PowerShell cmdlets that wrap the XKCD API (https://xkcd.com/json.html) to return details for the excellent webcomics @ https://xkcd.com. Modern Terminals can view the comic directly in the terminal (on Windows, Linux and MacOS where supported), or you can download the comic image or open the URL via your default browser.
Additionally, community XKCD comic explanations can be accessed from the https://www.explainxkcd.com/ wiki. Modern Terminals can also display these directly in the terminal, with limited formatting.
XKCD is a webcomic by Randall Munroe. Please respect the license of his work as described here: https://xkcd.com/license.html.
- The API provided by xkcd.com must be functional (for comics): https://xkcd.com/json.html
- The API provided by explainxkcd.com must be functional (for explanations): https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php
- PowerShell 3.0 or newer.
- A modern terminal, is required to view comics directly from the command-line. Supported terminals include Windows Terminal, VSCode, iTerm2 and Kitty, or any terminal that can render Sixel.
This module is published in the PowerShell Gallery as XKCD so if you have PowerShell 5+ or the Package Management modules, it can be installed by entering the following in a PowerShell window:
Install-Module -Name XKCDOr:
Install-PSResource -Name XKCDGet-XKCD
By default (and with no specified parameters) the function will return a PowerShell object with the details of the latest webcomic. For example:
Get-XKCDNum : 3304
Title : Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer
Date : 2026-09-28
Alt : "I did briefly visit Venus in August 2025, but I figured out the mistake on my own because it didn't have any moons."
Img : https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/jupiter_icy_moons_explorer.png
Html Img : <img src="https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/jupiter_icy_moons_explorer.png" alt=""I did briefly visit Venus in August 2025, but I figured out the mistake on my own because it didn't have
any moons."" title=""I did briefly visit Venus in August 2025, but I figured out the mistake on my own because it didn't have any moons."">
Html : <a href="https://xkcd.com/3304"><img src="https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/jupiter_icy_moons_explorer.png" alt=""I did briefly visit Venus in August 2025, but I figured out the mistake on my
own because it didn't have any moons."" title=""I did briefly visit Venus in August 2025, but I figured out the mistake on my own because it didn't have any
moons.""></a>
Note that by default this does not display all of the available properties. To see all of the object properties returned, use Get-XKCD | FL *.
Get-XKCD 1orGet-XKCD -num 1
Specify the number of specific comic/s you want to access via the -num parameter (this is a positional parameter so it doesn't need to be explicitly used).
Get-XKCD -RandomorGet-XKCD -Random -Min 1 -Max 10
Use the -Random switch to get a Random comic. Optionally specify Min and Max if you want to restrict the randomisation to a specific range of comic numbers.
Get-XKCD -Newest 5
Use the -Newest switch to get a specified number of the newest comics. Note this cannot be used with -Random (and vice versa).
Get-XKCD 1,5,10or10..20 | Get-XKCD
The number parameter accepts array input and pipeline input, so you can use either to return a specific selection in one hit.
Get-XKCD -DownloadorGet-XKCD 1337 -Download -Path C:\XKCD
Use the -Download switch to download the image/s of the returned comics. Optionally specify a path to download to, by default it uses the current directory. Note you can use -Download and -Path with any of the other parameters.
1..10 | % { Get-XKCD -Random -min 1 -max 100 | select num,img } | FT -AutoSize
This calls Get-XKCD 10 times in a foreach loop, returning the number and image URL of 10 random comics from the first 100 comics and presenting them as an autosized table.
Get-XKCD -Raw
By default, Get-XKCD adds a few extra properties to the comic object it returns: date (a [datetime] combining day/month/year, so results can be sorted or filtered by date), and html_img/html (ready-made HTML for embedding the comic, e.g. in an email or web page). Use -Raw to instead get the comic object exactly as returned by the xkcd API, without these additions.
Get-XKCD -ShoworShow-XKCD
Displays the comic's title, publish date, a hyperlink to it on xkcd.com, image, and alt text directly in the console instead of returning the comic object. The image is only rendered if your terminal supports the Sixel, Kitty, or iTerm2 inline image graphics protocol; otherwise you'll still see the rest. On Sixel terminals, a warning is shown first if the image is unusually large, since rendering it may take a noticeable while.
