Use apt directly vs apt-*?

Question

I just found that there is a apt command that you can use directly:

 $sudo apt 
 apt 1.0.1ubuntu2 for amd64 compiled on Apr 10 2014 13:03:39
 Usage: apt [options] command

 CLI for apt.
 Basic commands: 
  list - list packages based on package names
  search - search in package descriptions
  show - show package details
  update - update list of available packages
  install - install packages
  remove  - remove packages
  upgrade - upgrade the system by installing/upgrading packages
  full-upgrade - upgrade the system by removing/installing/upgrading packages
  edit-sources - edit the source information file

With similar syntax to apt-get. And it offers some coloring in the CLI interface. So I want to know if there are some major difference between apt and apt-* commands? Why do people seem to post commands as apt-get install and apt-cache search when they don' t need the additional options apt-* commands provide, while apt is shorter with all the similar functionality with additional coloring, and in my opinion, better output format? Is it only habit?

I see in the manual pages that apt is for end-users while other low-level commands are for scripts. So why is everyone posting those low-level commands instead of the more user-friendly high level command?

score 18 · Accepted Answer · edited Apr 09 '15 at 15:30

18

The reason not many people recommend the simpler apt tool is because it's new. It wasn't in Ubuntu until the 14.04 release a week ago.

For most interactive uses it is equivalent but easier to use and looks nicer.

edited Apr 09 '15 at 15:30

0xF2

3,155

answered Apr 27 '14 at 06:19

ssmy

1,931

score 3 · Answer 2 · edited Jun 12 '20 at 14:37

I think this apt official blog can explain everything.

APT 1.0 was released on the 1. April 2014! The first APT version was announced on the 1. April exactly 16 years ago.

The big news for this version is that we included a new “apt” binary that combines the most commonly used commands from apt-get and apt-cache. The commands are the same as their apt-get/apt-cache counterparts but with slightly different configuration options.

Use apt directly vs apt-*?

2 Answers2