shrubby

Local CLI for managing git worktrees while working across branches.

Use it to create, list, remove, copy, open, and clean up git worktrees from a terminal UI or scriptable commands.

By default, worktrees are created next to the project group:

/parent/.worktrees/<project>/<branch-slug>

For example:

/Volumes/indrazm/github/.worktrees/review-this/feature--auth

pnpm install
pnpm dev

Install the CLI command locally:

./install.sh

Run it from inside the git repository you want to manage.

Inside the list screen, press / to search, c to copy a selected worktree path, and d to delete a selected non-current worktree after confirmation. Dirty and external worktrees require a second confirmation. The current checkout and protected default branch, usually main, cannot be deleted.

Command usage:

shrubby --help
shrubby list
shrubby list --json
shrubby create feature/auth
shrubby create feature/auth --fetch
shrubby path feature/auth
shrubby copy feature/auth
shrubby open feature/auth
shrubby remove feature/auth
shrubby remove feature/auth --yes
shrubby remove feature/auth --yes --force-dirty
shrubby cleanup --dry-run --merged --stale
shrubby cleanup --merged --stale --yes
shrubby shell-init zsh

Targets for path, copy, open, and remove resolve by exact branch, exact path, then unique path basename. Human output is the default; supported commands also accept --json for scripts. remove prompts with y/N in an interactive terminal and requires --yes when stdin is not interactive. Dirty worktrees require --force-dirty.

Copy uses available clipboard targets for the current environment: pbcopy on macOS, wl-copy/xclip/xsel on Linux desktops, clip.exe/powershell.exe on Windows or WSL, and tmux set-buffer inside tmux.

Fast shell workflow:

eval "$(shrubby shell-init zsh)"
swd feature/auth
sopen feature/auth

open uses --editor, editorCommand config, SHRUBBY_EDITOR, VISUAL, EDITOR, then code.

Optional config can live in .shrubby.json in a repo or ~/.config/shrubby/config.json. Repo config overrides user config.

{
  "worktreeRoot": "../.worktrees/my-project",
  "protectedBranches": ["main", "release"],
  "defaultBaseRef": "main",
  "copyOnCreate": true,
  "fetchBeforeCreate": false,
  "editorCommand": "code -n"
}

Relative worktreeRoot values resolve from the repository root. ~ expands to your home directory.