nav-cli

nav-cli is a keyboard-first filesystem navigator for developers. Nav greatly improves the experience of navigating filesystems. It gives you a clean terminal UI for browsing directories, opening files, and copying your current working directory when you want to stay put.

• NPM: nav-cli
• GitHub: nav-cli
• Product Hunt: nav-cli

✨ Features

• Cross-platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux in any shell.
• Fast directory browsing: Use arrow keys to move and Enter to browse deeper.
• Editor picker: Open files in VS Code, IntelliJ, or Notepad without hidden defaults.
• Open current directory: Press Ctrl + O to open the current folder in a supported editor.
• Stay here flow: Press Ctrl + Y to copy a ready-to-run cd command for the current directory.
• Instant filtering: Type at any time to narrow the current folder.
• Clean terminal UI: Slash-prefixed directories, plain files, and lightweight keyboard hints.

📦 Installation

npm i -g nav-cli

🛠️ Requirements

• Node.js (latest LTS recommended)
• Editor Support: VS Code, IntelliJ, or Notepad for file opening features

🚀 Usage

After installing globally via npm, run:

nav

You can also jump into saved entry modes:

nav h
nav f

From there you can:

• Open Highlighted Target: Press Ctrl + O to open the selected directory or file in your editor of choice.
• Stay Here: Copy a ready-to-run cd command for the current directory with Ctrl + Y.
• Manage The Highlighted Target: Press Tab to act on the selected item, including opening it or saving directories as home/favorites.
• Back Directory: Use the left arrow to move to the previous directory.
• Directory Navigation: Press Enter on a directory to browse into it.
• File Opening: Press Enter on a file and choose which editor to open it with.
• Search: Type at any time to filter the current folder.

If you run nav h without a saved home directory or nav f without saved favorites, nav falls back to your current directory and shows setup guidance in the interface.

Hotkeys

• Tab: Open actions for the highlighted target.
• Ctrl + o: Open the highlighted target in a supported editor.
• Ctrl + y: Stay here and copy a cd command for the current directory.
• Left Arrow: Go back to the previous directory.
• Enter: Browse into a directory or open a file with an editor picker.
• Arrow Keys: Move through the list.
• Escape: Exit the application.