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Google Slides CLI operations via gws. Use when users need to create, read, or edit Google Slides presentations. Triggers: slides, presentation, google slides, deck.
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| name | gws-slides |
| description | Google Slides CLI operations via gws. Use when users need to create, read, or edit Google Slides presentations. Triggers: slides, presentation, google slides, deck. |
| metadata | {"short-description":"Google Slides CLI operations","compatibility":"claude-code, codex-cli"} |
gws slides provides CLI access to Google Slides with structured JSON output.
Disclaimer:
gwsis not the official Google CLI. This is an independent, open-source project not endorsed by or affiliated with Google.
Before executing any gws command, verify the CLI is installed:
gws version
If not found, install: go install github.com/omriariav/workspace-cli/cmd/gws@latest
Requires OAuth2 credentials. Run gws auth status to check.
If not authenticated: gws auth login (opens browser for OAuth consent).
For initial setup, see the gws-auth skill.
| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Get presentation info | gws slides info <id> |
| List all slides | gws slides list <id> |
| Read slide content | gws slides read <id> |
| Read specific slide | gws slides read <id> 3 |
| Read with speaker notes | gws slides read <id> --notes |
| Create presentation | gws slides create --title "My Deck" |
| Add a slide | gws slides add-slide <id> --title "Slide Title" --body "Content" |
| Add blank slide | gws slides add-slide <id> --layout BLANK |
| Delete a slide | gws slides delete-slide <id> --slide-number 3 |
| Duplicate a slide | gws slides duplicate-slide <id> --slide-number 2 |
| Add a shape | gws slides add-shape <id> --slide-number 1 --type RECTANGLE |
| Add an image | gws slides add-image <id> --slide-number 1 --url "https://..." |
| Add text to shape | gws slides add-text <id> --object-id <obj-id> --text "Hello" |
| Add text to table cell | gws slides add-text <id> --table-id <tbl-id> --row 0 --col 0 --text "Cell" |
| Add speaker notes | gws slides add-text <id> --notes --slide-number 1 --text "Notes here" |
| Clear speaker notes | gws slides delete-text <id> --notes --slide-number 1 |
| Find and replace | gws slides replace-text <id> --find "old" --replace "new" |
| Delete any element | gws slides delete-object <id> --object-id <obj-id> |
| Clear text from shape | gws slides delete-text <id> --object-id <obj-id> |
| Style text | gws slides update-text-style <id> --object-id <obj-id> --bold --color "#FF0000" |
| Move/resize element | gws slides update-transform <id> --object-id <obj-id> --x 200 --y 100 |
| Create a table | gws slides create-table <id> --slide-number 1 --rows 3 --cols 4 |
| Insert table rows | gws slides insert-table-rows <id> --table-id <tbl-id> --at 1 --count 2 |
| Delete table row | gws slides delete-table-row <id> --table-id <tbl-id> --row 2 |
| Style table cell | gws slides update-table-cell <id> --table-id <tbl-id> --row 0 --col 0 --background-color "#FFFF00" |
| Style table border | gws slides update-table-border <id> --table-id <tbl-id> --row 0 --col 0 --color "#000000" |
| Paragraph style | gws slides update-paragraph-style <id> --object-id <obj-id> --alignment CENTER |
| Shape properties | gws slides update-shape <id> --object-id <obj-id> --background-color "#0000FF" |
| Reorder slides | gws slides reorder-slides <id> --slide-ids "slide1,slide2" --to 0 |
| Set slide background color | gws slides update-slide-background <id> --slide-number 1 --color "#005843" |
| Set slide background image | gws slides update-slide-background <id> --slide-number 1 --image-url "https://..." |
| List available layouts | gws slides list-layouts <id> |
| Add slide with custom layout | gws slides add-slide <id> --layout-id <layout-id> |
| Add a line | gws slides add-line <id> --slide-number 1 --start-x 50 --start-y 50 --end-x 300 --end-y 200 |
| Group elements | gws slides group <id> --object-ids "obj1,obj2,obj3" |
| Ungroup elements | gws slides ungroup <id> --group-id <group-id> |
| Get slide thumbnail | gws slides thumbnail <id> --slide <slide-id-or-number> |
gws slides info <presentation-id> [--notes]
Flags:
--notes — Include speaker notes in outputgws slides list <presentation-id> [--notes]
Lists all slides with their content and object IDs.
