MQTT TUI
A fast and lightweight terminal user interface for subscribing to MQTT topics and publishing messages from the command line.
What is MQTT TUI?
mqttui is a terminal-based MQTT client designed for quick and efficient interaction with MQTT brokers. It provides an interactive TUI for subscribing to topics with real-time updates, as well as command-line sub-commands for publishing messages, logging to stdout, reading single payloads, and cleaning retained topics. It solves the problem of needing a fast, resource-friendly alternative to bulkier GUI or CLI MQTT tools.
Developers and IoT enthusiasts who need to monitor, debug, or publish MQTT messages directly from the terminal, especially those working in headless environments or preferring command-line workflows.
Developers choose mqttui for its speed and ease of use, offering a lightweight, command-line-first approach without the overhead of feature-rich but slower alternatives. It prioritizes quick interaction and minimal resource consumption compared to tools like MQTT-Explorer or HiveMQ CLI.
Overview
Subscribe to a MQTT Topic or publish something quickly from the terminal
Use Cases
Best For
- Quickly monitoring MQTT topics with real-time updates in a terminal interface.
- Publishing MQTT messages from the command line, including support for stdin, retain flags, and QoS settings.
- Logging MQTT messages to stdout in a structured, readable format for debugging or analysis.
- Fetching the current payload of a specific topic for use in scripts and automation.
- Interactively or programmatically cleaning retained messages from topics.
- Working in resource-constrained environments where lightweight, fast MQTT tools are preferred.
Not Ideal For
- Projects requiring graphical data visualization or complex filtering beyond terminal logs
- Teams needing advanced MQTT broker management features like bridging or cluster monitoring
- Environments where cross-platform GUI tools are essential for non-technical users
Pros & Cons
Pros
Provides a real-time, navigable interface for subscribing to topics with live updates, as shown in the TUI screenshot and command examples for easy monitoring.
Supports publishing with retain flags, QoS settings, and stdin integration, allowing automation via pipes or files, demonstrated in the publish examples.
Formats MQTT messages to stdout with timestamps and metadata in a readable format, ideal for debugging pipelines, as illustrated in the log command output.
Enables setting default brokers via environment variables like MQTTUI_BROKER, reducing repetitive command arguments and streamlining workflow.
Cons
Lacks features found in bulkier alternatives like HiveMQ CLI, such as extensive plugin support or advanced broker diagnostics, as admitted in the history section.
Prebuilt binaries target glibc systems; users on musl-based systems like Alpine may need to compile from source, adding setup complexity.
Being terminal-only, it doesn't offer graphical plots or charts, which might be necessary for detailed data analysis in IoT projects.
Open Source Alternative To
MQTT TUI is an open-source alternative to the following products:
mosquitto_sub is a command-line client included with Mosquitto for subscribing to topics and receiving messages from an MQTT broker.
mqtt-cli is a command-line interface tool for interacting with MQTT brokers, enabling users to publish messages, subscribe to topics, and perform other MQTT operations from the terminal.
mosquitto_pub is a command-line client included with Mosquitto for publishing messages to an MQTT broker.
MQTT-Explorer is a graphical desktop application for exploring and debugging MQTT brokers, providing a user-friendly interface to monitor topics, publish messages, and visualize message flows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Projects
MQTTXA Powerful and All-in-One MQTT 5.0 client toolbox for Desktop, CLI and WebSocket.
MQTT CLIMQTT CLI is a useful command line interface for connecting various MQTT clients supporting MQTT 5.0 and 3.1.1
hivemq-mqtt-web-clientA websockets based MQTT Client for your browser.
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