Show-XKCD -NextorGet-XKCD -Previous
Any comic returned or displayed by Get-XKCD or Show-XKCD -- the default latest comic, -Num, -Random, -Newest, or a previous -Next/-Previous -- is recorded as the one to page from next. Use -Next and -Previous to page through comics one at a time from wherever you left off, in either direction, without needing to know the comic number -- e.g. Show-XKCD -Next repeatedly steps forward one comic at a time, and -Previous steps back. This is tracked separately from the record Test-XKCD uses to report new comics, so paging backwards with -Previous doesn't affect that count. -Next returns/displays nothing once you reach the latest comic, and -Previous returns/displays nothing once you reach comic #1.
If you want to look up a comic with Get-XKCD without moving this marker -- e.g. checking a specific comic out of curiosity, without losing your place -- add the -NoStateUpdate parameter.
Show-XKCD 2000orGet-XKCD -Random | Show-XKCD
Show-XKCD accepts the same -Num parameter as Get-XKCD (and defaults to the latest comic if not specified), and can also take a comic object via the pipeline, e.g. from Get-XKCD or Find-XKCD.
Find-XKCD -Query 'Spider'
Searches comic titles for the specified text and returns any matches. This builds a local cache of the comic data on first use (and refreshes it automatically if it's out of date), so subsequent searches are fast. Add -FullSearch to match against the whole comic object (e.g. the alt text and transcript) instead of just the title.
Find-XKCD -Query 'Time' -And 'Machine'Num Date Title Img
--- ---- ----- ---
716 2010-03-19 Time Machine https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machine.png
1203 2013-04-24 Time Machines https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machines.png
3251 2026-05-27 Time Machine Conversation https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machine_conversation.png
Find-XKCD -Query 'Time' -And 'Machine' -FullSearchNum Date Title Img
--- ---- ----- ---
102 2006-05-15 Back to the Future https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/back_to_the_future.jpg
242 2007-03-30 The Difference https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/the_difference.png
337 2007-11-02 Post Office Showdown https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/post_office_showdown.png
350 2007-11-28 Network https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/network.png
423 2008-05-14 Finish Line https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/finish_line.png
567 2009-04-10 Urgent Mission https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/urgent_mission.png
591 2009-06-01 Troll Slayer https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/troll_slayer.png
683 2010-01-01 Science Montage https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/science_montage.png
716 2010-03-19 Time Machine https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machine.png
799 2010-09-29 Stephen Hawking https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/stephen_hawking.png
821 2010-11-19 Five-Minute Comics: Part 3 https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/five_minute_comics_part_3.png
856 2011-02-04 Trochee Fixation https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/trochee_fixation.png
887 2011-04-18 Future Timeline https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/future_timeline.png
1037 2012-04-01 Umwelt https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/reviews.png
1063 2012-06-01 Kill Hitler https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/kill_hitler.png
1203 2013-04-24 Time Machines https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machines.png
1227 2013-06-19 The Pace of Modern Life https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/the_pace_of_modern_life.png
1467 2014-12-31 Email https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/email.png
1619 2015-12-21 Watson Medical Algorithm https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/watson_medical_algorithm.png
1838 2017-05-17 Machine Learning https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/machine_learning.png
1891 2017-09-18 Obsolete Technology https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/obsolete_technology.png
3251 2026-05-27 Time Machine Conversation https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machine_conversation.png
'romance','math' | Find-XKCD | Group-Object query
Find-XKCD accepts multiple queries via the pipeline, and tags each result with a query NoteProperty so you can group or filter the combined results by search term.
Count Name Group
----- ---- -----
8 math {@{month=4; num=410; link=; year=2008; news=; safe_title=Math Paper; transcript=Lecture…
1 romance {@{month=7; num=919; link=; year=2011; news=; safe_title=Tween Bromance; transcript={{T…
Find-XKCD -Query 'Spider','Robot'orFind-XKCD -Query 'Time' -And 'Machine'
-Query also accepts an array directly, matching a comic if it contains ANY of the given terms -- e.g. Find-XKCD -Query 'Spider','Robot' returns comics with 'Spider' OR 'Robot' in the title, as one combined result set (as opposed to piping the terms in separately, which returns the same comics but as if you'd run two separate searches). Add -Or for further alternatives alongside -Query, -And for term(s) that must ALL also be present, or -Not for term(s) that must NONE be present -- e.g. Find-XKCD -Query 'Time' -And 'Machine' only matches comics containing both, and Find-XKCD -Query 'Spider' -Not 'Man' matches comics with 'Spider' but excludes any that also have 'Man' in the title. Each result's query property reflects exactly which term(s) it actually matched -- the -Query/-Or term(s), plus any -And terms (which are always part of the match) -- not just whatever was passed in, and never including -Not terms.
