Clifm vs nnn
Clifm
github.comnnn
github.comSide by side
| Figure | Clifm | nnn |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Terminal File Managers | 8.5 (#4) | 8.5 (#7) |
| Spec score · File Manager Software | 8.0 (#41) | 8.7 (#6) |
| Spec score · File managers | 8.1 (#17) | 8.7 (#4) |
| Archive support | Yes | Yes |
| Dual-pane layout | No | No |
| File operations | Features include bookmarks, search, file selection, tags, filters, previews, bulk renaming, archiving, trash, and file opening. | It can analyze disk usage, batch rename, launch apps, pick files, and copy, move, delete, archive, and link selections. |
| Installation | The README says Linux binary packages are available for most major distributions through the OpenSUSE Build System and gives source installation instructions for Linux and BSD. | The project offers a statically linked binary and packages, and can also be compiled from source. |
| Integrations | The project documents fzf tab completion and a plugin that can display Git status before each prompt. | Remote mounts can use sshfs or rclone, and nnn supports desktop openers, shell integration, and FreeDesktop-compliant trash utilities. |
| Intended users | The README presents Clifm as a command line file manager for people who prefer shell commands to a traditional terminal file manager interface. | The project describes nnn as unobtrusive and designed for smart workflows, and documents beginner and power-user quickstarts. |
| License | The project is licensed under GPL version 2 or later. | The GitHub repository identifies the project license as BSD-2-Clause. |
| Linux support | Yes | Yes |
| macOS support | Yes | Yes |
| Platforms | The project lists Linux, Termux on Android, BSD variants, macOS, Solaris/Illumos, Haiku, and Cygwin/MinGW as supported environments. | The project says nnn runs on Linux, macOS, Android through Termux, Cygwin, and WSL, among other environments. |
| Preview pane | Yes | Yes |
| Privacy | The project says Clifm collects zero data and makes no connection to the outside world. | The project describes nnn as privacy-aware, with no unconfirmed user data collection. |
| Product | Clifm is a shell-like, text-based terminal file manager that runs on the command line. | nnn is a full-featured terminal file manager designed to be small, fast, and nearly zero-configuration. |
| Remote file access | Yes | 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.
nnn
nnn is a terminal file manager designed to be small, fast and nearly zero-configuration. It handles copying, moving, deleting, archiving and linking selections, alongside batch renaming, disk-usage analysis, app launching and file picking. Navigation includes contexts, sessions, bookmarks and directory marks, while search options include instant filtering, fuzzy matching, regular expressions and string filters. It provides directory and text previews, and can create, list, extract and mount archives. Plugins can add functions such as live previews, disk mounting, file comparison and uploads. Remote mounts require optional sshfs or rclone dependencies. The project says nnn typically needs less than 3.5 MB of resident memory; it has no configuration file and uses defaults, with optional environment-variable settings. It is free and open source under the BSD-2-Clause license, and is listed for Android, Linux, macOS and Windows. The project offers packages and a statically linked binary, or users can compile it from source.