Flags:
--notes — Include speaker notes in outputgws slides read <presentation-id> [slide-number] [--notes]
Reads text content. Omit slide number to read all slides. Slide numbers are 1-indexed.
Flags:
--notes — Include speaker notes in outputgws slides create --title <title>
gws slides add-slide <presentation-id> [flags]
Flags:
--title string — Slide title--body string — Slide body text--layout string — Layout type (default: "TITLE_AND_BODY")--layout-id string — Custom layout ID from presentation's masters (overrides --layout)Available predefined layouts: TITLE_AND_BODY, TITLE_ONLY, BLANK, SECTION_HEADER, TITLE, ONE_COLUMN_TEXT, MAIN_POINT, BIG_NUMBER
For custom layouts, use gws slides list-layouts <id> to discover layout IDs.
gws slides delete-slide <presentation-id> [flags]
Flags:
--slide-number int — Slide number (1-indexed)--slide-id string — Slide object ID (alternative)gws slides duplicate-slide <presentation-id> [flags]
Flags:
--slide-number int — Slide number (1-indexed)--slide-id string — Slide object ID (alternative)gws slides add-shape <presentation-id> [flags]
Flags:
--slide-number int — Slide number (1-indexed)--slide-id string — Slide object ID--type string — Shape type (default: "RECTANGLE")--x float — X position in points (default: 100)--y float — Y position in points (default: 100)--width float — Width in points (default: 200)--height float — Height in points (default: 100)Shape types: RECTANGLE, ELLIPSE, TEXT_BOX, ROUND_RECTANGLE, TRIANGLE, ARROW, etc.
gws slides add-image <presentation-id> --url <image-url> [flags]
Flags:
--url string — Image URL (required, must be publicly accessible)--slide-number int — Slide number (1-indexed)--slide-id string — Slide object ID--x float — X position in points (default: 100)--y float — Y position in points (default: 100)--width float — Width in points (default: 400)--height float — Height in points (default: auto-calculated from image aspect ratio)# For shapes/text boxes:
gws slides add-text <presentation-id> --object-id <id> --text <text> [flags]
# For table cells:
gws slides add-text <presentation-id> --table-id <id> --row <n> --col <n> --text <text> [flags]
# For speaker notes:
gws slides add-text <presentation-id> --notes --slide-number <n> --text <text> [flags]
Flags:
--object-id string — Shape/text box ID (mutually exclusive with --table-id and --notes)--table-id string — Table object ID (requires --row and --col)--row int — Row index, 0-based (required with --table-id)--col int — Column index, 0-based (required with --table-id)--notes — Target speaker notes shape (mutually exclusive with --object-id and --table-id)--slide-id string — Slide object ID (required with --notes)--slide-number int — Slide number, 1-indexed (required with --notes)--text string — Text to insert (required)--at int — Position to insert at (0 = beginning)Get object IDs from gws slides list <id> output. For tables, find elements with "type": "TABLE" and use their objectId as the --table-id value.
gws slides replace-text <presentation-id> --find <text> --replace <text> [flags]
Flags:
--find string — Text to find (required)--replace string — Replacement text (required)--match-case — Case-sensitive matching (default: true)Replaces across ALL slides in the presentation.
gws slides delete-object <presentation-id> --object-id <id>
Deletes shapes, images, tables, or any page element by object ID.
