Codex CLI Commands: Subcommands, Slash Commands & Modes (2026)

Bottom line

📑Table of Contents

1. Command Cheat Sheet — Navigate by Priority
2. 🔴 Essential — The Basics to Master First
3. CLI Subcommands
4. Interactive Slash Commands
5. Key Options and Flags
6. Approval and Sandbox Modes — Codex’s Safety Model
7. Practical Workflows — Combining the Commands
8. AGENTS.md and config.toml — Configuration Basics
9. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
10. Summary — Just Learn These Three First

• Use codex interactively and codex exec in CI or scripts
• -a controls approval policy; -s controls the sandbox boundary
• Follow the guide in this order: cheat sheet, basics, safety, workflows

What you’ll learn

• Everything organized by four priority levels — essential / useful / situational / good to know
• When to use codex vs. non-interactive codex exec
• Interactive slash commands (/init, /model, /review, and more)
• The approval (-a) and sandbox (-s) safety model
• Practical workflows (CI runs, reviews, resuming sessions)

• Run codex with no arguments to launch the interactive TUI
• Or pass a prompt to start immediately, e.g. codex "refactor this"
• If you don’t add a subcommand, options are forwarded to the interactive CLI
• Once started, give instructions in natural language and steer with slash commands

• Aliased as codex e. It runs without waiting for approvals, ideal for CI and scripts
• Run one-shot, e.g. codex exec "make the tests pass"
• --json (emit events as JSON), -o, --output-last-message <file> (write the final message to a file), --output-schema <file> (structured output)
• Use --skip-git-repo-check to run outside a git repository

⚠️ In non-interactive mode, if you don’t set the sandbox and approval explicitly you may end up unexpectedly restricted — or unexpectedly permissive. Always mind -s and -a.

• read-only — read only (safest)
• workspace-write — allow writes inside the working directory (the recommended default)
• danger-full-access — no restrictions (including network; last resort)
• Example: codex exec --sandbox workspace-write "fix the build"

• untrusted — ask for approval before running commands
• on-request — ask when the model decides it needs to
• never — never ask (for automation; pair with a sandbox)

💡 The current reference documents --yolo as the short form of --dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox. It disables both approval and the sandbox, so spell out -s and -a for normal work.

• In-session, use /model to pick the model and reasoning effort (low / medium / high / xhigh, etc.)
• From the CLI, use -m, --model <MODEL> (e.g. -m MODEL)

• Safe defaults: workspace-write + on-request for interactive work; workspace-write + never for automation (writes confined to the working directory)
• Use danger-full-access or --dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox only in a trusted, isolated environment
• Try any command inside the sandbox with codex sandbox <command>

⚠️ --dangerously-bypass-approvals-and-sandbox disables both approval and the sandbox. It’s handy but accident-prone — stick to workspace-write or read-only for everyday use.

1. codex exec --sandbox workspace-write --ask-for-approval never "fix the failing tests"
2. For structured output, combine --output-schema schema.json with --json
3. For a temp directory outside git, add --skip-git-repo-check

1. codex review --uncommitted to review uncommitted changes (or /review in-session)
2. Apply the latest Codex Cloud diff to your working tree with codex apply

1. The next day, run codex resume --last to resume the most recent session
2. To try a different approach, branch with codex fork --last

• AGENTS.md — an instructions file for your project, generated by /init or on first run; it’s the equivalent of Claude Code’s CLAUDE.md
• ~/.codex/config.toml — defaults for model, sandbox, profiles, etc. Override temporarily with -c key=value; switch profiles with -p
• Credentials live in ~/.codex/auth.json (created by codex login)

• 🔴 Just three: start with codex "<prompt>", run non-interactively with codex exec, set the safe scope with -s/-a
• 🟡 Once comfortable: /init, /review, /compact, codex resume, codex apply
• 🟢 Look up the rest with codex --help when you need it. Bookmark this page as a reference
• Confirm the latest spec with codex --help and codex update (Codex CLI moves fast)

📚 Related reading

• ✅GPT-5.5 Codex Review: Pro $100, 10× Promo, Claude Max (2026)
• ✅Claude Code Commands: Essential 5 + Hidden Gems (2026)
• ✅GPT-5.5 Codex hands-on: is the $100 Pro plan worth it? (2026)