notebooklm-cli

nlm - NotebookLM CLI

An unofficial CLI client for Google NotebookLM, written in Go.

Manage notebooks, add sources, chat with AI, and generate content — all from your terminal.

Why?

The existing Python client (notebooklm-py) works well, but deploying Python across Windows, macOS, and Linux requires managing interpreters, virtual environments, and dependencies.

nlm is a single static binary. Download it, run it. No runtime dependencies, no setup friction — ideal for CI/CD pipelines, automation scripts, and cross-platform distribution.

Installation

Pre-built binaries

Download from Releases for your platform.

Build from source

git clone https://github.com/Dokkabei97/notebooklm-cli.git
cd notebooklm-cli
make build        # produces ./nlm binary

# or install to $GOPATH/bin
go install github.com/Dokkabei97/notebooklm-cli@latest

Cross-compile

GOOS=windows GOARCH=amd64 go build -o nlm.exe .
GOOS=linux   GOARCH=amd64 go build -o nlm-linux .
GOOS=darwin  GOARCH=arm64 go build -o nlm-darwin .

Quick Start

# 1. Authenticate (reuses existing Chrome login — no browser window opened)
nlm auth login --reuse

# 2. List notebooks
nlm notebook list

# 3. Select a notebook
nlm use <notebook-id>

# 4. Ask a question
nlm chat ask "Summarize the key points"

Authentication

Option 1: Reuse Chrome cookies (recommended)

Extracts cookies directly from Chrome's local database. No browser is opened, and your existing login session is untouched.

nlm auth login --reuse

On macOS, a Keychain access prompt may appear. Click "Allow".

Option 2: Browser login

Opens a new Chrome window for Google sign-in.

nlm auth login

Check / clear auth

nlm auth status
nlm auth clear

Commands

Notebooks

nlm notebook list                        # List notebooks
nlm notebook create "Research Notes"     # Create
nlm notebook rename <id> "New Title"     # Rename
nlm notebook delete <id>                 # Delete
nlm nb ls                                # Alias

Active notebook

nlm use <notebook-id>

Subsequent commands use this notebook by default. Override with -n <id>.

Sources

nlm source list                          # List sources
nlm source add https://example.com       # Add URL
nlm source add ./paper.pdf               # Upload file
nlm source add <url> --wait              # Add and wait for processing
nlm source get <id>                      # Source details
nlm source refresh <id>                  # Refresh
nlm source delete <id>                   # Delete
nlm src ls                               # Alias

Chat

nlm chat ask "What are the main arguments?"
nlm chat ask "Focus on chapter 3" -s <source-id>
nlm chat history

Generate content

nlm generate audio                       # Audio overview
nlm generate audio -i "Focus on X"       # With instructions
nlm generate report                      # Report
nlm generate quiz                        # Quiz
nlm generate video                       # Video
nlm generate mind-map                    # Mind map
nlm generate infographic                 # Infographic
nlm generate slide-deck                  # Slide deck
nlm gen audio --wait                     # Wait for completion

Artifacts

nlm artifact list
nlm artifact export <id>                 # Print content
nlm artifact export <id> output.md       # Save to file
nlm artifact delete <id>

Notes

nlm note list
nlm note create "Title" "Content"
nlm note update <id> "New Title" "New Content"
nlm note delete <id>

Deep Research

nlm research start "Investigate X"
nlm research poll <research-id>
nlm research import <research-id>        # Import results as note

Sharing

nlm share status
nlm share set viewer
nlm share set editor
nlm share set none

Global Flags

nlm notebook list --json
nlm source list --json | jq '.[].title'

Shell Completion

# Bash
source <(nlm completion bash)

# Zsh
nlm completion zsh > "${fpath[1]}/_nlm"

# Fish
nlm completion fish | source

Configuration

Auth and settings are stored in ~/.notebooklm/.

You can also pass auth via the NOTEBOOKLM_AUTH_JSON environment variable.

Requirements

• macOS: Full support (Chrome cookie extraction via Keychain)
• Windows/Linux: Browser login (nlm auth login) or manual cookie import
• Google Chrome with a logged-in Google account
• Go 1.21+ (build only)

Architecture

cmd/           CLI commands (Cobra)
internal/
  rpc/         batchexecute protocol (encoder, decoder, caller)
  auth/        Authentication (browser login, Chrome cookie extraction)
  api/         Business logic (notebooks, sources, chat, artifacts, ...)
  model/       Domain models
  config/      Config management (~/.notebooklm/)
  output/      Terminal output (lipgloss tables, JSON)

References

• notebooklm-py — Python client by teng-lin. The protocol implementation (RPC method IDs, request/response encoding, auth flow) is based on this project.
• Google batchexecute — Protocol documentation for Google's internal RPC mechanism.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please follow these guidelines:

1. Fork the repository and create a feature branch.
2. Write tests for new functionality. Run make e2e to verify.
3. Follow the existing code style — go vet and go build must pass cleanly.
4. Submit a pull request with a clear description of the change.

Development

make build       # Build binary
make test        # Run unit tests
make e2e-basic   # Run CLI tests (no auth needed)
make e2e         # Run full E2E tests (requires auth)

Reporting Issues

• Include the command you ran and the full error output.
• Specify your OS, Go version, and Chrome version.
• For auth issues, run nlm auth status and include the output (tokens are truncated).

License

MIT License

Copyright (c) 2025

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.