How to Install BigQuery CLI: A Step-by-Step Tutorial

Google BigQuery is a powerful data warehouse solution, and managing it efficiently often requires using the BigQuery Command Line Interface (CLI). Installing the BigQuery CLI lets you run queries, manage datasets, and interact with your BigQuery resources directly from your terminal.

Prerequisites

A Google Cloud Platform (GCP) account with billing enabled.
Basic familiarity with terminal/command line usage.
An internet connection to download required tools.
Optional but recommended: Installed Google Cloud SDK (Official site).

Step 1: Install Google Cloud SDK

The gcloud CLI tool from the Google Cloud SDK includes the BigQuery CLI as part of its components. To get the BigQuery CLI, first install the Google Cloud SDK.

Visit the Google Cloud SDK installation page and download the installer for your operating system.
Follow the installation instructions carefully according to your platform (Windows, macOS, Linux).
After installation, open a new terminal window and initialize the SDK by running:

gcloud init

This command will guide you through logging into your Google account and selecting your default project.

Step 2: Install the BigQuery CLI component

Google Cloud SDK includes multiple components. To ensure BigQuery CLI is installed, run:

gcloud components install bq

This will install the BigQuery command-line tool if it isn’t already present.

Step 3: Verify BigQuery CLI Installation

Check that the bq tool is installed and accessible by running:

bq --version

You should see version info for the BigQuery CLI, confirming the installation.

Step 4: Configure Authentication

To operate the CLI, authenticate with your Google account and setup permissions.

Run the following command and follow the OAuth prompts:

gcloud auth login

This opens a browser window where you sign in with your Google credentials.

Optionally, set your default project using:

gcloud config set project YOUR_PROJECT_ID

Replace YOUR_PROJECT_ID with your actual GCP project ID.

Step 5: Using the BigQuery CLI

Now that the BigQuery CLI is installed and configured, you can start running commands. Here are some basics:

List datasets in your project: bq ls
Query data (replace DATASET.TABLE and QUERY):

bq query --use_legacy_sql=false 'SELECT * FROM DATASET.TABLE LIMIT 10'

Create a new dataset:

bq mk mydataset

Troubleshooting Tips

If commands like bq are not found, make sure your PATH environment variable includes the Google Cloud SDK binaries. Restart the terminal after installation.
Ensure you have sufficient permissions on your GCP project to run BigQuery commands.
If authentication issues arise, re-run gcloud auth login to refresh credentials.
Check the official Google Cloud documentation for updates or SDK changes: BigQuery CLI Docs (Official site).

Additional Resources

For more in-depth examples and troubleshooting, visit our related tutorial on how to install Snowflake CLI, which covers another popular cloud-based data warehousing tool CLI installation.

Summary Checklist

Download and install Google Cloud SDK
Run gcloud init to initialize and set default project
Install BigQuery CLI component with gcloud components install bq
Authenticate with gcloud auth login
Verify installation with bq --version
Start managing BigQuery resources via CLI commands

Installing BigQuery CLI streamlines your cloud data workflows by enabling direct terminal control over your datasets and queries. Follow these steps to get started quickly and efficiently.