Find-XKCD -Query 'Time' -And 'Machine'Num Date Title Img
--- ---- ----- ---
716 2010-03-19 Time Machine https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machine.png
1203 2013-04-24 Time Machines https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machines.png
3251 2026-05-27 Time Machine Conversation https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/time_machine_conversation.png
Find-XKCD -Query 'Spider' | Get-XKCD -OpenorFind-XKCD -Query 'Spider' | Get-XKCD -Show
Find-XKCD's results can be piped straight into Get-XKCD, e.g. to open matching comics in your browser or display them in the console.
Update-XKCDCache
Creates the local comic cache used by Find-XKCD and Get-XKCDCache if it doesn't already exist, or refreshes it with any comics published since it was last updated. Find-XKCD refreshes this cache automatically, so you don't usually need to run this yourself -- unless you're using Get-XKCDCache, which only warns if the cache is out of date rather than refreshing it for you.
Get-XKCDCacheorGet-XKCDCache -Num 4,5,6
Returns comics straight from the local cache instead of querying the API for each one, so it's a much faster way to work with comics you've already cached. With no parameters it returns every cached comic; use -Num (or pipe comic numbers in) to return specific ones.
Get-XKCDCache | Where-Object year -eq 2010
Because Get-XKCDCache returns the whole local cache as objects, you can use Where-Object, Sort-Object, Group-Object etc. to query across every comic at once, e.g. to find every comic published in a given year.
Test-XKCD,Test-XKCD -QuietorTest-XKCD -Detailed
Checks whether any new comics have been published since you last viewed one with Show-XKCD or Get-XKCD -Show. By default it writes a friendly message to the console, e.g. 3 new XKCD comics available! The latest is #3290, published 26 August 2026.. Add -Quiet to instead return $true or $false, or -Detailed to get a PSCustomObject reporting how many new comics are available and the last viewed vs latest comic numbers. Test-XKCD only reads the local record of the most recently viewed comic -- it never updates it. Use -Num to instead test whether a specific numbered comic exists, e.g. Test-XKCD -Num 999999 returns $false.
if (Test-XKCD -Quiet) { Test-XKCD }If new comics are available, this will write a friendly message to the console stating how many new comics are available (if any) and the publish date of the latest one, where determinable.
Add this to your PowerShell profile.ps1 to have it run automatically when you open a new session and prompt you only when new comics are available -- or just run Test-XKCD -AddToProfile to add it for you, which creates the profile file (and its containing directory) if either doesn't already exist, and does nothing if the line is already there. Run Test-XKCD -RemoveFromProfile to remove it again.
Get-XKCDExplanationorGet-XKCDExplanation 2000
Gets the explanation of a comic from the explain xkcd wiki, using its MediaWiki API. Returns an object with the comic's number, title, explain xkcd URL, and its "Explanation" as plain text (the site's wiki markup is stripped out for readability) -- by default that's the only section retrieved. Add -Transcript and/or -Discussion (reader comments, from its explain xkcd talk page) to also retrieve those, or -Full for all three, e.g. (Get-XKCDExplanation 2000 -Transcript).Transcript. By default it returns the explanation of the latest comic; use -Num to request specific comics, which -- like Get-XKCD -- also accepts array and pipeline input. Get-XKCDExplanation also supports the same -Random (-Min/-Max), -Newest, and -Open/-Force parameters as Get-XKCD, e.g. Get-XKCDExplanation -Random -Min 1 -Max 100 or Get-XKCDExplanation -Newest 5.
