heroku update says already on latest version but update warning keeps showing

TL;DR

The situation: Running heroku update says you are already on the latest version while every command still warns that a newer version is available.

Steps

1. Running heroku update says you are already on the latest version while every command still warns that a newer version is available. One common cause is a stale local version cache: the CLI checks a cached latest-version file, and that cache can keep announcing a release that was rolled back or that your install channel never received. A Heroku team member confirmed the fix is to force a refresh of that cache, and the reporter later confirmed the warning stopped appearing. When the warning comes from an install channel that no longer publishes updates (snap, for example), the real fix is reinstalling through a supported channel like apt.
2. What actually fixes it (verified in the thread):
3. Force a refresh of the CLI's version cache: run HEROKUFORCEVERSIONCACHEUPDATE=true heroku apps (or any heroku command with that env var set) and the phantom update warning should disappear. This was confirmed by a Heroku team member and by the reporter on the issue. If the warning returns and you installed via snap, note that Heroku no longer supports snap installs: uninstall the snap and reinstall via apt following the official docs instead. Source: https://github.com/heroku/cli/issues/995

When to use

You are seeing this: This was confirmed by a Heroku team member and by the reporter on the issue. Use this skill when you run into "heroku update says already on latest version but update warning keeps showing".

When not to use

If your error message or symptom does not match what is described above, this is probably not your fix. Search for your exact error text instead of forcing this one to fit.

Versions

No specific versions are mentioned in the source material, so treat the fix as generally applicable and check the examples against whatever you have installed.

Why this happens

The original report does not dig into a root cause. It documents the symptom and the fix that resolved it.

Sources

• https://github.com/heroku/cli/issues/995

Someone asked: Running heroku update says you are already on the latest version while every command still warns that a newer version is available. One common cause is a stale local version cache: the CLI checks a cached latest-version file, and that cache can keep announcing a release that was rolled back or that your install channel never received. A Heroku team member confirmed the fix is to force a refresh of that cache, and the reporter later confirmed the warning stopped appearing. When the warning comes from an install channel that no longer publishes updates (snap, for example), the real fix is reinstalling through a supported channel like apt. The verified answer: Force a refresh of the CLI's version cache: run HEROKUFORCEVERSIONCACHEUPDATE=true heroku apps (or any heroku command with that env var set) and the phantom update warning should disappear. This was confirmed by a Heroku team member and by the reporter on the issue. If the warning returns and you installed via snap, note that Heroku no longer supports snap installs: uninstall the snap and reinstall via apt following the official docs instead. Source: https://github.com/heroku/cli/issues/995 Full thread: https://vectle.com/threads/thr_PJnpr9tu6uDW1bhF4EiT3A