zshellNative macOS terminal workspace
Your terminal, with the whole project around it.
A native macOS workspace built around the terminal — projects, persistent sessions, files, and git in one window.
Free, no telemetry, no subscription.
- Free & source-available
- Ghostty or Alacritty inside
- No account, no telemetry
PROJECTS
- ▸ zshell
- ▸ zisla
- ▸ dotfiles
AGENTS
- claude
- codex
~/code/zshell · main*
❯ git status
on main, 3 files changed
❯ make run
building zshell…
✓ build succeeded in 4.2s
❯
GIT · FILES · INFO
Changes (3)
- M main.swift
- + pane.swift
- − legacy.swift
100% native
An AppKit app through and through — fast to launch, quiet on battery, no Electron.
2 GPU backends
New panes run Ghostty or Alacritty, both GPU-accelerated, both with images.
0 telemetry
No analytics, no account, no subscription. The update check is the only call home.
19 shortcuts
Every action has a key. Switch, split, commit, ship — hands never leave the keyboard.
Features
Everything around the shell, nothing in its way.
The terminal stays the center of gravity; the panels exist so you never have to leave it.
01
projects & sessions
Structure for long-running work, not just the last command you ran.
- Projects, not windowseach repo is a project in the sidebar — Cmd+1–9 switches, Cmd+N adds one
- Sessions per projectopen as many terminal tabs as a project needs with Cmd+T, each with its own directory and scrollback
- Split panesCmd+D splits right, Cmd+Shift+D splits down, Opt+Cmd+arrows moves focus between panes
- Browser panesopen a site or local server beside its terminal, with native tabs, splits, and restored URLs
- Restored on relaunchquit and reopen: projects, tabs, and pane layout come back, each shell fresh beneath its previous scrollback
- Command paletteCmd+P to jump to any project or session, or run any command
02
review & ship
See what changed and get it committed without leaving the window.
- Git panelstage, unstage, discard, and commit — amend included — beside the shell that made the changes
- Inline diffsreview unified or split diffs in place, and edit live unstaged changes directly
- Branch workswitch or create a branch, fetch, fast-forward pull, push, publish a new upstream, or stash
- Files panelbrowse the working tree, open a file, edit it with syntax highlighting, Cmd+S to save
- Session infothe processes running under a session and the TCP ports they are listening on
03
the terminal itself
Your shell, your config, your fonts — hosted, not replaced.
- Your shell, unchangedzsh, fish, or bash exactly as you configured it — prompt, aliases, dotfiles and all
- Two native backendschoose Ghostty or Alacritty for new panes; both are GPU-accelerated and support images
- Agent-awarelet coding agents delegate work and coordinate across Zshell panes while you follow status, notifications, and approvals
- Desktop notificationsa bell in an unfocused session, or a notification escape from a long-running command, reaches Notification Center
- Progress reportsOSC 9;4 progress shows as a slim bar above the terminal, error and pause states included
- Fontsships with JetBrains Mono and Nerd Font symbols; swap in any monospace family and size
- Quiet updatesnew builds check in with Sparkle and install in the background, on their own
How it works
Open. Work. Ship.
One window for the whole loop, from cloning to pushing.
01 — Open
Add a project
Cmd+N points Zshell at a repo. It lands in the sidebar, next to everything else you’re juggling.
02 — Work
Split, browse, delegate
Terminals, browsers, and editors share the window. Coding agents can drive panes while you watch.
03 — Ship
Review and commit
The git panel sits beside the shell that made the changes. Diff, edit, commit, push — done.
Shortcuts
Hands on the keyboard.
The ones you’ll use every hour. The full list lives in the docs.
- Cmd+Nnew project
- Cmd+Tnew session
- Cmd+Wclose the focused pane
- Cmd+1–9switch project
- Ctrl+1–9switch tab
- Ctrl+Tabopen the tab switcher
- Cmd+Pcommand palette
- Cmd+D / Cmd+Shift+Dsplit right / split down
- Opt+Cmd+arrowsfocus the pane in that direction
- Cmd+[ / Cmd+]cycle pane focus
- Cmd+Shift+Returnzoom the focused pane
- Ctrl+Cmd+arrows / =resize / equalize panes
- Cmd+B / Cmd+Shift+Btoggle the left / right sidebar
- Cmd+Shift+G / E / Igit / files / info panel
- Cmd+F / Cmd+Gfind / find next
- Cmd+Kclear the terminal
- Cmd+Ssave the open file
- Cmd+L / Cmd+Rfocus address bar / reload browser
- Cmd+Shift+Anext agent needing attention
Download
Start in one window.
Free for macOS 15.6 and later. Install with Homebrew, or download the dmg.
brew install wzz6423/tap/zshell- Latest version
- v0.1.3
- Requires
- macOS 15.6+
- License
- Free, source-available
FAQ
Questions, answered.
The short version: it hosts your shell, it doesn’t replace it.
Is zshell free?
Yes. Free to download, no subscription, no account.
Does it replace my shell?
No. zshell hosts the shell you already run and leaves your prompt, aliases, and dotfiles untouched. Terminal panes can use Ghostty or Alacritty.
Does it collect any data?
No telemetry, no analytics. Its only automatic network request is the update check; browser pages and agent CLIs make only the requests you ask them to.
What happens to my sessions when I quit?
Projects, tabs, browser URLs, and pane layout come back on relaunch. Each terminal reopens as a fresh shell in its old directory; previous scrollback returns only when history restoration is enabled.
Is this an IDE?
No — the terminal stays the center of gravity. The git and files panels exist so you can review and ship what happens in the terminal without switching to an editor.