twenty/packages/create-twenty-app/README.md

Create Twenty App

Create Twenty App is the official scaffolding CLI for building apps on top of Twenty CRM. It sets up a ready‑to‑run project that works seamlessly with the twenty-sdk.

• Zero‑config project bootstrap
• Preconfigured scripts for auth, dev mode (watch & sync), uninstall, and function management
• Strong TypeScript support and typed client generation

Documentation

See Twenty application documentation https://docs.twenty.com/developers/extend/capabilities/apps

Prerequisites

• Node.js 24+ (recommended) and Yarn 4
• Docker (for the local Twenty dev server)

Quick start

# Scaffold a new app — the CLI will offer to start a local Twenty server
npx create-twenty-app@latest my-twenty-app
cd my-twenty-app

# The scaffolder can automatically:
# 1. Start a local Twenty server (Docker)
# 2. Open the browser to log in (tim@apple.dev / tim@apple.dev)
# 3. Authenticate your app via OAuth

# Or do it manually:
yarn twenty server start          # Start local Twenty server
yarn twenty remote add --local    # Authenticate via OAuth

# Start dev mode: watches, builds, and syncs local changes to your workspace
yarn twenty dev

# Watch your application's function logs
yarn twenty logs

# Execute a function with a JSON payload
yarn twenty exec -n my-function -p '{"key": "value"}'

# Execute the pre-install function
yarn twenty exec --preInstall

# Execute the post-install function
yarn twenty exec --postInstall

# Build the app for distribution
yarn twenty build

# Publish the app to npm or directly to a Twenty server
yarn twenty publish

# Uninstall the application from the current workspace
yarn twenty uninstall

Scaffolding modes

Control which example files are included when creating a new app:

Flag	Behavior
-e, --exhaustive	(default) Creates all example files
-m, --minimal	Creates only core files (application-config.ts and default-role.ts)

# Default: all examples included
npx create-twenty-app@latest my-app

# Minimal: only core files
npx create-twenty-app@latest my-app -m

What gets scaffolded

Core files (always created):

• application-config.ts — Application metadata configuration
• roles/default-role.ts — Default role for logic functions
• logic-functions/pre-install.ts — Pre-install logic function (runs before app installation)
• logic-functions/post-install.ts — Post-install logic function (runs after app installation)
• TypeScript configuration, Oxlint, package.json, .gitignore
• A prewired twenty script that delegates to the twenty CLI from twenty-sdk

Example files (controlled by scaffolding mode):

• objects/example-object.ts — Example custom object with a text field
• fields/example-field.ts — Example standalone field extending the example object
• logic-functions/hello-world.ts — Example logic function with HTTP trigger
• front-components/hello-world.tsx — Example front component
• views/example-view.ts — Example saved view for the example object
• navigation-menu-items/example-navigation-menu-item.ts — Example sidebar navigation link
• skills/example-skill.ts — Example AI agent skill definition
• __tests__/app-install.integration-test.ts — Integration test that builds, installs, and verifies the app (includes vitest.config.ts, tsconfig.spec.json, and a setup file)

Local server

The scaffolder can start a local Twenty dev server for you (all-in-one Docker image with PostgreSQL, Redis, server, and worker). You can also manage it manually:

yarn twenty server start     # Start (pulls image if needed)
yarn twenty server status    # Check if it's healthy
yarn twenty server logs      # Stream logs
yarn twenty server stop      # Stop (data is preserved)
yarn twenty server reset     # Wipe all data and start fresh

The server is pre-seeded with a workspace and user (tim@apple.dev / tim@apple.dev).

How to use a local Twenty instance

If you're already running a local Twenty instance, you can connect to it instead of using Docker. Pass the port your local server is listening on (default: 3000):

npx create-twenty-app@latest my-app --port 3000

Next steps

• Run yarn twenty help to see all available commands.
• Use yarn twenty remote add --local to authenticate with your Twenty workspace via OAuth.
• Explore the generated project and add your first entity with yarn twenty add (logic functions, front components, objects, roles, views, navigation menu items, skills).
• Use yarn twenty dev while you iterate — it watches, builds, and syncs changes to your workspace in real time.
• CoreApiClient (for workspace data via /graphql) is auto-generated by yarn twenty dev. MetadataApiClient (for workspace configuration and file uploads via /metadata) ships pre-built with the SDK. Both are available via import { CoreApiClient, MetadataApiClient } from 'twenty-sdk/clients'.

Build and publish your application

Once your app is ready, build and publish it using the CLI:

# Build the app (output goes to .twenty/output/)
yarn twenty build

# Build and create a tarball (.tgz) for distribution
yarn twenty build --tarball

# Publish to npm (requires npm login)
yarn twenty publish

# Publish with a dist-tag (e.g. beta, next)
yarn twenty publish --tag beta

# Deploy directly to a Twenty server (builds, uploads, and installs in one step)
yarn twenty deploy

Publish to the Twenty marketplace

You can also contribute your application to the curated marketplace:

git clone https://github.com/twentyhq/twenty.git
cd twenty
git checkout -b feature/my-awesome-app

• Copy your app folder into twenty/packages/twenty-apps.
• Commit your changes and open a pull request on https://github.com/twentyhq/twenty

Our team reviews contributions for quality, security, and reusability before merging.

Troubleshooting

• Server not starting: check Docker is running (docker info), then try yarn twenty server logs.
• Auth not working: make sure you're logged in to Twenty in the browser first, then run yarn twenty remote add --local.
• Types not generated: ensure yarn twenty dev is running — it auto-generates the typed client.

Contributing

• See our GitHub
• Join our Discord