Flutter extension for Gemini CLI

You might be familiar with Gemini CLI, a command-line AI workflow tool that enables you to interact with Gemini AI models without leaving your development environment. (If you aren’t familiar with Gemini, you can learn more by working through the Hands on with Gemini codelab.)

AI agents are changing the way we build Flutter apps by assisting with tasks like feature prototyping, code reviews, as well as writing and running tests. To use an AI agent effectively, you need to provide it with context and access to tools to help it become a productive Flutter coding assistant. This is where the Flutter Extension for Gemini CLI comes in. Gemini CLI extensions allow you to build integrations with Gemini CLI and your tools, and the Flutter extension expands on these capabilities.

The Flutter Extension for Gemini CLI provides commands to accelerate app development, follows explicit rules to write high-quality code following Dart and Flutter best practices, and runs tools from the Dart and Flutter MCP server to directly access Dart and Flutter’s developer tools. You spend less time on setup and more time building high quality Flutter apps.

The following video showcases how to build multiplatform apps with Gemini CLI:

1. Install Gemini CLI 0.4.0 or later. You can do this with npm or brew, depending on your platform, preference, and system configuration.

2. Install the Flutter SDK, which includes the Dart SDK. If Flutter is already installed, make sure that you have the latest versions of Flutter and Dart by running flutter upgrade.

3. Install Git and make sure it’s available on your PATH.

Once the prerequisites are satisfied, install the Flutter extension for Gemini CLI by using one of the following commands:

1. To install the current version, run the following:

   gemini extensions install https://github.com/gemini-cli-extensions/flutter
   

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2. To install the current version and ensure that future updates are automatically installed, use the auto-upate tag:

   gemini extensions install https://github.com/gemini-cli-extensions/flutter.git --auto-update
   

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   After asking if you are sure you want to proceed, you will see a message that the Flutter extension is installed and enabled.

3. You can manage the extension with the following commands:

   • Update to the latest version:

     gemini extensions update flutter
     

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   • Uninstall the extension:

     gemini extensions uninstall flutter
     

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After installing the extension, these commands are available when you open a new Gemini CLI session:

• /create-app - Guides you through bootstrapping a new Flutter project with best practices.
• /create-package - Guides you through bootstrapping a new Dart package with best practices.
• /modify - Manages a structured modification session with automated planning.
• /commit - Automates pre-commit checks and generates a descriptive commit message.

You can create a new application using the /create-app command. This command bootstraps a brand-new, production-ready Flutter app. It goes beyond flutter create by asking for your app’s purpose, setting up recommended linter rules, and generating detailed DESIGN.md and IMPLEMENTATION.md files for your review before any code is written.

/create-app

The DESIGN.md file is a design document for the app; it specifies the problems that the app solves and provides technical details about how it will work. You can edit this file before you continue with the implementation steps, allowing you to guide Gemini to build the exact app that you’re looking for.

Once the design is ready, /create-app generates an IMPLEMENTATION.md file, a step-by-step implementation plan, so that it can iteratively work on feature implementation. It keeps a record of its progress, so you can pause and restart. By default, /create-app splits the plan up into 3–5 phases, where each phase is a logical stopping point. After each phase, Gemini will analyze and format the code, run tests, and commit the changes. It also updates this file after it completes a phase in the Journal section.

After you’ve set up your project, you’re ready to implement the features in your implementation plan using the generated IMPLEMENTATION.md file. Each feature is implemented separately, as outlined in this file. Once it finishes implementing a feature, the Flutter extension will mark it as complete.

Before moving to the next phase, the extension asks for your approval. You can enter the prompt "looks good" to start generating code.

To make changes to existing code, the /modify command initiates a guided development session. It asks for your goals, offers to create a new branch, and generates a MODIFICATION_PLAN.md design doc outlining the proposed modifications and a phased implementation plan.

/modify

The final step is to commit the changes using /commit. This command prepares your changes before committing them with Git. It automatically runs dart fix and dart format, runs the analyzer and tests, and then generates a descriptive commit message based on the changes for you to approve.

Every interactive chat session includes rules containing best practices for Flutter and Dart development. These rules ensure that Gemini writes high-quality Dart and Flutter code, interacts with MCP server tools correctly, and follows best practices such as creating unit tests, writing documentation, ensuring accessibility, and more.

The Dart and Flutter MCP server is automatically configured when you install the Flutter Extension for Gemini CLI. This allows Gemini CLI and other AI agents to perform common development tasks. For example:

• Analyze and fix errors in your project’s code.
• Introspect and interact with your running application (such as trigger a hot reload, get the selected widget, fetch runtime errors).
• Search pub.dev for the best package for your use case.
• Manage package dependencies in your pubspec.yaml file.
• Run tests and analyze the results.

As previously mentioned, this extension is in alpha. If you find a bug, please file an issue.

You also might want to check out the Gemini CLI extension repo.