SHSelfHostIndex

Gitu vs lazygit

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted developer tools & git options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
GI Gitu Terminal Git client inspired by Magit VS LA lazygit Simple terminal UI for Git commands
FeatureGitulazygit
Deploy effortRead-the-docs projectRead-the-docs project
Health score87 · Excellent100 · Excellent
CategoryDeveloper Tools & GitDeveloper Tools & Git
LicenseMITMIT
LanguageRustGo
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM64 MB64 MB
Deploymentbinary, sourcebinary, source
GitHub stars★ 2,917★ 82,628
First released20242018
ReplacesGitKraken, SourcetreeGitKraken, Sourcetree

What are Gitu and lazygit?

Gitu

Gitu is an open-source terminal user interface Git client that brings a Magit-style workflow to the command line. It runs locally and works with any self-hosted Git remote for fast staging and committing.

  • Magit-inspired workflow
  • Terminal UI
  • Fast keyboard staging
  • Lightweight

lazygit

lazygit is an open-source terminal user interface for Git that makes staging, committing, branching, and rebasing fast and visual. It runs locally and works with any self-hosted Git remote.

  • Visual staging and commits
  • Interactive rebase
  • Custom commands
  • Fast keyboard workflow

Read the full lazygit guide →

Gitu vs lazygit: key differences

Gitu is written in Rust, while lazygit is built with Go. Lazygit is the more established project (first released 2018), while Gitu arrived in 2024. Lazygit has the considerably larger community, at 82,628 GitHub stars versus 2,917.

Why pick each one

Choose Gitu if…

  • Released under the MIT license
  • Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
  • Active community (2.9k GitHub stars)
  • Written in Rust
Gitu details

Choose lazygit if…

  • Fast keyboard-driven workflow
  • Single lightweight binary
  • Interactive rebase made easy

Watch out for

  • Terminal only
  • Keybindings take learning
lazygit details

Frequently asked questions

Is Gitu or lazygit better?

Neither is universally better. lazygit has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Gitu and lazygit free and open-source?

Yes. Gitu is licensed under MIT and lazygit under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Gitu and lazygit with Docker?

Gitu: check the project docs for container support. lazygit: check the project docs for container support.

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