I Built a CLI That Helps You Understand Any Codebase

Docify — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 17:05:52 +0000

I built a CLI that turns your codebase into documentation

Ever opened an unfamiliar project and spent way too much time figuring out its structure, architecture, routes, models, and services?

I built Autodocs to make that easier.

It's an open-source CLI that analyzes your codebase and generates structured Markdown documentation based on the actual source code.

Analyze your project

npx @autodocify/autodocs analyze .

This analyzes your project and generates documentation for its architecture and structure.

Or just explain it

npx @autodocify/autodocs explain .

This gives you a quick explanation of the codebase without having to dig through every file yourself.

Requires Node.js 20+.

Autodocs is part of Docify: https://docify.site/

It's still actively evolving, so I'd love to hear from developers who try it on real projects.

Try it, break it, and let me know what you'd want to see next.

I built Autodocs because understanding a new codebase shouldn't take hours

Docify — Sat, 26 Sep 2026 21:48:21 +0000

Ever cloned a project and spent forever jumping between routes, models, services, and folders just trying to understand how everything connects?

That's why I built Autodocs an open-source CLI that analyzes your actual codebase and generates Markdown documentation for its structure and architecture.

It can also explain an entire project or a single file, making it easier to understand unfamiliar code.

Requirements: Node.js version 20 or above.

Try it

Analyze your entire codebase

npx @autodocify/autodocs analyze .

Generate documentation and understand the architecture, structure, and relationships inside your project.

Explain the project

npx @autodocify/autodocs explain .

Get a quick, readable explanation of what the project does and how it's structured.

Or explain just one file

Don't want to analyze everything? Point Autodocs directly at a file:

npx @autodocify/autodocs explain src/services/payment.ts

Useful when you've just opened an unfamiliar service, controller, model, or other source file and want to quickly understand what it does and how it fits into the codebase.

Or install it

npm i @autodocify/autodocs

The idea

Your Code → Analyze → Understand → Document

No complicated setup. Just point Autodocs at your code and see what it finds.

I'm building this as part of Docify, along with free tools for developers and everyday use.

🌐 Check out Docify

Autodocs is still evolving, and I'd love to see how it performs against more real-world codebases.

Give it a try, break it, and tell me what you'd want it to do next.

Feedback, bug reports, feature ideas, and contributions are all welcome!

DEV Community: Docify