Get-XKCDExplanation -ShoworShow-XKCDExplanation
Displays the comic's title, a hyperlink to its explain xkcd page, publish date, a hyperlink to it on xkcd.com, image, alt text, and explanation directly in the console instead of returning the explanation object. The image is only rendered if your terminal supports the Sixel, Kitty, or iTerm2 inline image graphics protocol; otherwise you'll still see the rest. Bold and italic text is rendered as such, any code formatting in the explanation (e.g. `print("hi")` -- including plain indented code samples, which explain xkcd also renders as code) is highlighted, and both external links and links to other explain xkcd pages are rendered as working hyperlinks on the linked words themselves, without printing the url.
Show-XKCDExplanation 2000orGet-XKCD -Random | Show-XKCDExplanation
Show-XKCDExplanation accepts the same -Num parameter as Get-XKCDExplanation (and defaults to the latest comic if not specified), and can also take a comic object via the pipeline, e.g. from Get-XKCD or Find-XKCD.
Get-XKCDExplanation -Show -Explanation,-Transcript,-Discussion, or-Full
Use -Explanation, -Transcript, and/or -Discussion to display exactly the section(s) you want -- e.g. -Transcript on its own displays just the transcript, not the explanation -- each under its own heading. Combine them to display more than one, or use -Full to always display all three. By default (no switches) just the explanation is shown. -Explanation, -Transcript, and -Discussion display text only, without fetching or showing the comic image -- the title and a link to the explanation are still shown; -Full always shows the comic image alongside every section. These switches (and the same ones on Show-XKCDExplanation, e.g. Show-XKCDExplanation 2000 -Full) also control which sections Get-XKCDExplanation fetches in the first place, so displaying (or returning) just one section skips the API calls for the others.
Get-XKCD -ExplainorGet-XKCD 2000 -Explain
Use the -Explain switch to display a comic's explanation via Show-XKCDExplanation instead of returning the comic object, without needing to call Show-XKCDExplanation separately.
Set-XKCDDefault -HighQualityorSet-XKCDDefault -Path C:\XKCD
Saves default preferences that other cmdlets in this module then use automatically, so you don't need to repeat the same parameters every time. Supported preferences: -HighQuality (Get-XKCD, Show-XKCD, Get-XKCDExplanation, Show-XKCDExplanation, Export-XKCDTerminalImage), -Path (Get-XKCD -Download, Export-XKCDTerminalImage), -FullSearch (Find-XKCD), -CachePath (Update-XKCDCache, Get-XKCDCache, Find-XKCD), -StatePath (Show-XKCD, Get-XKCD -Show/-Next/-Previous, Test-XKCD), and -Explanation, -Transcript, -Discussion and -Full (Get-XKCDExplanation, Show-XKCDExplanation). Only the preferences you specify are changed; explicitly passing a parameter on a cmdlet always overrides the saved default. Use -Reset to remove all saved preferences.
Get-XKCDDefault
Returns the default preferences currently saved by Set-XKCDDefault.
Export-XKCDTerminalImageorExport-XKCDTerminalImage 353 -Path C:\XKCD
Renders a comic using whichever inline graphics protocol your terminal supports and saves it to a file (as <num>.xkcdterm.json), alongside every field Get-XKCD returns for that comic, so it can be redisplayed instantly later -- via Import-XKCDTerminalImage or Show-XKCD -Path -- without needing network access or having to regenerate the image again (which for Sixel in particular can take a while for large images). Throws if the destination file already exists; use -Force to overwrite it.
Import-XKCDTerminalImage -Path .\353.xkcdterm.jsonorExport-XKCDTerminalImage 353 -PassThru | Import-XKCDTerminalImage
Writes just the saved image from a file created by Export-XKCDTerminalImage straight to the console, without fetching or re-rendering anything. Warns (but still displays it) if the saved image's graphics protocol doesn't match the one detected for your terminal.
Show-XKCD -Path .\353.xkcdterm.jsonorExport-XKCDTerminalImage 353 -PassThru | Show-XKCD
Displays the full comic -- title, image, and alt text -- from a file created by Export-XKCDTerminalImage instead of fetching it from the xkcd API, e.g. to view a comic offline. As with Import-XKCDTerminalImage, a warning is shown if the saved protocol doesn't match your terminal's.
Code contributions via issues and/or pull requests are welcomed, see CONTRIBUTING.md for further guidance.