Fork
Fast and friendly git client for Mac
Install with Homebrew
brew install --cask forkQuick Take: Fork
Fork remains the best native Git client for Mac developers who want speed without a subscription in August 2026. Visual interactive rebase is still the standout, backed by a strong conflict helper, LFS and image diffs, blame, reflog, and Custom Actions. The $59.99 one-time price (per platform) undercuts GitKraken and Tower over a multi-year horizon. Gaps are honest: limited PR review depth and no Linux. If those matter, keep a browser or GitKraken nearby, and still use Fork for local history work.
Best For
- •Developers who want the fastest Git GUI on macOS
- •Anyone who does interactive rebase and wants it visual and safe
- •Teams working with Git LFS and binary assets
- •Developers who prefer a one-time purchase over subscriptions
What is Fork?
Fork is a native Git client for macOS and Windows built by Dan Pristupov and Tanya Pristupova. It gives you a visual interface for commits, branches, merges, rebases, conflict resolution, blame, and reflog recovery without the weight of Electron-based alternatives. The Mac app is written in Swift and Cocoa; the Windows build uses.NET/WPF. Both launch instantly and stay responsive on repositories with 100,000+ commits. Official download pages still advertise macOS 10.11+, though modern Apple Silicon builds are what most developers run on Sonoma, Sequoia, and Tahoe.
The feature that defines Fork is its visual interactive rebase. Where git rebase -i opens a text file of commit hashes, Fork shows commits as a timeline you can drag to reorder, drop to squash, or click to edit. The result is previewed before you apply it. Interactive rebase goes from a scary CLI ritual to something you do every day before pushing. Independent 2026 reviews still call this best-in-class among Mac Git GUIs.
Fork's merge conflict helper shows theirs, yours, and the combined result. Non-conflicting sections are pre-resolved so you only decide on real conflicts. The diff viewer handles large changesets without lag; blame shows line-by-line authorship; reflog recovers lost commits. For Git LFS repos, Fork supports locking and unlocking plus image diffs (side-by-side, swipe, onion skin). Git-flow, GPG signing, GitHub notifications, Custom Actions, and a repository manager round out daily work.
Pricing as of August 2026 remains a one-time $59.99 license per platform (Mac or Windows), one user, up to three machines. Free evaluation is unlimited with occasional purchase prompts. No subscription. MacUpdate listed Fork around version 2.69.0 (updated mid-July 2026); treat third-party version pages as a signal and confirm against git-fork.com when you need exact build notes.
The honest take: Fork is still the fastest Git GUI most Mac developers will touch. It does not replace GitKraken's team dashboards or full in-app PR review workflows, and there is no Linux build. For individuals who want native speed and a paid-once license, Fork remains one of the best $60 tool purchases in the Mac developer stack.
Why Fork's interactive rebase changes daily Git habits
How a visual rebase interface makes clean commit history practical instead of aspirational.
History & Background
Fork started as a side project by Dan Pristupov around 2017 and grew a following among developers who wanted a fast native Git client without Electron overhead. The paid model arrived later as a one-time license rather than a subscription. Dan and Tanya now develop Fork full-time across Mac and Windows. Interactive rebase has been the durable differentiator - still the feature 2026 reviews highlight first.
How It Works
Fork wraps the standard Git binary rather than reimplementing Git internals, so.gitconfig options, hooks, LFS, and GPG behave as expected. The Mac UI is native Cocoa/AppKit with GPU-accelerated diffs and graphs. That architecture delivers command-line fidelity plus visual clarity for rebase and merge resolution, without a Chromium memory tax.
Ecosystem & Integrations
Fork plugs into the normal developer toolchain:.gitconfig, macOS Keychain, SSH agent, GPG, and hosting remotes for GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Azure DevOps. Custom Actions extend the toolbar with arbitrary shell commands. Public issue trackers under github.com/fork-dev collect bugs and requests. There is no formal plugin marketplace like GitKraken or VS Code.
Future Development
Development continues to emphasize macOS/Windows compatibility, performance, and incremental power features (graph folding, LFS locking UX, Quick Launch, hosting PR creation hooks). Deeper in-app PR review remains the most requested gap versus GitKraken and the GitHub web UI. The team's track record favors polish over sprawling feature dumps.
Key Features
Visual Interactive Rebase
Fork's interactive rebase turns `git rebase -i` into drag-and-drop history editing. See commits as a list, reorder them, squash by dropping one onto another, edit messages, or mark commits to drop. Fork previews the resulting history before applying, and if conflicts arise it pauses into the merge conflict helper. This is the feature most reviewers still cite as the reason they switched - and stayed.
Native macOS Performance
Fork is built with Swift/Cocoa on Mac (and.NET/WPF on Windows), not Electron. It launches in under a second, renders large diffs quickly, and scrolls long commit histories smoothly on ProMotion displays. Memory use stays modest compared with Electron clients such as GitKraken. On Apple Silicon, the difference is obvious for day-long Git sessions.
