Late

Late CLI

Schedule and publish social media posts across 13 platforms (Instagram, TikTok, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Threads, YouTube, Bluesky, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, Telegram, Google Business) from any terminal or AI agent.

Setup

npm install -g late
late auth:set --key "sk-your-api-key"
late auth:check  # verify it works

Or set the env var directly: export LATE_API_KEY="sk-your-api-key"

Core Workflow

The typical flow for scheduling a post:

# 1. See your profiles
late profiles:list

# 2. See connected social accounts
late accounts:list

# 3. Schedule a post
late posts:create --text "Hello world!" --accounts <accountId1>,<accountId2> --scheduledAt "2025-01-15T10:00:00Z"

# 4. Check post status
late posts:list --status scheduled

# 5. View analytics (requires analytics add-on)
late analytics:posts --profileId <profileId>

Output Format

All commands output JSON by default (for AI agents and piping). Add --pretty for indented output.

Errors always return: {"error": true, "message": "...", "status": 401}

Commands Reference

Authentication

# Save API key
late auth:set --key "sk-your-api-key"

# Optionally set custom API URL
late auth:set --key "sk-..." --url "https://custom.api.url/api/v1"

# Verify key works
late auth:check

Profiles

# List all profiles
late profiles:list

# Create a profile
late profiles:create --name "My Brand"

# Get profile details
late profiles:get <profileId>

# Update profile
late profiles:update <profileId> --name "New Name"

# Delete profile (must have no connected accounts)
late profiles:delete <profileId>

Accounts (Social Media Connections)

# List all connected accounts
late accounts:list

# Filter by profile or platform
late accounts:list --profileId <id> --platform instagram

# Get single account
late accounts:get <accountId>

# Check health of all accounts (rate limits, token expiry)
late accounts:health

Posts

# Publish immediately
late posts:create --text "Hello!" --accounts <id1>,<id2>

# Schedule for later
late posts:create --text "Scheduled post" --accounts <id> --scheduledAt "2025-06-01T14:00:00Z"

# Save as draft
late posts:create --text "Draft idea" --accounts <id> --draft

# With media
late posts:create --text "Check this out" --accounts <id> --media "https://example.com/image.jpg"

# With title (YouTube, Reddit)
late posts:create --text "Description" --accounts <id> --title "My Video Title"

# List posts with filters
late posts:list --status published --page 1 --limit 20
late posts:list --profileId <id> --from "2025-01-01" --to "2025-01-31"
late posts:list --search "product launch"

# Get post details
late posts:get <postId>

# Delete a post
late posts:delete <postId>

# Retry a failed post
late posts:retry <postId>

Analytics (requires analytics add-on)

# Post analytics
late analytics:posts --profileId <id>
late analytics:posts --postId <postId>
late analytics:posts --platform instagram --sortBy engagement

# Daily metrics
late analytics:daily --accountId <id> --from "2025-01-01" --to "2025-01-31"

# Best posting times
late analytics:best-time --accountId <id>

Media

# Upload a file (returns URL for use in posts:create --media)
late media:upload ./photo.jpg
late media:upload ./video.mp4

Platform-Specific Examples

Instagram Reel

late media:upload ./reel.mp4
# Use the returned URL:
late posts:create --text "New reel!" --accounts <instagramAccountId> --media "<returned-url>"

Multi-Platform Post

late posts:create \
  --text "Big announcement!" \
  --accounts <instagramId>,<twitterId>,<linkedinId> \
  --media "https://example.com/image.jpg" \
  --scheduledAt "2025-06-01T09:00:00Z" \
  --timezone "America/New_York"

Threads + Twitter Simultaneous

late posts:create --text "Thoughts on AI agents..." --accounts <threadsId>,<twitterId>

Supported Platforms

Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, Facebook, Threads, YouTube, Bluesky, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, Telegram, Google Business Profile.

Error Handling

Common errors and their meaning:

• 401 - Invalid or missing API key
• 402 - Feature requires paid add-on (e.g., analytics)
• 403 - Plan limit reached or insufficient permissions
• 404 - Resource not found
• 429 - Rate limited (account in cooldown)

Tips for AI Agents

• Always call late accounts:list first to get valid account IDs before creating posts
• Use late accounts:health to check if accounts are rate-limited before posting
• Post IDs from late posts:create can be used with late posts:get to check publish status
• For multi-image posts, upload each file with late media:upload first, then pass all URLs comma-separated to --media
• Schedule posts at least 5 minutes in the future for reliable delivery