Claude Worktree (cwt)

There are a million tools for AI coding right now. Some wrap agents in Docker containers, others proxy every shell command you type, and some try to reinvent your entire IDE.

cwt is a simple tool built on a simple premise: Git worktrees are the best way to isolate AI coding sessions, but they are annoying to manage manually.

The goal of this tool is to be as unimposing as possible. We don't want to change how you work, we just want to make the "setup" part faster.

When you use cwt, you are just running a TUI (Terminal User Interface) to manage folders.

1. It's just Git: Under the hood, we are just creating standard Git worktrees.
2. Native Environment: When you enter a session, cwt suspends itself and launches a native instance of claude (or your preferred shell) directly in that directory.
3. Zero Overhead: We don't wrap the process. We don't intercept your commands. We don't run a background daemon. Your scripts, your aliases, and your workflow remain exactly the same.

• Fast Management: Create, switch, and delete worktrees instantly.
• Safety Net: cwt checks for unmerged changes before you delete a session, so you don't accidentally lose work.
• Auto-Setup: Symlinks your .env and node_modules out of the box. If you need a more advanced setup, use .cwt/setup

gem install claude-worktree

Or via Homebrew Tap:

brew tap benngarcia/tap
brew install cwt

By default, cwt will:

1. Symlink .env from your root to the worktree.
2. Symlink node_modules from your root to the worktree.

If you want to change this behavior (e.g., to run npm ci instead of symlinking, or to copy a different config file), simply create an executable script at .cwt/setup.

mkdir .cwt
touch .cwt/setup
chmod +x .cwt/setup

If this file exists, cwt will skip the default symlinks and execute your script inside the new worktree instead.

Example .cwt/setup:

#!/bin/bash
# $CWT_ROOT points to your repo root

# Copy .env so we can modify it safely in this session
cp "$CWT_ROOT/.env" .

# Install dependencies freshly (cleaner than symlinking)
npm ci

# Print a welcome message
echo "Ready to rock!"

By default, new worktrees branch off of HEAD. To always branch from a specific starting point (e.g., main), set the CWT_START_POINT environment variable:

export CWT_START_POINT=main

Run cwt in the root of any Git repository.

• Built in Ruby using ratatui-ruby for the UI.
• Uses a simple thread pool for git operations so the UI doesn't freeze.
• Uses Bundler.with_unbundled_env to ensure your session runs in a clean environment, not one polluted by this tool's dependencies.

Bug reports and pull requests are welcome on GitHub at https://github.com/bucket-robotics/claude-worktree.

MIT