Merge Conflict Helper
When merges or rebases conflict, Fork shows incoming changes, your changes, and the merged result. Non-conflicting hunks resolve automatically so you focus on real collisions. Accept one side or edit the result manually. Complex both-modified conflicts stay readable instead of a wall of conflict markers.
Git LFS and Image Diffs
Fork supports Git LFS natively: lock files before editing, unlock when done, and track LFS-managed assets in the sidebar. Image diffs include side-by-side, swipe, and onion-skin modes - useful for design assets, game textures, and other binaries that belong in Git LFS rather than opaque blob reviews.
Repository Manager, Blame, and Reflog
Organize repos into folders, open multiple projects in tabs, and jump between workspaces of related services. Blame navigates from any line to the introducing commit. Reflog restores lost commits or accidentally deleted branches. Search covers commit messages, authors, and diff content without feeling slow on large histories.
Custom Actions and Toolchain Hooks
Add shell commands to the toolbar and context menus - lint, test, deploy, or project-specific scripts - without leaving Fork. Fork reads your.gitconfig, uses macOS Keychain SSH keys, supports GPG commit signing, git-flow helpers, and gentle GitHub notification badges.
Hosting Integrations
Authenticate against GitHub (including Enterprise), GitLab, Bitbucket, and Azure DevOps via OAuth or personal access tokens. Branch context menus can open pull-request creation flows on those hosts, though deep PR review still usually happens in the browser or a heavier team client.
Who Should Use Fork?
1The Senior Developer Cleaning Up History
Before pushing a feature branch, a developer uses Fork's interactive rebase to squash a dozen WIP commits into three meaningful ones. They reorder related changes, rewrite messages to conventional-commit style, and drop a debugging experiment. The cleanup takes about two minutes instead of an anxiety-inducing `git rebase -i` text file.
2The Developer Resolving Merge Conflicts
After pulling main into a feature branch, five files conflict. Fork's three-pane helper marks each conflict clearly. Non-conflicting hunks are already merged. The developer resolves the rest, commits, and continues - typically in minutes rather than hunting conflict markers in an editor.
3The Open Source Maintainer
A maintainer checks out contributor branches locally, reviews diffs visually, cherry-picks specific commits, and runs tests via Custom Actions. The graph shows how short-lived branches relate to main. Interactive rebase keeps the published history readable before merge.
How to Install Fork on Mac
Fork installs via Homebrew or direct download from git-fork.com (fork.dev serves the same product).
Install via Homebrew
Run: brew install --cask fork. This installs Fork to your Applications folder.
Install CLI Tools
Launch Fork, then go to Fork > Install Command Line Tools. This lets you open Fork from the terminal with fork. inside any directory.
Configure Your Identity
Fork reads your global.gitconfig. For work vs personal identities, set per-repo user.name and user.email in Fork's repository settings.
Pro Tips
- • Grant Fork Full Disk Access in System Settings if you keep repos in protected directories.
- • The evaluation build is fully functional with no hard time limit. Buy a $59.99 Mac license when you want to drop purchase prompts and support the authors.
- • Enable Fetch All Remotes in Preferences so the graph stays current without manual fetches.
- • Store SSH keys in the macOS Keychain - Fork uses them automatically.
Configuration Tips
Set Up Custom Actions for Your Workflow
Go to Preferences > Custom Commands. Add frequent terminal commands such as npm test, make build, or docker compose up. They appear in the toolbar and right-click menus so you can run them without switching apps.
Configure Fetch Schedule
In Preferences > Git, enable automatic fetch on a schedule (every 5-10 minutes). Your repository graph stays current with teammate pushes without constant manual fetches.
Use Stashes as Named Contexts
Fork's stash list shows full diffs for each stash. Name WIP snapshots descriptively, stash before switching branches, and pop when you return. Multiple stashes stay manageable because you can inspect contents before applying.
Set Up GPG Commit Signing
If your team requires signed commits, configure your GPG key in Fork's preferences. Fork signs commits and tags automatically and shows verified badges in the log.
Alternatives to Fork
Fork competes with free and paid Git GUIs that trade native speed, subscription cost, and team features differently. Captain's Deck is a dual-pane file manager with Git status - not a Fork substitute.
GitHub Desktop
Free and simple for basic clone-commit-push workflows. It lacks Fork's interactive rebase depth, has lighter conflict tooling, and is Electron-based. Fork is the natural upgrade when you live in rebase and history cleanup daily.
GitKraken
Stronger team features, Jira-style integrations, and Linux support, but Electron-based and subscription-priced (Pro commonly cited around $4.95/month). Fork wins on native speed and one-time $59.99 pricing for individual Mac/Windows developers.
Tower
Mature Mac/Windows client with excellent undo and PR-oriented workflows, typically billed around $69/year. Choose Tower for team polish and undo safety nets; choose Fork when you want native speed and a paid-once license.
