CLI Quickstart

Get from zero to your first UX audit in 5 minutes.

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

Node.js 20+ installed
A VertaaUX account with an API key

Need to install? See Installation.

Quickstart Steps

Install the CLI

Install globally via npm:

$npm install -g @vertaaux/cli

Verify installation:

$vertaa --version

0.5.0

Authenticate

$vertaa login

You'll be prompted to enter your API key. See Getting an API Key.

Environment Variable

Alternatively, set the VERTAAUX_API_KEY environment variable:

export VERTAAUX_API_KEY=vx_live_your_key_here

Verify authentication:

$vertaa whoami

Authenticated as: your-email@example.com
Plan: Pro
Credits remaining: 950/1000

Run Your First Audit

Audit any public URL:

$vertaa audit https://example.com

You should see:

VertaaUX CLI v0.5.0

Auditing: https://example.com
Mode: basic

[====================================] 100%

Audit Complete
──────────────────────────────────────────────
Overall Score: 85/100

Scores by Category:
  UX:                    88/100
  Accessibility:         82/100
  Information Arch:      87/100
  Performance:           83/100

Issues Found: 12
  Errors:    2
  Warnings:  7
  Info:      3

Top Issues:
  [ERROR] Missing alt text on hero image
  [ERROR] Color contrast ratio 3.2:1 below 4.5:1 minimum
  [WARN]  No skip link for keyboard navigation
  [WARN]  Touch target 32x32px below 44x44px minimum

Full results: https://vertaaux.ai/reports/abc123

Save Results

Export audit results to a file:

Save as JSON file

$vertaa audit https://example.com --format json > results.json

Or generate an HTML report:

Generate HTML report

$vertaa audit https://example.com --format html > report.html

What's Next?

Now that you've run your first audit, explore more capabilities:

Audit Command Reference

All 30+ flags for the audit command including filtering, quality gates, and debug options

Baseline Management

Create baselines and track UX improvements over time

CI/CD Integration

Set up automated audits in GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, and more

Configuration File

Set defaults with .vertaaux.yml so you don't need to repeat flags

Common Commands

Here are commands you'll use frequently:

Command	Purpose
`vertaa audit <url>`	Run an audit
`vertaa audit <url> --mode deep`	Deep audit with more checks
`vertaa audit <url> --fail-on error`	Fail if errors found
`vertaa baseline <job-id>`	Create a baseline from audit results
`vertaa diff --baseline baseline.json`	Compare against baseline
`vertaa doctor`	Check CLI health (config, auth, network)
`vertaa whoami`	Check authentication status

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