gws slides delete-text <presentation-id> --object-id <id> [flags]
gws slides delete-text <presentation-id> --notes --slide-number <n> [flags]
Flags:
--object-id string — Shape containing text (required unless --notes)--notes — Target speaker notes shape (alternative to --object-id)--slide-id string — Slide object ID (required with --notes)--slide-number int — Slide number, 1-indexed (required with --notes)--from int — Start index (default: 0)--to int — End index (if omitted, deletes to end)gws slides update-text-style <presentation-id> --object-id <id> [flags]
Flags:
--object-id string — Shape containing text (required)--from int / --to int — Text range (optional)--bold / --italic / --underline — Boolean styles--font-size float — Size in points--font-family string — Font name--color string — Hex color #RRGGBBgws slides update-transform <presentation-id> --object-id <id> [flags]
Flags:
--object-id string — Element to transform (required)--x / --y float — Position in points--scale-x / --scale-y float — Scale factors--rotate float — Rotation in degreesgws slides create-table <presentation-id> --rows <n> --cols <n> [flags]
Flags:
--slide-number int or --slide-id string — Target slide--rows int — Number of rows (required)--cols int — Number of columns (required)--x / --y / --width / --height float — Position and sizegws slides insert-table-rows <presentation-id> --table-id <id> --at <row> [flags]
Flags:
--table-id string — Table object ID (required)--at int — Row index to insert at (required)--count int — Number of rows (default: 1)--below — Insert below the index (default: true)gws slides delete-table-row <presentation-id> --table-id <id> --row <index>
gws slides update-table-cell <presentation-id> --table-id <id> --row <r> --col <c> [flags]
Flags:
--table-id string — Table object ID (required)--row int / --col int — Cell location (required)--background-color string — Hex color #RRGGBBgws slides update-table-border <presentation-id> --table-id <id> --row <r> --col <c> [flags]
Flags:
--table-id string — Table object ID (required)--row int / --col int — Cell location (required)--border string — top, bottom, left, right, or all--color string — Hex color #RRGGBB--width float — Border width in points--style string — solid, dashed, or dottedgws slides update-paragraph-style <presentation-id> --object-id <id> [flags]
Flags:
--object-id string — Shape containing text (required)--from int / --to int — Text range (optional)--alignment string — START, CENTER, END, JUSTIFIED--line-spacing float — Line spacing percentage (100 = single)--space-above / --space-below float — Paragraph spacing in pointsgws slides update-shape <presentation-id> --object-id <id> [flags]
Flags:
--object-id string — Shape to update (required)--background-color string — Fill color #RRGGBB--outline-color string — Outline color #RRGGBB--outline-width float — Outline width in pointsgws slides reorder-slides <presentation-id> --slide-ids <ids> --to <position>
Flags:
--slide-ids string — Comma-separated slide IDs to move (required)--to int — Target position, 0-indexed (required)gws slides update-slide-background <presentation-id> [flags]
Sets the background of a slide to a solid color or an image URL.
Flags:
--slide-number int — Slide number (1-indexed)--slide-id string — Slide object ID--color string — Background color as hex #RRGGBB--image-url string — Background image URLOne of --color or --image-url is required (mutually exclusive).
gws slides list-layouts <presentation-id>
Lists all available slide layouts from the presentation's masters. Use the returned layout IDs with add-slide --layout-id.
The add-slide command also supports --layout-id for custom master layouts:
gws slides add-slide <presentation-id> --layout-id <layout-object-id>
Use list-layouts to discover available layout IDs.
gws slides add-line <presentation-id> [flags]
Flags:
--slide-number int — Slide number (1-indexed)--slide-id string — Slide object ID--type string — Line type (default: "STRAIGHT_CONNECTOR_1")--start-x float — Start X position in points--start-y float — Start Y position in points--end-x float — End X position in points (default: 200)--end-y float — End Y position in points (default: 200)--color string — Line color as hex #RRGGBB--weight float — Line thickness in points (default: 1)Line categories: Prefix determines routing: STRAIGHT_* for straight lines, BENT_* for bent connectors, CURVED_* for curved connectors.
gws slides group <presentation-id> --object-ids <ids>
Flags:
--object-ids string — Comma-separated element IDs to group (required, minimum 2)gws slides ungroup <presentation-id> --group-id <id>
Flags:
--group-id string — Object ID of the group to ungroup (required)gws slides thumbnail <presentation-id> --slide <slide-id-or-number> [flags]
Gets a thumbnail image URL for a specific slide page.