Sublime Merge
Closest peer in native speed and philosophy, with a more keyboard-centric feel. Fork usually wins on visual interactive rebase and image diffs; Sublime Merge often wins on text search and filtering. Pick the interaction model you prefer.
Pricing
As of August 2026: $59.99 one-time per platform (Mac and Windows are separate licenses), one user, up to three machines. Unlimited free evaluation with full functionality and occasional purchase prompts. No subscription, no feature tiers, and updates are included with the license model advertised on git-fork.com.
Pros
- ✓Fastest class of Git GUI on macOS - native Swift/Cocoa, instant launch
- ✓Best-in-class visual interactive rebase for everyday history cleanup
- ✓Three-pane merge conflict helper with automatic non-conflict resolution
- ✓One-time $59.99 purchase per platform - no subscription
- ✓Git LFS, image diffs, blame, reflog, git-flow, GPG, and Custom Actions
- ✓Repository Manager with multi-repo tabs and GitHub notification badges
- ✓Generous unlimited evaluation before you buy
- ✓Actively maintained by Dan and Tanya Pristupov with public issue trackers
Cons
- ✗No deep built-in pull request review - teams often stay on GitHub/GitLab web or GitKraken for PR workflows
- ✗No Linux version - macOS and Windows only
- ✗Closed-source; Mac and Windows licenses are purchased separately
- ✗Smaller integration surface than GitKraken's team dashboards
- ✗Focused two-person team - feature cadence is steady but not enterprise-scale
Community & Support
Fork's community is small but dedicated. Issues are tracked publicly on GitHub under the fork-dev organization (Tracker for Mac, TrackerWin for Windows), and Dan Pristupov frequently responds directly. There is no 24/7 enterprise support desk, but response quality on bugs and feature requests is high for an indie tool. Reddit's r/git and r/macapps still recommend Fork when developers ask for a native Mac Git GUI without a subscription. Documentation on git-fork.com is concise with screenshots; most power features (interactive rebase, cherry-pick, stash management, Custom Actions) are discoverable in the UI. Discord and shared Custom Action snippets circulate among long-time users.
Frequently Asked Questions about Fork
About the Author
Expert Tips for Fork
Developers still praise the one-time $59.99 license versus GitKraken or Tower subscriptions - over a few years Fork is dramatically cheaper for solo Mac work.
Interactive rebase is widely considered best-in-class; lack of Linux and limited in-app PR review keeps many teams on GitKraken or GitHub's web UI for collaboration while still using Fork locally.
Treat MacUpdate's 2.69.0 listing as a helpful version signal, but confirm the build you ship from About Fork or git-fork.com before documenting exact patch notes.
Related Technologies & Concepts
Related Topics
Git Clients for macOS
Visual Git clients for managing repositories on Mac.
Native macOS Developer Tools
Development tools built natively for macOS performance.
Sources & References
Fact-CheckedLast verified: Aug 9, 2026
Key Verified Facts
- Fork costs $59.99 one-time with free evaluation, built by Dan Pristupov and Tanya Pristupova for Mac and Windows.[cite-1, cite-2]
- Fork's feature set includes interactive rebase, merge conflict helper, image diffs, blame, reflog, git-flow, Git LFS, GPG, and GitHub notifications.[cite-1, cite-2]
- MacUpdate listed Fork for Mac at version 2.69.0 around mid-July 2026.[cite-5]
- Independent 2026 comparisons still position Fork as the best-value native Mac Git GUI versus GitKraken (~$4.95/mo Pro) and Tower (~$69/year).[cite-3, cite-4]
- The fork-dev GitHub organization hosts public issue trackers and docs for the Fork git client.[cite-6]
- 1Fork - fast and friendly git client for Mac and Windows
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Official site: $59.99 free evaluation, interactive rebase, merge conflicts, LFS, GPG, git-flow."
- 2Fork.dev product home
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Same product as git-fork.com; Dan and Tanya listed as authors; macOS 10.11+ download label."
- 3Fork Review (2026): Pricing, Features & Honest Verdict
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Confirms $59.99 one-time per platform, unlimited evaluation, no Linux, rebase praise."
- 4GitKraken vs Fork vs Tower 2026
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Fork as best-value Mac client; GitKraken ~$4.95/mo; Tower ~$69/year."
- 5Fork for Mac on MacUpdate
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Lists Fork version 2.69.0 and $59.99 pricing signal for Mac."
- 6fork-dev on GitHub
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Official GitHub org with Tracker, TrackerWin, and Docs repositories."
- 7Fork blog - product updates
Accessed Aug 9, 2026
"Vendor blog covering graph collapse, LFS lock/unlock, PR creation hooks, and related features."
Research queries: Fork Git client Mac 2026 pricing $59.99; Fork vs GitKraken vs Tower 2026; Fork MacUpdate 2.69.0 July 2026