 | Trading | Displays your watchlists, candlestick charts, 5-level market depth, and recent orders. |
| 3 | Portfolio | Displays your delivery holdings, open positions, and mutual fund investments. |
| 4 | Option chain | Displays live option chains with strike prices, open interest (OI), and contract details alongside a chart of the underlying index or stock. |
| 5 | Orders | Displays your order book (open, executed, and cancelled orders), Good Till Triggered (GTT) orders, and price alerts. |
| 6 | IPO & Bids | Displays open and upcoming Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), government securities, auctions, corporate actions, and Social Stock Exchange (SSE) IPOs. |
| 7 | Funds | Displays a detailed breakdown of your equity and commodity margin, cash balance, collateral, and available trading funds. |
Global keyboard shortcuts
You can use these shortcut keys across any page in Kite CLI:
|
Shortcut |
Action |
|
Ctrl + K |
Open the command palette to search actions or log out of your session. |
|
? |
View the help window with keyboard shortcuts. |
|
Tab |
Switch focus between different sections on your current screen. |
|
r |
Refresh live data on your screen. |
|
z |
Maximise the selected panel. Press z again to restore standard view. |
|
= |
Show or hide panel divider lines. |
|
n |
Open notes. |
|
T |
Change the visual theme (over 250 themes available). |
|
q |
Exit and close Kite CLI. |
Workspace keyboard shortcuts
Each workspace has dedicated shortcuts for quick navigation and trade execution.
Overview
Press 1 to open the Overview workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Scroll down / up through dashboard widgets. |
|
← / → |
Move to the previous or next workspace. |
|
u |
Change index filter for top movers (such as Nifty 50). |
|
F |
Open the funds summary window. |
Trading
Press 2 to open the Trading workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Move down or up in your watchlist. |
|
J / K |
Move the selected stock up or down to reorder your watchlist. |
|
b / s |
Buy or Sell the selected instrument. |
|
g |
Create a Good Till Triggered (GTT) order for the selected instrument. |
|
a |
Set a price alert on the selected instrument. |
|
/ |
Add a stock or contract to your watchlist. |
|
d |
Remove the selected instrument from your watchlist. |
|
[ / ] |
Switch between saved watchlists (syncs with watchlists on Kite web). |
|
w |
Open the list of watchlists. |
|
Tab |
Move focus between Watchlist, Chart, Market Depth, and Orders. |
|
c |
Show or hide the chart. |
|
i |
Change chart candle interval. |
|
I |
Add technical indicators to the chart. |
|
h / l |
Scroll the chart left or right. |
|
v |
Show or hide volume on the chart. |
Portfolio
Press 3 to open the Portfolio workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Scroll through your delivery holdings, open positions, or mutual funds. |
|
b / s |
Buy more or Sell the selected asset. |
|
g |
Create a GTT order for the selected holding. |
|
B |
Set a price alert on the selected holding. |
|
a |
Authorise delivery holdings via CDSL T-PIN (opens Kite web in your browser). |
|
c |
Open the chart or convert position product type (such as MIS to NRML). |
|
S |
Change the sort order of your holdings or positions. |
Option chain
Press 4 to open the Option chain workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Move selection up or down across strike prices. |
|
h / l |
Switch between Calls and Puts. |
|
[ / ] |
Switch between expiry dates. |
|
u |
Switch between major underlying indices and stocks. |
|
/ |
Search for an underlying index or stock. |
|
b / s |
Buy or Sell the selected option contract. |
|
a |
Set a price alert on the selected contract. |
|
Tab |
Switch focus between the option chain and the chart. |
|
c / i / I / v |
Chart controls: show or hide chart (c), change timeframe (i), add indicators (I), or toggle volume (v). |
Orders
Press 5 to open the Orders workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Move up or down through your orders list. |
|
Space |
Select or deselect an individual order. |
|
Ctrl + A |
Select all visible orders. |
|
x |
Cancel the selected pending orders. |
|
m |
Modify the selected pending order. |
|
r |
Turn an alert on or off. |
|
a |
Create a new price alert. |
|
e |
Edit the selected alert. |
|
d |
Delete the selected alert. |
|
Enter |
View order details or trigger history. |
|
Esc |
Close the details window. |
|
c |
Open the chart for the selected stock. |
|
S |
Change sort order. |
|
Tab |
Switch focus between Orders, GTT, and Price Alerts. |
IPO & Bids
Press 6 to open the IPO & Bids workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Scroll through listings. |
|
[ / ] |
Switch between tabs (IPO, Govt. securities, Auctions, Corporate actions, and SSE IPO). |
|
a |
View your active applications. |
|
s |
Place a sell order in an auction (under the Auctions tab). |
|
Enter |
Open the application page on Kite web in your browser to submit or edit bids. |
Funds
Press 7 to open the Funds workspace.
|
Key |
Action |
|
j / k |
Scroll through your fund balances. |
|
F |
Open the detailed funds summary window. |
Certain actions require Kite web in your default browser for verification and security reasons. When you initiate any of the following actions, Kite CLI opens Kite web automatically:
-
Authorising delivery holdings: When you press
a
in the
Portfolio
workspace, Kite CLI opens Kite web to complete your CDSL T-PIN authorisation.
- Applying for IPOs and Bids: Pressing Enter on an IPO, government security, auction, or corporate action opens Kite web so you can submit your bid.
Things to keep in mind
-
You can remain logged in to Kite CLI, Kite web, and the Kite app at the same time. You can use Kite CLI and Kite web simultaneously on the same computer without being logged out. However, you can only maintain one active Kite CLI session at a time on your account.
- If you use Kite CLI on one computer and trigger an action that opens Kite web (such as CDSL authorisation or adding funds), logging in to Kite web on that computer will log you out of any active Kite web session on another computer.
- Kite CLI displays an order preview before placing any trade, so you can verify the details before confirming.
-
Although Kite CLI is designed for keyboard use, you can also use your mouse to click tabs and scroll through panes in supported terminals.