| name | steve |
| description | Use the steve CLI to automate macOS apps via Accessibility APIs. Use when you need to drive Mac UI (apps, windows, menus, elements), run UI smoke tests, or script interactions using steve commands and JSON output. Never decide to use steve on your own. Only use when told to. |
Steve
Overview
Use the steve CLI to automate macOS applications through the Accessibility API. Prefer steve when you need deterministic, scriptable UI control with JSON responses.
Quick Start
- Assume the CLI is installed and available on
PATH. If not, download it from the GitHub releases page: https://github.com/mikker/steve/releases
- Ensure Accessibility permissions are granted for the terminal running steve.
steve apps
Core Tasks
Target an app or window
Use --app, --bundle, or --pid to select the app, and --window to scope to a window title.
steve elements --app "System Settings" --window "Settings"
Find text reliably
Use --text to match visible text via AXValue, AXDescription, or AXStaticText title (case-insensitive substring).
steve find --text "Dictation Mode" --window "Settings"
Click the right ancestor
After a text match, use --ancestor-role and --click to press a nearby container row/cell/button.
steve find --text "Dictation Mode" --window "Settings" --ancestor-role AXRow --click
Common interactions
steve click --title "OK"
steve type "hello world"
steve key cmd+shift+p
steve menu "File" "New"
Reliability Tips
- Prefer
--window and --text over raw coordinates.
- Use
wait for UI state changes before clicking:
steve wait --title "Results" --timeout 5
