FAQ

Is it really free?

Yes. Qikbar is MIT licensed with no paid tier, no telemetry and no account. AI features use your own provider and keys.

Does it work without React?

Yes. The core has no dependencies and works in any framework or none. @qikbar/qikbar/react is an optional thin wrapper.

Does it work with SSR?

Yes. createQikbar does nothing on the server. @qikbar/qikbar/react is marked "use client".

How do I open it from a button?

Add data-qikbar-open to any element, call bar.open(), or use <QikbarTrigger> in React.

Can I prefill the search?

bar.open({ query: 'invoices' }), or <button data-qikbar-open data-qikbar-query="invoices">.

Can I change the hotkey?

hotkey: 'mod+p', hotkey: ['mod+k', '/'], or hotkey: false.

How do I hide a command unless it’s relevant?

Use when: () => user.isAdmin to hide it conditionally, or searchOnly: true to show it only when the user searches.

Will AI cost me money?

Only if you configure a paid provider. You can use byok() so users bring their own key, browserAI() for Chrome’s free on-device model, or ollama() for local models.

Is my API key safe?

In the browser, no key is safe. Use createHandler on your server with proxy() on the client for production.

Can the AI do something destructive?

Only through the commands and tools you provide. Actions with style: 'destructive' and tools with confirm ask the user first. Turn off tool use entirely with ai: { provider, tools: false }.

How do I test commands?

Commands are data. Call command.run(fakeCtx) in a unit test, or open the bar in a DOM test environment (happy-dom or jsdom) and dispatch key events. The Qikbar repo has examples.

Can I use it in a browser extension or Electron?

Yes. It’s plain DOM code with no framework or Node APIs.

How do I contribute?

See CONTRIBUTING.md. Issues, extensions and themes are welcome.