PWT - Personal Worktree

A CLI for managing Git worktrees.

Git Worktrees · Zero Config

Installation

# bun
bun install -g pwt-cli

# npm
npm install -g pwt-cli

# pnpm
pnpm add -g pwt-cli

What is PWT?

Git worktrees let you check out multiple branches simultaneously in separate directories. Instead of stashing or committing work-in-progress to switch branches, each branch lives in its own folder.

PWT simplifies worktree management. Create, switch, and clean up worktrees with short commands instead of remembering long Git incantations.

Commands

pwt new <branch>      # Create a new worktree
pwt open <branch>     # Switch to an existing worktree
pwt close             # Close the current worktree
pwt ls                # List all worktrees

Setup

PWT requires a shell wrapper for automatic directory switching. Run the setup command to install it:

$ pwt setup
🔧 Shell wrapper setup for PWT

Install PWT wrapper in ~/.zshrc? [Y/n] Y
✓ Shell wrapper added to ~/.zshrc
  Run 'source ~/.zshrc' to activate

🎉 Setup complete!

The shell wrapper enables automatic cd into new worktrees and automatic dependency installation via ni (if installed).

Manual Shell Wrapper

For manual installation or unsupported shells, add this function to your shell config (~/.zshrc):

# PWT (Personal Worktree) shell wrapper
pwt() {
  PWT_WRAPPER=1 command pwtx "$@" | while IFS= read -r line; do
    if [[ $line == CD:* ]]; then
      cd "${line#CD:}"
    else
      echo "$line"
    fi
  done
}

Example Workflow

Work on multiple features simultaneously without stashing or committing incomplete work. Each worktree is a separate directory with its own branch checked out.

# Quick shorthand - auto-detects new vs open
$ pwt feature/auth
Creating worktree for feature/auth...
✓ Worktree created at ~/code/myproject--feature-auth

# Running again opens existing worktree
$ pwt feature/auth
✓ Now in ~/code/myproject--feature-auth

# List all worktrees
$ pwt ls
┌─────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┬────────┐
│ Branch          │ Path                           │ Status │
├─────────────────┼────────────────────────────────┼────────┤
│ main            │ ~/code/myproject               │ active │
│ feature/auth    │ ~/code/myproject--feature-auth │        │
└─────────────────┴────────────────────────────────┴────────┘

# Switch to another worktree
$ pwt open main
✓ Now in ~/code/myproject

# Clean up when done
$ pwt close
✓ Worktree removed

FAQ

What are Git worktrees?

Git worktrees allow you to have multiple working directories attached to the same repository, each checked out to a different branch. This means you can work on multiple branches simultaneously without stashing or committing incomplete work.

What are the requirements?

PWT requires Git 2.5+ (for worktree support). It works on macOS, Linux, and Windows.

How is this different from git checkout?

With git checkout, you can only have one branch active at a time. With worktrees, each branch lives in its own directory, so you can have multiple branches open in different terminal windows or editors simultaneously.

License

MIT