Core Commands

The core specify commands handle project initialization, system checks, and version information.

Initialize a Project

specify init [<project_name>]

Option	Description
--integration <key>	AI coding agent integration to use (e.g. copilot, claude, gemini). See the Integrations reference for all available keys
--integration-options	Options for the integration (e.g. --integration-options="--commands-dir .myagent/cmds")
--script sh\|ps	Script type: sh (bash/zsh) or ps (PowerShell)
--here	Initialize in the current directory instead of creating a new one
--force	Force merge/overwrite when initializing in an existing directory
--no-git	Skip git repository initialization
--ignore-agent-tools	Skip checks for AI coding agent CLI tools
--preset <id>	Install a preset during initialization
--branch-numbering	Branch numbering strategy: sequential (default) or timestamp

Creates a new Spec Kit project with the necessary directory structure, templates, scripts, and AI coding agent integration files.

Use <project_name> to create a new directory, or --here (or .) to initialize in the current directory. If the directory already has files, use --force to merge without confirmation.

Examples

# Create a new project with an integration
specify init my-project --integration copilot

# Initialize in the current directory
specify init --here --integration copilot

# Force merge into a non-empty directory
specify init --here --force --integration copilot

# Use PowerShell scripts (Windows/cross-platform)
specify init my-project --integration copilot --script ps

# Skip git initialization
specify init my-project --integration copilot --no-git

# Install a preset during initialization
specify init my-project --integration copilot --preset compliance

# Use timestamp-based branch numbering (useful for distributed teams)
specify init my-project --integration copilot --branch-numbering timestamp

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
SPECIFY_FEATURE	Override feature detection for non-Git repositories. Set to the feature directory name (e.g., 001-photo-albums) to work on a specific feature when not using Git branches. Must be set in the context of the agent prior to using /speckit.plan or follow-up commands.

Check Installed Tools

specify check

Checks that required tools are available on your system: git and any CLI-based AI coding agents. IDE-based agents are skipped since they don't require a CLI tool.

Version Information

specify version

Displays the Spec Kit CLI version, Python version, platform, and architecture.

A quick version check is also available via:

specify --version
specify -V