ghgrab - "grab anything you want"

A simple, pretty terminal tool that lets you browse and download files from GitHub, GitLab, Codeberg, Gitea, and Forgejo without leaving your CLI.

ghgrab provides a streamlined command-line interface for cherry-picking specific files or folders from supported Git forges, powered by the Rust tokio and ratatui ecosystem. Focused on speed and ease of use, it offers a beautiful TUI that lets you grab exactly what you need without the wait times of a full git clone.

Why use ghgrab?

• No more clone-and-delete: Grab exactly what you need, when you need it.
• Easy on the eyes: A clean terminal interface that makes browsing feel smooth.
• Works where you are: Installs quickly via NPM, Cargo, or PIP.
• Find things fast: Quickly search and navigate through any repo's folders with fuzzy search.
• Repo discovery built in: Type a repo keyword from home to search GitHub repos, filter them, then open instantly.
• File Preview: Preview source code and text files directly in the TUI.
• Handles the big stuff: Built-in support for GitHub LFS (Large File Storage).
• Batch mode: Select a bunch of files and folders to download them all at once.
• Release downloads: Grab GitHub release artifacts with OS/architecture-aware selection.

Supported platforms

• Repository browsing and file or folder downloads: GitHub, GitLab, Codeberg, Gitea, Forgejo, and compatible self-hosted instances.
• TUI quick repository search from the home screen: GitHub only.
• release / rel downloads: GitHub only.
• GitHub LFS resolution: GitHub only.

Installation

NPM

npm install -g @ghgrab/ghgrab

Cargo

cargo install ghgrab

pipx (Recommended for Python)

pipx install ghgrab

Nix

To have the latest commit:

nix run github:abhixdd/ghgrab

To have a specific tagged version:

nix run "github:abhixdd/ghgrab/<tag>"

Aur (Arch linux)

yay -S ghgrab-bin   

Quick Start

Just type ghgrab to start browsing:

ghgrab

Or, if you already have a link, just paste it in:

# Browse a repository
ghgrab https://github.com/rust-lang/rust

# Browse GitLab
ghgrab https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab

# Browse Codeberg / Forgejo / Gitea
ghgrab https://codeberg.org/forgejo/forgejo

# Download to current directory directly
ghgrab https://github.com/rust-lang/rust --cwd --no-folder

You can also type a repository keyword on the home screen (for example ratatui) and press Enter to open repository search mode.

CLI Flags

Release Downloads

You can also download GitHub release assets directly with the user-facing release command or its short alias rel.

The release command is currently GitHub-only even though normal repository browsing and file downloads support multiple forges.

Basic examples:

# Download the best matching artifact for your OS and architecture
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat

# Extract an archive after download
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract

# Download a specific release tag
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --tag v0.25.0

# Match a specific asset by regex
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --asset-regex "x86_64.*windows.*zip"

# Download into a custom directory
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract --out ./tmp/bat

# Install the selected file or extracted binary into a target directory
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract --bin-path ~/.local/bin

Basic release flags:

# Pick a release tag explicitly
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --tag v0.25.0

# Match assets with a regex
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --asset-regex "x86_64.*linux.*tar.gz"

# Extract an archive after download
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract

# Install the selected file or extracted binary into a target directory
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract --bin-path ~/.local/bin

# Download to a custom directory
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract --out ./tmp/bat

# Force Windows x64 asset selection
ghgrab rel BurntSushi/ripgrep --os windows --arch amd64

# Allow prereleases when selecting the latest release
ghgrab rel starship/starship --prerelease

# Download a specific ripgrep release for Windows x64
ghgrab rel BurntSushi/ripgrep --tag 15.1.0 --os windows --arch amd64

# Use a regex to choose one exact asset
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --asset-regex "x86_64.*windows.*zip"

# Install an extracted binary into your local bin directory
ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --extract --bin-path ~/.local/bin

# Install under a custom name
ghgrab rel abhixdd/ghgrab --bin-path ~/bin --bin-name gg

# Use the long command form
ghgrab release sharkdp/bat

Environment Variables

ghgrab also accepts GitHub tokens from environment variables:

• GHGRAB_GITHUB_TOKEN
• GITHUB_TOKEN

Runtime token auto mode

If you already use GitHub CLI, you can avoid manual token copy/paste:

ghgrab rel sharkdp/bat --token auto
ghgrab agent tree https://github.com/rust-lang/rust --token gh

• Uses gh auth token at runtime only.
• The discovered token is only sent to github.com, never to GitLab, Codeberg, or other forges.
• Never prints the raw token.
• If multiple token lines are returned, ghgrab reports this and uses one token.

Agent Mode

For scripts, agents, and other non-interactive workflows, ghgrab includes a machine-friendly agent command that prints a stable JSON envelope with api_version, ok, command, and either data or error.

# Fetch the repository tree as JSON
ghgrab agent tree https://github.com/rust-lang/rust

# GitLab also works in agent mode for tree and download operations
ghgrab agent tree https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab

# Fetch the repository tree with an explicit token for scripts or agents
ghgrab agent tree https://github.com/rust-lang/rust --token YOUR_TOKEN

# Download specific paths from a repository
ghgrab agent download https://github.com/rust-lang/rust src/tools README.md --out ./tmp

# Download an explicit subtree
ghgrab agent download https://github.com/rust-lang/rust --subtree src/tools --out ./tmp

# Download the entire repository
ghgrab agent download https://github.com/rust-lang/rust --repo --out ./tmp

# Download into the current working directory without creating a repo folder
ghgrab agent download https://github.com/rust-lang/rust src/tools --cwd --no-folder

You can pass --token <TOKEN> to agent tree and agent download when an external tool, CI job, or coding agent should authenticate without relying on saved local config.

MCP (Model Context Protocol) Server

ghgrab can act as an MCP server, letting AI coding assistants (Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code, Windsurf) search repos, browse trees, and download files/releases directly.

ghgrab mcp --install

See the MCP server docs for manual configuration and the full list of exposed tools.

Configuration

To manage your settings:

# Set your token
ghgrab config set token YOUR_TOKEN

# Set a custom download folder
ghgrab config set path "/your/custom/path"

# View your current settings (token is masked)
ghgrab config list

# Remove settings
ghgrab config unset token
ghgrab config unset path

Theming

ghgrab supports custom color themes via a TOML config file.

• Linux/macOS: ~/.config/ghgrab/theme.toml
• Windows: %APPDATA%\ghgrab\theme.toml

Any missing key falls back to the default Tokyo Night theme. Colors must use #RRGGBB hex format.

See examples/theme.toml for a complete example.

Keyboard Shortcuts (How to move around)

We've kept it pretty standard, but here's a quick cheat sheet:

Repository Search Mode Shortcuts

Join the community

If you find a bug, have an idea for a cool new feature, or just want to help out, we'd love to hear from you! Check out our Contributing Guide to see how you can get involved.

License

Distributed under the MIT License. It's open, free, and yours to play with. See LICENSE for the fine print.