# rpk redpanda admin brokers decommission

> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/llms.txt). Component-specific: [streaming-full.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming-full.txt)

---
title: rpk redpanda admin brokers decommission
latest-redpanda-tag: v26.1.14
latest-console-tag: v3.10.0
latest-operator-version: v26.2.1
# EOL = End-of-Life (support lifecycle status)
page-is-nearing-eol: "false"
page-is-past-eol: "false"
page-eol-date: March 31, 2027
latest-connect-version: 4.104.0
docname: rpk/rpk-redpanda/rpk-redpanda-admin-brokers-decommission
page-component-name: streaming
page-version: "26.1"
page-component-version: "26.1"
page-component-title: Streaming
page-relative-src-path: rpk/rpk-redpanda/rpk-redpanda-admin-brokers-decommission.adoc
page-edit-url: https://github.com/redpanda-data/docs/edit/v/26.1/modules/reference/pages/rpk/rpk-redpanda/rpk-redpanda-admin-brokers-decommission.adoc
description: Decommission the given broker. Decommissioning a broker removes it from the cluster.
page-git-created-date: "2023-05-17"
page-git-modified-date: "2026-07-17"
support-status: supported
---

<!-- Source: https://docs.redpanda.com/streaming/26.1/reference/rpk/rpk-redpanda/rpk-redpanda-admin-brokers-decommission.md -->

Decommission the given broker.

Decommissioning a broker removes it from the cluster.

A decommission request is sent to every broker in the cluster, only the cluster leader handles the request.

For safety on v22.x clusters, this command will not run if the requested broker is in maintenance mode. As of v23.x, Redpanda supports decommissioning a node that is currently in maintenance mode. If you are on a v22.x cluster and need to bypass the maintenance mode check (perhaps your cluster is unreachable), use the `--skip-liveness-check` flag.

## [](#usage)Usage

```bash
rpk redpanda admin brokers decommission [BROKER ID] [flags]
```

## [](#flags)Flags

| Value | Type | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| --skip-liveness-check | bool | If enabled, rpk will issue the decommission request without checking if the broker is in maintenance mode. |

## [](#global-flags)Global flags

| Value | Type | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| --config | string | Redpanda or rpk config file; default search paths are ~/.config/rpk/rpk.yaml, $PWD/redpanda.yaml, and /etc/redpanda/redpanda.yaml. |
| -X, --config-opt | stringArray | Override rpk configuration settings; -X help for detail or -X list for terser detail. |
| --ignore-profile | bool | Ignore rpk.yaml and redpanda.yaml; use default settings. |
| --profile | string | rpk profile to use. |
| -v, --verbose | bool | Enable verbose logging. |