GitUI
A fast terminal interface for working with git, with keyboard-only controls.
- Stars
- 22.6k
- Forks
- 795
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- Rust
- Last update
- 1 months ago
- Type
- App
What it is
GitUI is a terminal program that gives you a point-and-click style git interface without leaving the command line. It lets you review changes, stage or revert files, hunks and lines, commit, manage branches and stashes, and browse history. It is written in Rust and aims to stay responsive on large repositories.
- Review and stage only selected lines or hunks of a file before committing
- Save, pop, apply or drop stashes from a single screen
- Browse and search the commit log and view diffs of past commits
- Create, rename, delete or check out branches and push or fetch from remotes
Great for
- Developers who already work in a terminal and want a visual view of git changes
- People working in large repositories where other git GUIs become slow
- Users who want to stage individual hunks or lines without typing git commands
- Anyone on Linux, macOS or Windows who wants a keyboard-driven git tool
Not ideal for
- Users who need full git functionality: the README says it does not fully replace the git shell, and interactive rebase and git-lfs are not yet supported
- Teams relying on sparse checkouts, since the README lists no sparse repo support
- Users who need https credential helpers without manual configuration, as the README notes this must be set explicitly
- People who want a mouse-first graphical app
How to get it
- 1
Install with a package manager
You'll need: Rust/cargo 1.88 or newer if building from source
Install with Cargo (from README)
cargo install gitui --lockedInstall on Homebrew (macOS)
brew install gitui - 2
Run it
- Install gitui using one of the package manager commands or a release binary
- Open a terminal inside any git repository
- Run gitui
- Use the on-screen help to find keys for staging, committing and browsing
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Run gitui -l to write a diagnostic log file when troubleshooting
- Customize the color theme, since the README says it can be fully configured
- Use the stage line and hunk features for finer-grained commits
- Enable submodule support when working with repositories that contain submodules
Downloads
Strengths
- Keyboard-only control with context-based help shown on screen
- The README reports it handles very large repositories better than some alternatives in its own benchmark
- Available as a single binary on many platforms and package managers
Trade-offs
- The README describes the project as beta and says it may contain bugs and missing features
- Some features are incomplete, such as gpg signing shortcomings and missing interactive rebase
- Maintained as a spare-time project by its author, according to the README
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| gitui (this) | 22.6k | App | beginner | 1 months ago | Developers who already work in a terminal and want a visual view of git changes |
| lazygit | 83.6k | CLI | beginner | 6 days ago | Developers who already use git from the command line and want a faster overview of their repository |
| yazi | 43.2k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | People who already spend time in a terminal and want a faster way to browse folders |
| autocomplete | 25.2k | Other | intermediate | 1.5 years ago | macOS developers who use zsh, bash or fish and want suggestions for common CLIs |
| bash-it | 15.3k | Framework | intermediate | 10 days ago | People who use Bash as their daily terminal and want to customize it |
| gh-dash | 12.7k | CLI | intermediate | 10 days ago | Developers who spend most of their day in the terminal |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.