Best Best Homebrew CLI Tools 2026
The #1 best homebrew cli tools in 2026 is awscli with a Nerq Trust Score of 64/100 (C+), based on Nerq's independent analysis of 50 best homebrew cli tools across 5 trust dimensions. Rankings update daily — last updated: 2026-05-31.
According to Nerq's analysis, the top 5 best homebrew cli tools by trust score are: 1. awscli (64/100), 2. libx11 (64/100), 3. gemini-cli (64/100), 4. gh (62/100), 5. libxtst (62/100). Nerq Trust Scores range from 60 to 64 among the top 50. Scores are based on 5 independent trust dimensions including security, maintenance, and community adoption. Updated daily.
| # | Name | Trust | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | awscli | 64 | C+ |
| 2 | libx11 | 64 | C+ |
| 3 | gemini-cli | 64 | C+ |
| 4 | gh | 62 | C+ |
| 5 | libxtst | 62 | C+ |
| 6 | opencode | 62 | C+ |
| 7 | mongosh | 62 | C+ |
| 8 | atuin | 62 | C+ |
| 9 | glab | 62 | C+ |
| 10 | starship | 62 | C+ |
Top 50 Best Homebrew CLI Tools by Nerq Trust Score
| # | Name | Trust | Grade | Stars | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | awscli | 64 | C+ | 229.9k | Official Amazon AWS command-line interface |
| 2 | libx11 | 64 | C+ | 155.4k | X.Org: Core X11 protocol client library |
| 3 | gemini-cli | 64 | C+ | 128.5k | Interact with Google Gemini AI models from the command-line |
| 4 | gh | 62 | C+ | 360.2k | GitHub command-line tool |
| 5 | libxtst | 62 | C+ | 16.5k | X.Org: Client API for the XTEST & RECORD extensions |
| 6 | opencode | 62 | C+ | 20.2k | AI coding agent, built for the terminal |
| 7 | mongosh | 62 | C+ | 13.2k | MongoDB Shell to connect, configure, query, and work with your MongoDB database |
| 8 | atuin | 62 | C+ | 15.2k | Improved shell history for zsh, bash, fish and nushell |
| 9 | glab | 62 | C+ | 24.9k | Open-source GitLab command-line tool |
| 10 | starship | 62 | C+ | 15.5k | Cross-shell prompt for astronauts |
| 11 | jq | 62 | C+ | 67.8k | Lightweight and flexible command-line JSON processor |
| 12 | fzf | 62 | C+ | 65.3k | Command-line fuzzy finder written in Go |
| 13 | kubernetes-cli | 62 | C+ | 61.2k | Kubernetes command-line interface |
| 14 | himalaya | 62 | C+ | 33.4k | CLI email client written in Rust |
| 15 | lazygit | 62 | C+ | 25.9k | Simple terminal UI for git commands |
| 16 | mint | 62 | C+ | 21.7k | Dependency manager that installs and runs Swift command-line tool packages |
| 17 | k9s | 62 | C+ | 13.1k | Kubernetes CLI To Manage Your Clusters In Style! |
| 18 | powershell | 62 | C+ | 13.0k | Command-line shell and scripting language |
| 19 | wangle | 62 | C+ | 11.9k | Modular, composable client/server abstractions framework |
| 20 | xsel | 62 | C+ | 11.8k | Command-line program for getting and setting the contents of the X selection |
| 21 | yq | 62 | C+ | 49.0k | Process YAML, JSON, XML, CSV and properties documents from the CLI |
| 22 | usage | 62 | C+ | 28.5k | Tool for working with usage-spec CLIs |
| 23 | cloudflared | 62 | C+ | 25.0k | Cloudflare Tunnel client (formerly Argo Tunnel) |
| 24 | libxscrnsaver | 62 | C+ | 19.0k | X.Org: X11 Screen Saver extension client library |
| 25 | zoxide | 62 | C+ | 17.1k | Shell extension to navigate your filesystem faster |
| 26 | mas | 62 | C+ | 16.6k | Mac App Store command-line interface |
| 27 | flyctl | 62 | C+ | 16.0k | Command-line tools for fly.io services |
