README.md
A modern, full-featured terminal text editor, with zero configuration. Familiar keybindings, mouse support, and IDE-level features — no learning curve required.
Official Website · Documentation · Discord · Contributing
Quick Install: curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sinelaw/fresh/refs/heads/master/scripts/install.sh | sh
Fresh brings the intuitive UX of VS Code and Sublime Text to the terminal. Standard keybindings, full mouse support, menus, and a command palette — everything works the way you'd expect, right out of the box. No modes, no memorizing shortcuts.
Built for real-world performance: Fresh handles multi-gigabyte files with negligible memory overhead and delivers consistently low-latency input, regardless of file size.
One shortcut to find files, run commands, switch buffers, and jump to any line.
Start each task in its own worktree, hop between them with an arrow key, and leave the rest running.
Select and edit multiple occurrences simultaneously — the same workflow you know from graphical editors.
Browse and apply color themes instantly. Full settings UI and interactive keybinding editor included.
See more feature demos: Editing (search & replace, block selection, sort lines, ...) · Productivity (file explorer, split view, integrated terminal, ...) · Themes
| Category | Features |
|---|---|
| File Management | open/save/new/close, file explorer, tabs, auto-revert, git file finder |
| Editing | undo/redo, multi-cursor, block selection, smart indent, comments, clipboard |
| Search & Replace | incremental search, find in selection, query replace, git grep |
| Navigation | go to line/bracket, word movement, position history, bookmarks, error navigation |
| Views & Layout | split panes, line numbers, line wrap, backgrounds, markdown preview |
| Language Server (LSP) | go to definition, references, hover, code actions, rename, diagnostics, autocompletion |
| Productivity | command palette, menu bar, keyboard macros, git log, diagnostics panel |
| Multitasking (Orchestrator) | one workspace per git worktree, terminals and long-running commands per workspace, coding agents (claude, codex, opencode, aider) with resumable sessions, dock switcher, remote/SSH workspaces |
| Extensibility | TypeScript plugins (sandboxed QuickJS), color highlighter, TODO highlighter, merge conflicts, path complete, keymaps |
| Internationalization | Multiple language support (see locales/), plugin translation system |
Quick install (autodetect best method):
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sinelaw/fresh/refs/heads/master/scripts/install.sh | sh
Or, pick your preferred method:
| Platform | Method |
|---|---|
| macOS | brew |
| Bazzite/Bluefin/Aurora Linux | brew |
| Windows | winget |
| Arch Linux | AUR |
| Debian/Ubuntu | .deb |
| Fedora/RHEL | .rpm, Terra |
| OpenSUSE | zypper, .rpm |
| FreeBSD | ports / pkg |
| Gentoo | GURU |
| Linux (any distro) | AppImage, Flatpak |
| All platforms | Pre-built binaries |
| npm | npm / npx |
| Rust users (Fast) | cargo-binstall |
| Rust users | crates.io |
| Nix | Nix flakes |
| Developers | From source |
On macOS and some linux distros (Bazzite/Bluefin/Aurora):
Note: On macOS, see macOS Terminal Tips for recommended terminal configuration.
brew install fresh-editor
winget install fresh-editor
Alternatively, Windows users can use npm.
Binary package (recommended, faster install):
git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/fresh-editor-bin.git
cd fresh-editor-bin
makepkg --syncdeps --install
Build from source:
git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/fresh-editor.git
cd fresh-editor
makepkg --syncdeps --install
Using an AUR helper (such as yay or paru):
# Binary package (recommended, faster install)
yay -S fresh-editor-bin
# Or build from source
yay -S fresh-editor
Download and install the latest release:
curl -sL $(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/sinelaw/fresh/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url.*_$(dpkg --print-architecture)\.deb" | cut -d '"' -f 4) -o fresh-editor.deb && sudo dpkg -i fresh-editor.deb
Or download the .deb file manually from the releases page.
Download and install the latest release:
curl -sL $(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/sinelaw/fresh/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url.*\.$(uname -m)\.rpm" | cut -d '"' -f 4) -o fresh-editor.rpm && sudo rpm -U fresh-editor.rpm
Or download the .rpm file manually from the releases page.
zypper install fresh-editor
Enable the repository as read in Project:GURU/Information for End Users then emerge the package:
emerge --ask app-editors/fresh
Download the .AppImage file from the releases page and run:
chmod +x fresh-editor-VERSION-x86_64.AppImage
./fresh-editor-VERSION-x86_64.AppImage
For faster startup (recommended): Extract the AppImage instead of running it directly. This avoids the FUSE mount overhead on each launch (~10x faster):
./fresh-editor-VERSION-x86_64.AppImage --appimage-extract
mkdir -p ~/.local/share/fresh-editor ~/.local/bin
mv squashfs-root/* ~/.local/share/fresh-editor/
ln -sf ~/.local/share/fresh-editor/usr/bin/fresh ~/.local/bin/fresh
Ensure ~/.local/bin is in your PATH. Available for x86_64 and aarch64 architectures.
Download the .flatpak bundle from the releases page and install:
flatpak install --user fresh-editor-VERSION-x86_64.flatpak
flatpak run io.github.sinelaw.fresh
See flatpak/README.md for building from source.
Download the latest release for your platform from the releases page.
mise use github:sinelaw/fresh
npm install -g @fresh-editor/fresh-editor
Or try it without installing:
npx @fresh-editor/fresh-editor
To install the binary directly without compiling (much faster than crates.io):
First, install cargo-binstall if you haven't already
cargo install cargo-binstall
Then install fresh
cargo binstall fresh-editor
Run without installing:
nix run github:sinelaw/fresh
Or install to your profile:
nix profile add github:sinelaw/fresh
cargo install --locked fresh-editor
git clone https://github.com/sinelaw/fresh.git
cd fresh
cargo build --release
./target/release/fresh [file]
See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.
Fresh checks for new versions daily to notify you of available upgrades. Alongside this, it sends basic anonymous telemetry (version, OS/architecture, terminal type) to help understand usage patterns. No personal data or file contents are collected.
To disable both upgrade checks and telemetry, use --no-upgrade-check or set check_for_updates: false in your config.
Copyright (c) Noam Lewis
This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v2.0 (GPL-2.0).