zagi

a better git interface for agents

Why use zagi?

121 git compatible commands
~50% smaller output that doesn't overflow context windows
1.5-2x faster than git in all implemented commands
Agent friendly features like fork and prompt
Three output modes: succinct (default), --compat (git-identical), --json
Git passthrough for non implemented commands

Installation

curl -fsSL zagi.sh/install | sh

This downloads the binary and sets up git as an alias to zagi. Restart your shell after installation.

From source

git clone https://github.com/mattzcarey/zagi.git
cd zagi
zig build -Doptimize=ReleaseFast
./zig-out/bin/zagi alias  # set up the alias

Usage

Use git as normal:

git status         # compact status
git log            # concise commit history
git diff           # minimal diff format
git add .          # confirms what was staged
git commit -m "x"  # shows commit stats

Any commands or flags not yet implemented in zagi pass through to git. zagi also comes with its own set of features for managing code written by agents.

Output modes

zagi has three output modes:

Succinct (default) — token-efficient output for agents:

git status
# branch: main
# staged: 2 files
#   A  src/new.ts
#   M  src/main.ts

Compat — identical to git CLI output:

git --compat status
git --compat log --oneline -5
git --compat diff --stat

JSON — structured output for machine parsing:

git --json status
# {"branch":"main","clean":false,"staged":[{"marker":"A","path":"src/new.ts"}],"modified":[],"untracked":[]}

git --json log -n 3
# [{"hash":"abc123f","date":"2025-01-15","author":"Alice","email":"[email protected]","subject":"Add feature"}]

git --json diff
# {"files":[{"path":"src/main.ts","insertions":5,"deletions":2}]}

Easy worktrees

zagi ships with a wrapper around worktrees called fork:

# Create named forks for different approaches your agent could take
git fork nodejs-based
git fork bun-based

# Work in each fork
cd .forks/nodejs-based
# ... make changes, commit ...

cd .forks/bun-based
# ... make changes, commit ...

# Compare results, then pick the winner
cd ../..
git fork                       # list forks with commit counts
git fork --pick bun-based      # merge fork into base (keeps both histories)
git fork --promote bun-based   # replace base with fork (discards base commits)

# Clean up
git fork --delete-all

Agent mode

Agent mode is automatically enabled when running inside AI tools (Claude Code, OpenCode, Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code). You can also enable it manually:

export ZAGI_AGENT=my-agent

This enables:

Prompt tracking: git commit --prompt records the user request that created the commit
AI attribution: Automatically detects and stores which AI agent made the commit

git commit -m "Add feature" --prompt "Add a logout button to the header"
git log --prompts   # view prompts
git log --agent     # view which AI agent made commits
git log --session   # view full session transcript (with pagination)

Metadata is stored in git notes (refs/notes/agent, refs/notes/prompt, refs/notes/session) which are local by default and don't affect commit history.

Guardrails

Opt-in protection against destructive commands (reset --hard, push --force, clean -f, etc.):

export ZAGI_GUARDRAILS=1
git reset --hard HEAD~1  # blocked!

To bypass guardrails, set an override secret:

git set-override pineapples
ZAGI_OVERRIDE=pineapples git reset --hard HEAD~1  # allowed

Environment variables

Variable	Description	Default
`ZAGI_GUARDRAILS`	Block destructive git commands. Bypass with `ZAGI_OVERRIDE`.	(unset)
`ZAGI_OVERRIDE`	Bypass guardrails with the secret set via `git set-override`.	(unset)
`ZAGI_REQUIRE_PROMPT_COMMIT`	Require `--prompt` on commits in agent mode.	(unset)
`ZAGI_STRIP_COAUTHORS`	Strip `Co-Authored-By:` lines from commit messages.	(unset)

Agent mode is automatically detected when running inside Claude Code (CLAUDECODE=1) or OpenCode (OPENCODE=1).

Strip co-authors

Remove Co-Authored-By: lines that AI tools like Claude Code add to commit messages:

export ZAGI_STRIP_COAUTHORS=1
git commit -m "Add feature

Co-Authored-By: Claude <[email protected]>"  # stripped automatically

Output comparison

Standard git log:

commit abc123f4567890def1234567890abcdef12345
Author: Alice Smith <[email protected]>
Date:   Mon Jan 15 14:32:21 2025 -0800

    Add user authentication system

zagi log:

abc123f (2025-01-15) Alice: Add user authentication system

Development

Requirements: Zig 0.15, Bun

zig build                           # build
zig build test                      # run zig tests
cd test && bun i && bun run test    # run integration tests
bash test/conformance.sh ./zig-out/bin/zagi  # run conformance tests

See AGENTS.md for contribution guidelines.

License

MIT