{"id":18208,"library":"chrome-webstore-upload-cli","title":"chrome-webstore-upload-cli","description":"CLI tool for uploading, updating, and publishing Chrome Extensions to the Chrome Web Store. The current stable version is 3.5.0, requiring Node >=18. The v4 pre-release (v4.0.0-0) requires Node 20+ and removes CLI flags for secrets, using only environment variables. Key differentiators: it's a simple, single-purpose CLI that automates packaging and deployment, supporting both .zip and .crx files. The project has frequent minor releases (3.0.0 went stable in late 2022) and is actively maintained by Fregante. Alternatives like chrome-webstore-upload (programmatic) or web-ext have different focus areas.","status":"active","version":"3.5.0","language":"javascript","source_language":"en","source_url":"https://github.com/fregante/chrome-webstore-upload-cli","tags":["javascript","chrome","publish","webstore","store","extension","deploy","update","upload"],"install":[{"cmd":"npm install chrome-webstore-upload-cli","lang":"bash","label":"npm"},{"cmd":"yarn add chrome-webstore-upload-cli","lang":"bash","label":"yarn"},{"cmd":"pnpm add chrome-webstore-upload-cli","lang":"bash","label":"pnpm"}],"dependencies":[{"reason":"programmatic upload logic","package":"chrome-webstore-upload","optional":false}],"imports":[{"note":"This package is a CLI binary, not a library. Use npx or install globally.","wrong":"require('chrome-webstore-upload-cli')","symbol":"bin (CLI)","correct":"npx chrome-webstore-upload-cli --help"},{"note":"Since v3.4.0, commands are 'upload', 'publish', or no command (does both). The source flag is only for upload command.","wrong":"chrome-webstore-upload --source=...","symbol":"CLI commands","correct":"chrome-webstore-upload upload --source=extension.zip --extension-id=xxx --client-id=..."}],"quickstart":{"code":"export CHROME_WEBSTORE_EXTENSION_ID=abc123def456\nCHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id\nCHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret\nCHROME_WEBSTORE_REFRESH_TOKEN=your-refresh-token\nnpx chrome-webstore-upload-cli upload --source extension.zip","lang":"javascript","description":"Sets required environment variables and uploads a zip file to the Chrome Web Store."},"warnings":[{"fix":"Upgrade Node.js to version 20 or later.","message":"v4.0.0-0 requires Node 20+","severity":"breaking","affected_versions":">=4.0.0-0"},{"fix":"Set CHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_ID, CHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_SECRET, CHROME_WEBSTORE_REFRESH_TOKEN, and CHROME_WEBSTORE_EXTENSION_ID as env variables.","message":"v4.0.0-0 removes CLI flags for secrets; use environment variables only","severity":"breaking","affected_versions":">=4.0.0-0"},{"fix":"Upgrade Node.js to version 18 or later.","message":"v3.0.0 requires Node 18+","severity":"breaking","affected_versions":">=3.0.0 <4.0.0"},{"fix":"Use just `chrome-webstore-upload` (no command) to upload and publish in one step.","message":"--auto-publish flag removed in v4","severity":"deprecated","affected_versions":">=4.0.0-0"},{"fix":"Use `chrome-webstore-upload upload --source=file` or `chrome-webstore-upload publish` (no --source).","message":"--source flag is forbidden when using the publish command; use upload or no command","severity":"gotcha","affected_versions":">=4.0.0-0"}],"env_vars":null,"last_verified":"2026-04-25T00:00:00.000Z","next_check":"2026-07-24T00:00:00.000Z","problems":[{"fix":"Use `chrome-webstore-upload upload --source=file` to upload, then `chrome-webstore-upload publish` to publish.","cause":"Using --source with 'publish' command (v4+)","error":"Error: The --source flag can only be used with the 'upload' command"},{"fix":"Set the required environment variables: CHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_ID, CHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_SECRET, CHROME_WEBSTORE_REFRESH_TOKEN, and CHROME_WEBSTORE_EXTENSION_ID.","cause":"Secrets not set (v4+ only ENV) or wrong variable name","error":"Error: Missing required environment variable: CHROME_WEBSTORE_CLIENT_ID"},{"fix":"Check the path passed to --source; it can be relative or absolute. Ensure the file exists.","cause":"The --source path is incorrect or the file doesn't exist","error":"Error: source file not found: extension.zip"}],"ecosystem":"npm","meta_description":null,"install_score":null,"install_tag":null,"quickstart_score":null,"quickstart_tag":null}