gh-select

A fast gh CLI extension to fuzzy-search your GitHub repositories, browse any repo's file tree without cloning, and partial (sparse) clone only the folders you want. Built in Go with a self-contained terminal UI — no fzf or jq required.

gh select turns finding, previewing, and cloning GitHub repos into a single keyboard-driven flow in your terminal. Type to filter your repositories from cache (instant), open a repo's codebase tree to preview files via the GitHub API, mark the folders you actually need, and clone just those with a sparse git checkout.

• Fuzzy repository search — always-on search box filters your repos as you type, served instantly from cache with background refresh.
• Browse before you clone — navigate any repository's file tree and preview file contents straight from the GitHub API, no download needed.
• Partial / sparse clone — select individual folders and clone only those with git clone --filter=blob:none --sparse, saving bandwidth and disk on large monorepos.
• Zero extra dependencies — the TUI and GitHub API client are built in; no fzf, no jq.
• One precompiled binary — install as a gh extension or a standalone binary; nothing to compile.
• Quick actions — clone, copy repo name or URL, and open in browser without leaving the terminal.

gh extension install remcostoeten/gh-select
gh extension upgrade gh-select   # later, to update

Precompiled binaries are published per release, so there is nothing to build. gh downloads the binary matching your OS/arch and runs it as gh select.

Every release also ships plain executables. Grab the one for your platform from the Releases page, then:

chmod +x gh-select_*        # macOS/Linux
mv gh-select_* /usr/local/bin/gh-select
gh-select                   # run directly

It still uses gh for authentication under the hood, so gh auth login must have been run once.

go install github.com/remcostoeten/gh-select@latest

Installs the latest tagged version to $(go env GOPATH)/bin as gh-select.

• GitHub CLI — provides authentication (gh auth login)
• git — for cloning

No fzf or jq needed; the TUI and API client are built in.

gh select

1. Find a repo — type to fuzzy-filter your repositories. The list loads instantly from cache and refreshes in the background.
2. Choose an action:
   • Clone repository (full)
   • Browse & partial clone — open the codebase tree
   • Copy repository name / URL
   • Open in browser

Inside the tree browser you can navigate the entire repository without cloning it:

• ↑/↓ move · → open a folder or preview a file · ← go up
• / filter the current directory · space mark a folder (multi-select)
• c clone — performs a partial clone (--filter=blob:none --sparse) that downloads only the folders you selected

gh select -n, --no-cache   # bypass cache, fetch fresh data
gh select -r, --refresh    # refresh cache and exit
gh select -v, --version    # show version
gh select -h, --help       # show help
gh select doctor           # check tools + authentication

GH_SELECT_CACHE_TTL (seconds) controls cache freshness (default 1800).

• Cached list renders instantly (stale-while-revalidate; refreshed in the background).
• Repository fetch uses a trimmed GraphQL query (~1.4s/page) instead of the expensive default-branch field.
• Codebase preview is a single tree API call; file contents load on demand.

MIT