A CLI Task Manager Your Scripts and Agents Can Use

TL;DR: npm install -g donebear gives you a full task manager in the terminal, backed by the same real-time sync as the web, desktop, and iOS apps. --json output, DONEBEAR_TOKEN auth, and donebear context make it scriptable by CI jobs and AI coding agents, not just humans.

Terminal task tools usually force a trade: a plain-text system (taskwarrior, todo.txt) that never syncs to your phone, or a real task manager whose CLI is an afterthought. Done Bear’s CLI is a first-class client of the same sync engine as every other app. A task added in the terminal is on your phone before you’ve switched windows.

Capture without leaving the shell

donebear task add "Fix the flaky deploy test"

Capture lands in your Inbox for triage into Today, Upcoming, Anytime, or Someday, the GTD flow that makes systems stick. Listing, completing, and searching are just as direct: donebear task list, donebear task done, donebear search "deploy". On macOS, the Raycast extension covers the GUI-adjacent moments.

Scripts: JSON out, tokens in

donebear task list --json
donebear search "launch" --format csv
donebear search "blocked" --total   # count only, handy in shell conditions

For CI and non-interactive scripts, skip browser login. Create a long-lived key and export it:

donebear api-key create "CI"
export DONEBEAR_TOKEN=<token>
donebear task list --json

Token precedence is the --token flag, then DONEBEAR_TOKEN, then your stored login, so a script can override auth for one command without touching your session. Pin the workspace with --workspace <slug> so scripts never depend on someone’s default.

Examples this enables:

• A nightly CI job that files a task when a dependency audit fails.
• A git hook that adds “write release notes for vX.Y” when you tag.
• A cron script that posts your overdue-task count to your status bar.

Agents: context on demand

donebear spec                      # the full command surface, no auth needed
donebear context --json            # snapshot of your workspace for an agent

spec tells an agent what the CLI can do; context tells it what’s true right now: views, projects, and tasks in one call instead of ten. There’s also a ready-made agent skill at donebear.com/skill.md so assistants like Claude Code can drive the CLI without trial and error.

If your agent speaks MCP instead of shell, the hosted MCP server exposes the same capabilities over OAuth.

Why sync is the point

A CLI task manager is only trustworthy if the terminal, your phone, and your team see the same list. Done Bear is local-first: the CLI works offline, writes commit locally first, and sync reconciles everything, including a teammate’s edits in a shared workspace, in real time.

Get started

npm install -g donebear
donebear auth login
donebear task add "Try Done Bear from the terminal"

The CLI docs cover the full command reference, automation patterns, and the one-command Things 3 importer. Free for your first 250 tasks. See pricing.