Dolly from the terminal.

Install with npm, authenticate once, generate from any script or pipeline.

bash

npm install -g dolly-cli
dolly auth login

11 commands, 32 models, no dependencies. Node >=18.17.

Install

Two lines, then you are in

bash

npm install -g dolly-cli

bash

dolly auth login

The key comes from Account, then API keys. It is stored in ~/.dolly/config at mode 0600, never echoed back, and never passed on the command line unless you pass it yourself. In CI, set DOLLY_API_KEY in the environment instead.

Reference

Every command

Command	Flags	What it does
`dolly auth login [--base <url>]`	`--base`	Store an API key in ~/.dolly/config
`dolly auth status`	none	Show the signed-in account and balance
`dolly models`	`--kind`	List models
`dolly assets add <files…>`	`--handle --kind`	Upload and name an asset you can reference later
`dolly assets ls`	none	List your assets
`dolly assets rm <handle>`	none	Delete an asset
`dolly quote <kind> [prompt]`	`--model --refs --count --json`	Price a generation without spending
`dolly gen <kind> <prompt>`	`--model --refs --out --yes --max-spend --count --no-wait --json`	Generate. Shows the quote first
`dolly edit <op> <file>`	`--out --yes --json`	bg-remove upscale extend reframe resize restore colorize retouch
`dolly job <id>`	`--json`	Status of a job or batch
`dolly batch <file.csv>`	`--out --yes --max-spend --resume --dry-run --json`	Run many rows with per-row quoting

The flags that mean the same thing everywhere: --model <id>, --refs @handle, --out <dir|file>, --yes, --max-spend <credits>, --json, --no-wait. Run dolly --help for the same list in your terminal.

Examples

Four that earn their keep

An image, straight into the repo

A path with an extension is a file, so the output lands exactly where the code expects it.

bash

dolly gen image "a matte black espresso machine on a marble counter" \
  --out ./public/images/hero.png --yes

A video from a reference

Upload the thing once, name it, then reference it by handle for as long as it is useful.

bash

dolly assets add ./photos/watch-*.jpg --handle mywatch --kind product
dolly gen video "a slow push in, studio lighting" --model seedance-2.5 --refs @mywatch --out ./renders/

A voiceover

Quote it first if you want to see the number before it is spent.

bash

dolly quote voice "Everything you need, and nothing you do not." --model elevenlabs-v3
dolly gen voice "Everything you need, and nothing you do not." --model elevenlabs-v3 --out ./audio/vo.mp3 --yes

A batch, with a ceiling

Every row is quoted before anything runs, and the ceiling is enforced by the server rather than by the script.

bash

for p in ./prompts/*.txt; do
  dolly gen image "$(cat "$p")" --out ./renders/ --max-spend 40 --yes
done

Output

Output and files

Without --out, a generation prints its URLs and stays in your library. With --out, a path that has an extension is written as that file and anything else is treated as a directory, one file per output. Images come back as PNG or WEBP, video as MP4, voice and music as MP3, exactly as the model produced them.

With --json the whole run is one JSON document on stdout and nothing else, which is the mode to use from a script. The exit code carries the outcome:

Exit	Meaning
`0`	ok
`1`	error
`2`	usage
`3`	auth
`4`	credits
`5`	ceiling/declined
`6`	moderation
`7`	generation failed
`8`	rate limited

Questions

Questions, answered

What do I need installed?

Node >=18.17 and nothing else. The package has no dependencies, which is deliberate for a tool that spends money.

Where is my key kept?

In ~/.dolly/config, mode 0600, written by dolly auth login. It is never echoed back and never passed on the command line unless you pass it yourself.

Can I run it in CI?

Yes. Set DOLLY_API_KEY in the environment and pass --yes, and nothing prompts. Use --max-spend to cap what a run can cost.

Does it tell me the price first?

Always. 11 commands and only two of them spend: gen and batch, both of which quote first and wait for a yes unless you pass --yes.

What happens if a generation fails?

You are refunded in full and the command exits 7, so a script can tell a failure from a refusal without parsing text.

Is it the same account as the web app?

One account, one balance. A key from the account page spends the same credits the web app and the MCP connector do.

Elsewhere

Or let an agent do it

The MCP connector gives an assistant the same capability as tools rather than commands. Same account, same credits, same refunds.

See the connector See pricing