Broot vs RTFM
Broot
dystroy.orgRTFM
github.comSide by side
| Figure | Broot | RTFM |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Terminal File Managers | 8.6 (#2) | 8.2 (#13) |
| Spec score · File managers | 8.3 (#12) | 8.6 (#6) |
| Archive support | No | Yes |
| Dual-pane layout | Yes | Yes |
| File operations | Move, copy, remove, and mkdir operations are built in, and users can add shortcuts. | It supports bulk file operations, pattern-based bulk rename, optional trash with restore, and undo for common operations. |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| License | The repository is released under the MIT License, with permission to use, copy, modify, publish, distribute, sublicense, and sell the software subject to the license conditions. | The repository identifies the license as Unlicense and describes the software as public domain. |
| Linux support | Yes | Yes |
| macOS support | Yes | Yes |
| Preview pane | Yes | Yes |
| Purpose | Broot is a way to navigate directories, find files, and launch commands. | RTFM is a feature-rich terminal file manager written in pure Ruby. |
| Support | The maker provides contact by email and invites users to chat through Miaou. | The maker invites bug reports and feature requests through the GitHub issues page and code contributions through pull requests. |
Plans
In their own words
Broot
Broot is a directory navigator for finding files, browsing folders, and launching commands. It runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows, with a dual-pane layout and synchronized preview panels. Directory overviews respect .gitignore and .ignore files. Search supports relevance ranking, regular expressions, file contents, and logical operators. Users can select a directory and return to the shell with that location active. Built-in file operations include move, copy, remove, and mkdir, and users can add shortcuts. Multiple panels support navigation and moving or copying items between locations, with customizable colors. Preview options include PDF and Office documents through transformers and high-resolution images through Kitty's graphics protocol in Kitty and WezTerm. A staging area lets users run commands across several files. For space analysis, sorting by size or date and whale-spotting mode help locate large items; sizes, dates, and file counts are calculated in the background. Git views show file states, branch, upstream divergence, and change statistics. Client-server mode uses Unix sockets and is available only on Unix-like systems. Broot is free under the MIT License, with source and precompiled binaries available.