# Aliases

Aliases let you create shortcut names for existing CLI commands. Any CLI command can be aliased, including Atmos native commands like `terraform apply` or `describe stacks`, as well as [custom commands](/cli/configuration/commands).

_\[Video: Atmos Aliases]_

## Configuration

CLI command aliases are configured in the `aliases` section:

**File:** `atmos.yaml`

```yaml
# CLI command aliases
aliases:
  # Aliases for Atmos native commands
  tf: terraform
  tp: terraform plan
  up: terraform apply
  down: terraform destroy
  ds: describe stacks
  dc: describe component
  # Aliases for Atmos custom commands
  ls: list stacks
  lc: list components
```

## Using Aliases

Execute an alias as you would any Atmos native or custom command:

```shell
> atmos ls

plat-ue2-dev
plat-ue2-prod
plat-ue2-staging
plat-uw2-dev
plat-uw2-prod
plat-uw2-staging
```

## Aliases in Help

The aliases configured in the `aliases` section automatically appear in Atmos help, shown as `alias for '<command>'`.

## Argument Support

An alias automatically supports all command line arguments and flags that the aliased command accepts.

For example:

| Alias Command | Equivalent To |
|---------------|---------------|
| `atmos up <component> -s <stack>` | `atmos terraform apply <component> -s <stack>` |
| `atmos dc <component> -s <stack>` | `atmos describe component <component> -s <stack>` |

## Common Aliases

Here are some commonly used aliases:

```yaml
aliases:
  # Terraform shortcuts
  tf: terraform
  tp: terraform plan
  up: terraform apply
  down: terraform destroy

  # Describe shortcuts
  ds: describe stacks
  dc: describe component
  da: describe affected

  # Workflow shortcuts
  wf: workflow

  # List shortcuts (requires custom commands)
  ls: list stacks
  lc: list components
```

## Custom command aliases

A [custom command](/cli/configuration/commands/command#aliases) can also declare its own `aliases:` directly, native and in-process (the same command object, just with extra names):

```yaml
commands:
  - name: deploy
    aliases: [dep, d]
    description: Deploy a component to a stack
    steps: [...]
```

This is a different mechanism from the top-level `aliases:` section on this page — the top-level map redirects an alias to a **possibly-unrelated** command by re-executing Atmos as a subprocess, which is what it takes to alias one arbitrary command to another. A custom command's own `aliases:` names the same command, so it needs none of that indirection. Use the top-level `aliases:` section to shorten built-in or already-defined commands (`tf: terraform`); use a custom command's own `aliases:` when you're defining the command yourself.

## See Also

- [CLI Configuration](/cli/configuration) — Overview of CLI configuration
- [Custom Commands](/cli/configuration/commands) — Create custom Atmos commands