winget install --id=shahriyardx.brightctrl -e brightctrl adjusts the brightness of external monitors over DDC/CI from the terminal — both an interactive TUI and a scriptable CLI. A single native binary with no runtime dependencies. On Windows it uses the Monitor Configuration API.
Adjust the brightness of your external monitors right from the terminal.
A single native binary — no ddcutil, no Node.js, no runtime deps. Linux
talks DDC/CI directly over i2c; Windows uses the Monitor Configuration API.
npx brightctrl # run without installing
npm i -g brightctrl # or install globally
yay -S brightctrl
# Linux
curl -L https://github.com/shahriyardx/brightctrl/releases/latest/download/brightctrl -o brightctrl
chmod +x brightctrl
sudo mv brightctrl /usr/local/bin/
# Scoop
scoop bucket add brightctrl https://github.com/shahriyardx/brightctrl
scoop install brightctrl
# WinGet
winget install shahriyardx.brightctrl
Or download brightctrl.exe from the latest release and run it from a terminal.
cargo install --git https://github.com/shahriyardx/brightctrl
DDC/CI needs the i2c kernel module and group access (one-time):
sudo modprobe i2c-dev
echo i2c-dev | sudo tee /etc/modules-load.d/i2c.conf # load on boot
sudo usermod -aG i2c $USER # then log out and back in
On Windows no setup is needed — just enable DDC/CI in your monitor's OSD menu
if list comes up empty. Monitor names come from EDID; if Windows has no driver
for a display it may fall back to a generic name.
Run brightctrl with no arguments.
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
↑ ↓ / k j | Pick a monitor |
← → / h l | Brightness down / up |
1–9 | Select monitor by number |
/ | Type an exact value (0-100) |
p | Precise mode — 1% steps instead of 5% |
s | Sync — adjust all monitors at once |
m | Set brightness to 0 |
r | Refresh monitor list |
? | Help |
q | Quit |
brightctrl list # detected monitors with ids, aliases, brightness
brightctrl get # print brightness (0-100)
brightctrl set <0-100> # set brightness
brightctrl alias # name a monitor for easier targeting
brightctrl alias # remove the alias
`` is a monitor number (1), its id (GSM7707), or an alias (left).
Config and aliases live at ~/.config/brightctrl/config.toml.