delta

A syntax-highlighting pager for git diff output, written in Rust. Configure delta once in your .gitconfig and every git diff, git show, and git log -p command becomes beautifully readable.

What is delta?

delta (published as the git-delta crate) is a pager replacement for Git that transforms raw diff output into a rich, readable terminal display. It uses the same syntax highlighting library as bat to color code hunks by language, adds line numbers, supports true side-by-side layout, and even renders hyperlinks to file paths in supporting terminals.

Once you set pager = delta in your .gitconfig, delta enhances every git command that pages output — no extra flags needed. It also integrates with git add -p interactive staging via the diffFilter setting.

Key Features

• Syntax highlighting — colors added/removed lines by language using bat's Syntect-based highlighting
• Side-by-side diffs — view old and new versions in parallel columns instead of interleaved
• Line numbers — show original and new file line numbers in the margin
• Theme support — dozens of themes (Dracula, Nord, GitHub, OneHalfDark, and more)
• Navigate mode — use 'n' / 'N' to jump between diff sections like a search result
• Hyperlinks — clickable file paths in terminals that support OSC 8 hyperlinks
• diff-so-fancy integration — can mimic diff-so-fancy style for a gradual migration
• git blame — enhanced blame output with syntax highlighting and configurable layout

Installation

# macOS (Homebrew)
brew install git-delta

# Rust / Cargo (any platform)
cargo install git-delta

# Windows (Scoop)
scoop install delta

# Windows (winget)
winget install dandavison.delta

# Linux (apt — Ubuntu/Debian)
# Download .deb from: https://github.com/dandavison/delta/releases
dpkg -i git-delta_*.deb

Recommended .gitconfig

[core]
    pager = delta

[interactive]
    diffFilter = delta --color-only

[delta]
    navigate = true          # use n and N to move between diff sections
    side-by-side = true      # enable side-by-side view
    line-numbers = true      # show line numbers
    syntax-theme = Dracula   # pick from bat's theme list
    hyperlinks = true        # clickable file paths in supported terminals

[merge]
    conflictstyle = diff3

[diff]
    colorMoved = default

After saving, run git diff HEAD~1 to see delta in action. Run delta --list-syntax-themes to pick a theme.

delta vs diff-so-fancy

Use Cases

• Reviewing pull request diffs locally before pushing
• Code review sessions in the terminal for remote servers without GUI access
• Improving readability of git log -p for understanding change history
• Reviewing patch files from email-based Git workflows
• Enhancing git add -p interactive staging with highlighted hunks

Pros and Cons