Clifm vs Newt
Clifm
github.comNewt
newt-fm.orgSide by side
| Figure | Clifm | Newt |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Terminal File Managers | 8.5 (#4) | 8.4 (#9) |
| Spec score · File managers | 8.1 (#17) | 8.9 (#1) |
| Archive support | Yes | Yes |
| Dual-pane layout | No | Yes |
| File operations | Features include bookmarks, search, file selection, tags, filters, previews, bulk renaming, archiving, trash, and file opening. | Users can view, copy, delete, move, edit, pack, or reveal files from the interface. |
| Integrations | The project documents fzf tab completion and a plugin that can display Git status before each prompt. | The page names S3, SFTP, SSH, Docker, Podman, Kubernetes exec, WSL, and custom transports. |
| License | The project is licensed under GPL version 2 or later. | Newt source code is available under the GNU GPL v3. |
| Linux support | Yes | Yes |
| macOS support | Yes | Yes |
| Preview pane | Yes | Yes |
| Remote file access | Yes | Yes |
| Windows support | No | Yes |
Plans
In their own words
Clifm
Clifm is an open-source file manager for people who prefer managing files through shell commands. It runs on the command line without a graphical or text user interface, so its workflow is based on commands rather than a conventional file-manager layout. File tools include bookmarks, search, selection, tags, filters, previews, bulk renaming, archiving, trash, and file opening. Shell features include tab completion with fzf integration, expansions, autosuggestions, syntax highlighting, aliases, and command history. Users can configure profiles, shortcuts, themes, prompts, custom commands, and plugins; a documented plugin can show Git status before each prompt. Clifm also supports remote file access and archives, but does not have a dual-pane view. It is listed for Android, Linux, and macOS, not Windows. Linux binary packages are available for most major distributions through the OpenSUSE Build System, and source installation instructions cover Linux and BSD. The project says it collects no data and makes no outside connections. Clifm is licensed under GPL version 2 or later and is free, with no paid plans stated.
Newt
Newt is a free, open-source file manager for Linux, macOS, and Windows. Its two-pane interface handles local and remote filesystems, connecting through SSH, containers, Kubernetes pods, and WSL distributions. Remote sessions can run file operations, searches, terminals, and mounts on the remote host. Users can view, copy, move, delete, or edit files, and pack or reveal them. ZIP, TAR, compressed TAR, and CPIO archives can be browsed as directories, including nested and encrypted archives; ISO 9660 and UDF images can be browsed without extraction. S3 filesystems can be mounted, with range reads for large images. Recursive filename and content searches stream results into a pane linked to the files. Common actions have direct key controls, with configurable bindings and mouse controls also available. The backend uses Rust, while the interface uses React and TypeScript and packaging uses Tauri. Source code is available under the GNU GPL v3. No free-tier limits are stated.