Supabase CLI Skill

Table of Contents

1. [Quick Reference](#quick-reference)
2. [Critical: Avoiding Interactive Mode](#critical-avoiding-interactive-mode)
3. [Prerequisites](#prerequisites)
4. [Authentication](#authentication)
5. [CLI Decision Tree](#cli-decision-tree)
6. [Essential Commands](#essential-commands)
7. [Local Development Ports](#local-development-ports)
8. [Common Workflows](#common-workflows)
9. [Error Handling](#error-handling)
10. [Auto-Detection Triggers](#auto-detection-triggers)
11. [Agent Integration](#agent-integration)
12. [Quick Reference Card](#quick-reference-card)
13. [Further Reading](#further-reading)

Quick Reference

Supabase CLI enables local development, database migrations, Edge Functions deployment, and project management for Supabase projects.

Critical: Avoiding Interactive Mode

Supabase CLI can enter interactive mode which will hang Claude Code. Always use flags to bypass prompts:

Never use in Claude Code:

• supabase login without token (opens browser)
• Any command without --project-ref when not linked
• Interactive prompts for organization/region selection

Always include:

• SUPABASEACCESSTOKEN environment variable for authentication
• --project-ref flag or pre-linked project
• Explicit flags for all configuration options

Prerequisites

Installation Verification

supabase --version
# Expected: 2.x.x or higher

Installation Methods

# npm (requires Node.js 20+)
npm install -g supabase

# Homebrew (macOS/Linux)
brew install supabase/tap/supabase

# Scoop (Windows)
scoop bucket add supabase https://github.com/supabase/scoop-bucket.git
scoop install supabase

Authentication

Environment Variables (CI/CD Required)

Token Generation

Generate tokens at: https://supabase.com/dashboard/account/tokens

Authentication Pattern for Claude Code

# Set from project .env file
export SUPABASE_ACCESS_TOKEN="$(grep SUPABASE_ACCESS_TOKEN .env | cut -d= -f2)"
export SUPABASE_DB_PASSWORD="$(grep SUPABASE_DB_PASSWORD .env | cut -d= -f2)"

# All commands will use these automatically
supabase projects list
supabase link --project-ref <ref>

CLI Decision Tree

What do you need to do?

Project Setup
├── Initialize local project ──────────► supabase init
├── Link to remote project ────────────► supabase link --project-ref <ref>
├── Start local stack ─────────────────► supabase start
├── Stop local stack ──────────────────► supabase stop
└── Check status ──────────────────────► supabase status

Database Operations
├── Create migration ──────────────────► supabase migration new <name>
├── Apply migrations locally ──────────► supabase db reset
├── Push migrations to remote ─────────► supabase db push
├── Pull remote schema ────────────────► supabase db pull
├── Diff local vs remote ──────────────► supabase db diff --linked
└── Lint database schema ──────────────► supabase db lint

Edge Functions
├── Create new function ───────────────► supabase functions new <name>
├── Serve locally ─────────────────────► supabase functions serve
├── Deploy function ───────────────────► supabase functions deploy <name>
├── List deployed functions ───────────► supabase functions list
└── Delete function ───────────────────► supabase functions delete <name>

Secrets Management
├── Set secret ────────────────────────► supabase secrets set NAME=value
├── Set from file ─────────────────────► supabase secrets set --env-file .env
├── List secrets ──────────────────────► supabase secrets list
└── Remove secret ─────────────────────► supabase secrets unset NAME

Type Generation
├── Generate TypeScript types ─────────► supabase gen types typescript --linked
└── Generate from local ───────────────► supabase gen types typescript --local

Debugging
├── View container logs ───────────────► supabase logs (local)
├── Check slow queries ────────────────► supabase inspect db outliers
└── View blocking queries ─────────────► supabase inspect db blocking

For complete command reference including storage, project management, and all inspection commands, see [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md).

Essential Commands

Project Setup

Database Commands

Migration Commands

Edge Functions Commands

Secrets Commands

For type generation, database inspection, storage, and project management commands, see [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md#complete-command-reference).

Local Development Ports

Common Workflows

1. Initialize New Project

# Create local project structure
supabase init

# Link to existing remote project
export SUPABASE_ACCESS_TOKEN="your-token"
supabase link --project-ref <project-ref>

# Start local development
supabase start

2. Create and Apply Migrations

# Create new migration
supabase migration new add_users_table

# Edit migration file at supabase/migrations/<timestamp>_add_users_table.sql

# Apply locally
supabase db reset

# Push to remote
supabase db push

3. Pull Remote Schema Changes

# Link project first
supabase link --project-ref <ref>

# Pull all schema changes
supabase db pull

# Or create migration from remote changes
supabase db pull --schema public

4. Deploy Edge Functions

# Create new function
supabase functions new hello-world

# Edit supabase/functions/hello-world/index.ts

# Test locally
supabase functions serve

# Deploy to production
supabase functions deploy hello-world

# Deploy without JWT verification (for webhooks)
supabase functions deploy hello-world --no-verify-jwt

5. Manage Secrets

# Set individual secret
supabase secrets set STRIPE_KEY=sk_test_xxx

# Set from .env file
supabase secrets set --env-file .env.production

# List current secrets
supabase secrets list

# Remove secret
supabase secrets unset STRIPE_KEY

6. Generate TypeScript Types

# From remote database
supabase gen types typescript --linked > src/types/database.ts

# From local database
supabase gen types typescript --local > src/types/database.ts

7. Debug Database Performance

# Find slow queries
supabase inspect db outliers

# Check for blocking queries
supabase inspect db blocking

# Check cache hit ratios
supabase inspect db cache-hit

For advanced workflows including CI/CD integration and migration strategies, see [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md#advanced-patterns).

Error Handling

Common Errors and Solutions

Docker Issues

# Check if Docker is running
docker info

# Clean up Supabase containers
supabase stop --no-backup
docker system prune -f

# Restart with fresh state
supabase start

Migration Conflicts

# View migration status
supabase migration list

# Repair migration history
supabase migration repair --status reverted <version>

# Squash migrations if needed
supabase migration squash --version <timestamp>

For complete troubleshooting guide including permission issues and advanced debugging, see [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md#troubleshooting).

Auto-Detection Triggers

This skill auto-loads when Supabase context is detected:

File-based triggers:

• supabase/config.toml in project
• supabase/ directory present
• SUPABASEACCESSTOKEN in .env file

Context-based triggers:

• User mentions "Supabase"
• User runs supabase CLI commands
• Database migration discussions
• Edge Functions deployment

Agent Integration

Compatible Agents

Handoff Patterns

To Deep-Debugger: Slow query investigation, migration failures, Edge Function runtime errors

From Deep-Debugger: Schema problems requiring migrations, environment variable changes

Quick Reference Card

# Authentication (NEVER use supabase login in Claude Code)
export SUPABASE_ACCESS_TOKEN="xxx"

# Project setup
supabase init
supabase link --project-ref <ref>
supabase start
supabase stop

# Database
supabase migration new <name>
supabase db reset
supabase db push
supabase db pull
supabase db diff --linked

# Edge Functions
supabase functions new <name>
supabase functions serve
supabase functions deploy <name>

# Secrets
supabase secrets set KEY=value
supabase secrets list
supabase secrets unset KEY

# Types
supabase gen types typescript --linked > types.ts

# Debugging
supabase inspect db outliers
supabase inspect db blocking

Further Reading

• [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md) - Complete command reference, regions, CI/CD integration, advanced patterns
• Supabase CLI Docs
• Local Development Guide