| 28 | libice | 62 | C+ | 13.1k | X.Org: Inter-Client Exchange Library |
| 29 | zsh | 62 | C+ | 12.3k | UNIX shell (command interpreter) |
| 30 | sqlite | 62 | C+ | 402.5k | Command-line interface for SQLite |
| 31 | readline | 62 | C+ | 314.4k | Library for command-line editing |
| 32 | azure-cli | 60 | C+ | 28.9k | Microsoft Azure CLI 2.0 |
| 33 | terminal-notifier | 60 | C+ | 8.6k | Send macOS User Notifications from the command-line |
| 34 | qwen-code | 60 | C+ | 7.9k | AI-powered command-line workflow tool for developers |
| 35 | carapace | 60 | C+ | 2.6k | Multi-shell multi-command argument completer |
| 36 | openapi-generator | 60 | C+ | 1.7k | Generate clients, server & docs from an OpenAPI spec (v2, v3) |
| 37 | tox | 60 | C+ | 1.6k | Generic Python virtualenv management and test command-line tool |
| 38 | cli11 | 60 | C+ | 1.6k | Simple and intuitive command-line parser for C++11 |
| 39 | render | 60 | C+ | 1.1k | Command-line interface for Render |
| 40 | cxxopts | 60 | C+ | 9.6k | Lightweight C++ command-line option parser |
| 41 | zsh-syntax-highlighting | 60 | C+ | 6.8k | Fish shell like syntax highlighting for zsh |
| 42 | argon2 | 60 | C+ | 6.7k | Password hashing library and CLI utility |
| 43 | apache-serf | 60 | C+ | 4.0k | High-performance asynchronous HTTP client library |
| 44 | worktrunk | 60 | C+ | 2.2k | CLI for Git worktree management, designed for parallel AI agent workflows |
| 45 | mprocs | 60 | C+ | 1.6k | Run multiple commands in parallel |
| 46 | yazi | 60 | C+ | 8.3k | Blazing fast terminal file manager written in Rust, based on async I/O |
| 47 | docker-buildx | 60 | C+ | 8.1k | Docker CLI plugin for extended build capabilities with BuildKit |
| 48 | jfrog-cli | 60 | C+ | 6.3k | Command-line interface for JFrog products |
| 49 | oci-cli | 60 | C+ | 3.4k | Oracle Cloud Infrastructure CLI |
| 50 | googleworkspace-cli | 60 | C+ | 2.9k | CLI for Drive, Gmail, Calendar, Sheets, Docs, Chat, Admin, and more |
How We Rank Best Homebrew CLI Tools
These best homebrew cli tools are ranked by Nerq Trust Score, which evaluates security, maintenance, community adoption, and transparency across multiple data points. Only entities with a trust score of 30 or above are included. Scores are updated continuously as new data becomes available.
FAQ
What are the best best homebrew cli tools in 2026?
Based on Nerq Trust Scores, the top-ranked best homebrew cli tools are listed above, scored on security, activity, documentation, and community metrics.
How are best homebrew cli tools ranked?
Nerq ranks tools using Trust Score v2, which combines security analysis, maintenance activity, documentation quality, and community adoption signals.
Are these best homebrew cli tools safe to use?
Each tool has an individual safety report. Click any tool name to see its detailed trust analysis.
What does a Nerq Trust Score of A mean?
An A grade (80-89) means the entity has strong signals across security, maintenance, documentation, and community adoption. A+ (90-100) is the highest possible rating.
How does Nerq evaluate best homebrew cli tools?
Nerq analyzes best homebrew cli tools across multiple dimensions including security vulnerabilities, license compliance, maintenance activity, documentation quality, and community adoption. Each dimension is scored independently and combined into an overall Trust Score (0-100).