Flags:
--slide string — Slide object ID or 1-based slide number (required)--size string — Thumbnail size: SMALL, MEDIUM, LARGE (default: "MEDIUM")--download string — Download thumbnail to file path instead of returning URLgws slides list <id> --format json # Structured JSON (default)
gws slides list <id> --format yaml # YAML format
gws slides list <id> --format text # Human-readable text
--format json (the default) for programmatic parsinggws slides list <id> to get slide object IDs and element object IDs before using update commandsdocs.google.com/presentation/d/<ID>/editgws drive comments <presentation-id>--quiet on update operations to suppress JSON output in scripts# prefix: --background-color "#005843", --color "#FFFFFF"add-text, then update-text-style for font/color, then update-paragraph-style for alignmentupdate-shape sets fill and outline colors on shapes, not textupdate-text-style sets font properties (bold, italic, size, color) on text within shapesadd-slide --layout may fail on presentations with custom slide masters; use list-layouts to get layout IDs and add-slide --layout-id insteadreplace-text operates across ALL slides in the presentation — cannot target specific slidesadd-text inserts into shapes/text boxes or table cells; use add-shape --type TEXT_BOX to create a text container firstupdate-shape, (3) add text, (4) style text with update-text-style, (5) align with update-paragraph-style# 1. Add a full-slide rectangle as background
gws slides add-shape "<PRES_ID>" --slide-number 1 --type RECTANGLE \
--x 0 --y 0 --width 720 --height 405
# 2. Get the shape ID from the output, then set fill color
gws slides update-shape "<PRES_ID>" --object-id "<SHAPE_ID>" \
--background-color "#005843"
# 3. Add title text to the shape
gws slides add-text "<PRES_ID>" --object-id "<SHAPE_ID>" \
--text "Thank You"
# 4. Style text: white, large, bold
gws slides update-text-style "<PRES_ID>" --object-id "<SHAPE_ID>" \
--color "#FFFFFF" --font-size 48 --bold
# 5. Center the text
gws slides update-paragraph-style "<PRES_ID>" --object-id "<SHAPE_ID>" \
--alignment CENTER
# 1. List slide to find table ID
gws slides list "<PRES_ID>" | jq '.slides[0].elements[] | select(.type=="TABLE")'
# 2. Add text to cells (0-indexed rows and columns)
gws slides add-text "<PRES_ID>" --table-id "<TABLE_ID>" --row 0 --col 0 --text "Header 1"
gws slides add-text "<PRES_ID>" --table-id "<TABLE_ID>" --row 0 --col 1 --text "Header 2"
gws slides add-text "<PRES_ID>" --table-id "<TABLE_ID>" --row 1 --col 0 --text "Data A"
gws slides add-text "<PRES_ID>" --table-id "<TABLE_ID>" --row 1 --col 1 --text "Data B"
# 3. Style header row with background color
gws slides update-table-cell "<PRES_ID>" --table-id "<TABLE_ID>" \
--row 0 --col 0 --background-color "#005843"
gws slides update-table-cell "<PRES_ID>" --table-id "<TABLE_ID>" \
--row 0 --col 1 --background-color "#005843"
# Replace placeholders across all slides
gws slides replace-text "<PRES_ID>" --find "{{COMPANY_NAME}}" --replace "Acme Corp"
gws slides replace-text "<PRES_ID>" --find "{{DATE}}" --replace "February 2026"
gws slides replace-text "<PRES_ID>" --find "{{PRESENTER}}" --replace "Jane Smith"
# Get slide ID from list (use .id field)
SLIDE_ID=$(gws slides list "<PRES_ID>" | jq -r '.slides[2].id')
# Move to high position (API adjusts to valid range)
gws slides reorder-slides "<PRES_ID>" --slide-ids "$SLIDE_ID" --to 99
See LEARNINGS.md for session-specific learnings and gotchas discovered during real usage.
Note: LEARNINGS.md is a template. Keep sensitive/proprietary learnings local - don't commit them to the repo.
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