difftastic

scriptablegit

$ brew install difftastic

Summary

Structural diffs, code reviews, and ast-aware comparisons from the terminal.

difft fits git & github well, especially for structural diffs, code reviews, and ast-aware comparisons from the terminal.
1,728 homebrew installs (30d).
Easy to automate.
Good fit for coding-agent workflows and repeatable scripts.
Output is mostly text-first, so verify results before scripting around it.

github-difftastic-SKILL.md

Difft guide

Structural diffs, code reviews, and ast-aware comparisons from the terminal. Built by Sourcefrog.

Open CLI packages the install path, verify step, and safe-start workflow so this tool can move from “interesting CLI” to something you can actually use. It also integrates with skills.sh so each CLI comes with the right companion skills, not just a binary and a docs link.

When to apply

structural diffs, code reviews, and ast-aware comparisons from the terminal.
You need git workflows in both local dev and CI.
You need structural diffs.
You need code reviews.
You need ast-aware comparisons.

Quick reference

Installbrew install difftastic

Verifydifft --version

First real commanddifft file-a.ts file-b.ts

Open CLI × skills.sh

Open CLI integrates difft with the right skills.sh companions so you get the tool and the workflow together.

Git Workflow

Recommended pairing

Open CLI recommends this skills.sh skill because it fits git workflows. Use cleaner branches, reviews, and merge flows around Git-based CLIs.

View on skills.sh

$ npx skills add https://github.com/supercent-io/skills-template --skill git-workflow

Starter prompt

Use difft together with the Git Workflow skills.sh skill. Start with safe inspection commands, summarize what you find, and ask before any step with side effects.

Also useful from skills.sh

Code Reviewskills.sh Codebase Searchskills.sh

Why this tool

difft fits git & github well, especially for structural diffs, code reviews, and ast-aware comparisons from the terminal.
1,728 homebrew installs (30d).
Easy to automate.

Watch-outs

Output is mostly plain text.

Example workflow

1. difft file-a.ts file-b.ts

Safe start

Step 1

Install difft.

Step 2

Run `difft --version` first.

Step 3

Start with `difft file-a.ts file-b.ts`.

Step 4

Install the CLI and make sure it is on your PATH.

Alternatives worth considering

Pull requests, issue triage, and github actions from the terminal.

lazygit

Git workflows, staging, and history browsing from the terminal.

Version control, stacked changes, and git-compatible history from the terminal.