Identifiers

These generators produce identifiers. Sortable formats use a timestamp for ordering and a random portion for uniqueness.

uuid#

RFC 9562 UUIDs. Version 4 is the default. Version 7 is time-sortable. Version 1 uses a timestamp and a random node.

mint uuid [--v7 | --v1 | --nil] [--upper] [--no-dashes]

Flag	Effect
`--v1`	UUID version 1
`--v4`	UUID version 4, the default
`--v7`	UUID version 7
`--nil`	All-zero UUID, zero entropy
`--no-dashes`	Remove the hyphens
`--upper`	Uppercase output
`--lower`	Lowercase output

Version 4 carries 122 random bits. Version 7 carries a 48-bit timestamp plus 74 random bits. Version 1 reports 61 bits.

$ mint uuid
33c6e3de-6cb2-4075-b21c-1547149ccbde

$ mint uuid --v7
01a15481-e41d-707a-8cac-7a82e7033404

ulid#

A ULID is a 48-bit timestamp plus 80 random bits in Crockford base32. It is 26 characters and lexicographically sortable.

mint ulid [--lower]

Flag	Effect
`--upper`	Uppercase output, the default
`--lower`	Lowercase output

$ mint ulid
01M5A83SA8V2AVWX3ERYQP203Z

$ mint ulid --lower
01m5a83sa8v2avwx3eryqp203z

ksuid#

A KSUID is a 4-byte timestamp plus 16 random bytes, encoded as base62 by default.

mint ksuid [--format base62|hex]

Flag	Effect
`--format <base62\|hex>`	Output encoding. Default `base62`

$ mint ksuid
3KutDiHAePr0eHd58l7eRGX5Xz8

$ mint ksuid --format hex

nanoid#

A compact URL-safe identifier. The default is 21 characters from a 64-symbol alphabet.

mint nanoid [--size 21] [--alphabet <chars>]

Flag	Effect
`--size <n>`	Output length, default 21
`--length <n>`	Alias for `--size`
`--alphabet <chars>`	Custom alphabet
`-b, --bytes <n>`	Request entropy
`--bits <n>`	Request entropy in bits
`--upper`	Uppercase output
`--lower`	Lowercase output

$ mint nanoid --size 12
gkP2vci-kG7f

cuid#

A cuid2-style identifier: a truncated SHA-512 digest over a timestamp, a process counter, a random fingerprint and fresh random bits. The first character is always a letter.

mint cuid [--length 24]

Flag	Effect
`-l, --length <n>`	Length from 2 to 64, default 24
`--size <n>`	Alias for `--length`
`-b, --bytes <n>`	Request entropy
`--bits <n>`	Request entropy in bits

$ mint cuid
kp8qb9ezi7kgy3vh1rikwcwj

uid#

A short URL-safe identifier. With --sortable, an 8-character base36 timestamp is prefixed.

mint uid [--length 16] [--sortable]

Flag	Effect
`-l, --length <n>`	Total length, default 16; sortable IDs need at least 9
`--size <n>`	Alias for `--length`
`--sortable`	Prefix a base36 timestamp
`--alphabet <chars>`	Custom alphabet
`-b, --bytes <n>`	Request entropy
`--bits <n>`	Request entropy in bits

$ mint uid
EAD7G27zu_vCzh70

objectid#

A MongoDB-style 12-byte ObjectId: a 4-byte timestamp, 5 process bytes and a 3-byte counter. It prints as 24 hex characters.

mint objectid [--upper]

Flag	Effect
`--upper`	Uppercase output
`--lower`	Lowercase output

$ mint objectid
6ad6255bf92a00a9f6d94591

The CLI reports 64 bits of entropy for an ObjectId because part of the value is a timestamp and a counter.

snowflake#

A Twitter-style 64-bit snowflake: timestamp, worker id and sequence.

mint snowflake [--worker 0-1023]

Flag	Effect
`--worker <0-1023>`	Worker id. A random worker is used when omitted

$ mint snowflake
1561743907776617365

$ mint snowflake --worker 7

The reported entropy is 22 bits because only the worker and the process's random starting state are secret.

typeid#

A type prefix, an underscore and a UUIDv7 encoded in Crockford base32. The result is lowercase and sortable within the type.

mint typeid [<type>] [--type user]

Argument / flag	Effect
positional `<type>`	Prefix, takes precedence
`--type <name>`	Prefix, default `id`

The type must start with a lowercase letter and contain only lowercase letters and digits. Maximum length is 63.

$ mint typeid user
user_06gn90fe35re7d4xhyhhqd9vzr