Broot: An Interactive Directory Tree Navigator for the Terminal

TL;DR — Quick Summary

Broot shows a compact, interactive directory tree that adapts to your terminal. Navigate, search, filter, and manage files — a better way to explore filesystems.

Broot gives you an interactive bird’s-eye view of any directory tree. Instead of flooding your terminal with tree output, Broot shows a smart, compact overview that adapts to your screen — then lets you search, filter, and act on files instantly.

Installation

# macOS
brew install broot

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S broot

# Cargo
cargo install broot --locked

# First run — installs the 'br' shell function
broot
# Say yes to install the shell function

Usage

# Start browsing (use br, not broot, to enable cd)
br

# Start in a specific directory
br /var/log

# Type to fuzzy-search instantly
# Arrow keys to navigate
# Enter to open file
# Alt+Enter to cd into directory

Key Features

Key	Action
Type	Fuzzy search/filter
`↑ ↓`	Navigate tree
`Enter`	Open file
`Alt+Enter`	cd into directory
`s`	Toggle sizes
`d`	Toggle dates
`p`	Toggle permissions
`h`	Toggle hidden files
`ctrl+q`	Quit
`/`	Regex search
`c/`	Content search (grep)

Filtering

# In broot, just type to filter:
# Type "rs" to show only files containing "rs"
# Type ".json" to show only JSON files
# Type "e>1m" to show files larger than 1MB
# Type "d<1w" to show files modified in last week

Comparison

Feature	Broot	tree	lsd	exa/eza	Yazi
Interactive	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
Fuzzy search	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
File sizes	On-demand	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
cd integration	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
File preview	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
Adapt to screen	Yes	No	No	No	Yes
File operations	Yes	No	No	No	Yes

Summary

Broot shows adaptive, compact directory trees that fit your terminal
Instant fuzzy-search for navigating large codebases
cd integration via br shell function — faster than typing paths
Toggle sizes, dates, permissions, and hidden files
File operations, content search (grep), and preview built-in

Guide & Instructions

Estimated Time: 5m

Tools Needed:

Broot
Terminal

Install Broot

Install with brew install broot, cargo install broot, pacman -S broot, or download from dystroy.org/broot.

First run setup

Run broot once. It prompts to install the br shell function which enables cd integration.

Navigate

Run br to start. Type to search/filter. Arrow keys to navigate. Enter to open a file, alt+enter to cd.

Show sizes

Press s to toggle directory sizes. Useful for finding large directories.

File operations

Press alt+enter on a directory to cd, or use the command panel for copy, move, delete, and more.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Broot?

Broot is a terminal tool that shows a compact, navigable overview of a directory tree. It adapts the display to fit your terminal size by pruning branches, lets you search/filter instantly, and provides file operations — all from a keyboard-driven interface.

How is Broot different from tree?

tree dumps the entire directory tree as text. Broot is interactive — it shows a smart summary that fits your screen, lets you fuzzy-search, filter by pattern or size, navigate into directories, preview files, and perform operations like copy/move/delete.

Can Broot replace cd?

Yes, use br (the shell function) instead of broot. Navigate to a directory and press alt+enter to cd into it. Much faster than typing long paths.

Does Broot show file sizes?

Yes, press s to toggle size display. Broot shows directory sizes computed on-the-fly, making it easy to find space-heavy directories without running du.