Fork git client
Hacker ApprovedRanked 4 of 18 git clients by recommenders
Clear Git GUI that people switch to from SourceTree and Tower, with a one-time paid license, free updates and no subscription. Some find branches easier to get lost in.
Clear Git GUI that people switch to from SourceTree and Tower, with a one-time paid license, free updates and no subscription. Some find branches easier to get lost in.
19 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 17
- criticize it
- 2
- approval share
- 89%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 17 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 8.5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Better than SourceTree
“Used to use many different UI clients, including ST and Tower but left Tower for Fork.”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need” “I find both Fork and Tower to be much better than SourceTree”
Comment from 10 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need” “Fork is a great alternative to SourceTree!”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need” - Comment from 10 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need”
Clear view of staged files
“I find Fork[1] (the free version does fine) still takes the cake for that, as the clarity and lack of keyboard bindings, is essential”
Comment from 10 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need” “As a git gui user [1], I see exactly what files I stage”
Comment from 6 Sep 2026 in “.gitignore Everything by Default” Replaces git's UI for daily work
“I am using Fork as my primary Git GUI and am pretty happy with it.”
Comment from 10 Mar 2026 in “Rebasing in Magit” “it essentially replaces git's UI already”
Comment from 2 Feb 2026 in “VisualJJ – Jujutsu in Visual Studio Code” “Git Fork[0] is a great tool for that”
Comment from 4 Sep 2026 in “GPT-6 Astra” File history and review
“I use file history aaaall the time. My favourite feature in Fork.”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need” “I end up reviewing in either Android Studio or even Fork.”
Comment from 25 Apr 2026 in “Ask HN: Anyone still using JetBrains products today?”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Easy to get lost among branches
“I do find myself getting lost amongst branches more easily compared to Sourcetree”
Comment from 10 Nov 2025 in “The lazy Git UI you didn't know you need”
Other git clients people recommend
The four most recommended other git clients, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Magit | 120 | 20 | 86% | 12 | 10 yrs6 owners | Approved |
| Sublime Merge | 22 | 1 | 96% | 10 | — | Approved |
| GitButler | 21 | 19 | 53% | 6 | — | — |
| Fork git clientThis page | 17 | 2 | 89% | 7 | — | Approved |
| SourceTree | 12 | 7 | 63% | 7 | — | — |
What people said
19 of the 20 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“nothing beats Fork if you're on a Mac”
“As a git gui user [1], I see exactly what files I stage”
“Git Fork[0] is a great tool for that”
“it's really easy to drag and drop reorder commits”
“I end up reviewing in either Android Studio or even Fork.”
“most restaurant have to pay extortionary prices to aggregator sites like The Fork”
“I am using Fork as my primary Git GUI and am pretty happy with it.”
“it essentially replaces git's UI already”
“Fork is a great alternative to SourceTree!”
“Fork is a two-person family company that's somehow managed to make the best Git client in the world for a single reasonable price with free updates and no subscription”
“I use file history aaaall the time. My favourite feature in Fork.”
“Used to use many different UI clients, including ST and Tower but left Tower for Fork.”
“There are several really good Git clients for macOS”
“I do find myself getting lost amongst branches more easily compared to Sourcetree”
“I find Fork[1] (the free version does fine) still takes the cake for that, as the clarity and lack of keyboard bindings, is essential”
“I probably will switch back to ST even at work because I dislike:”
“I can't live without Fork. It's the one thing I miss on Linux.”
“I find both Fork and Tower to be much better than SourceTree”
“the only good git GUI that exists is Fork”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.