If you're using terminal-based AI agents like Claude Code, you're already living in the terminal. But every time you need to review code, check a PR, or search across your codebase, you switch back to VS Code. Every switch costs context.
Vim and Neovim solved terminal-native editing a long time ago. But modal editing is a wall. Most developers try it, struggle with it, and go back to what feels familiar.
So the choice has been: stay in the terminal and learn a new paradigm, or use a familiar IDE and accept the context switching.
I didn't think that tradeoff should exist.
What is TTT?
TTT is a terminal text editor written in Go. Single binary, zero config. But the key decision was this: it should look and feel like VS Code or Zed — not like a terminal editor.
That means:
- Standard keybindings — Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V, Ctrl+Z. No modes to learn.
- Command palette — Ctrl+P to find files, run commands, switch themes.
- Sidebar panels — file explorer, search results, git changes. Click to navigate.
- Mouse support — click, drag, select. Right-click context menus.
- Tabs — open multiple files, switch between them.
- Menus — a full menu bar, just like a GUI editor.
It's not a "terminal editor that's trying its best." It's an IDE that happens to run in your terminal.
Features
LSP support — completions, diagnostics, hover, go-to-definition, references, rename, code actions, signature help. Same Language Server Protocol that powers VS Code, running over JSON-RPC/stdio.
Integrated terminal — a full terminal emulator inside the editor with 256-color support. Run your builds, tests, and git commands without leaving.
GitHub PR review — open a pull request URL from the command palette and review diffs inline. Navigate between changed files without leaving the editor.
Project-wide search — powered by ripgrep. Search across your entire codebase with debounced input and result navigation.
Git integration — stage, unstage, commit, push, pull. View changes, open diffs, git gutter indicators in the editor.
Themes — multiple built-in themes with live preview when switching. The editor looks good out of the box.
Code intelligence — syntax highlighting, code folding, bracket pair colorization, matching bracket navigation, indent detection, EditorConfig support.
Why not just use Vim/Neovim?
Nothing against them. They're powerful, mature, and have massive ecosystems. But they require you to rewire your muscle memory. Modal editing is a fundamentally different interaction model, and for developers who've spent years in VS Code or Sublime, that's a real barrier.
TTT's position is simple: you shouldn't have to choose between a familiar UX and staying in the terminal.
Why not VS Code in the terminal?
VS Code's remote/terminal options exist, but they're still VS Code — an Electron app connecting to your terminal, not a native terminal application. The distinction matters when you want something that starts instantly, runs alongside your tools, and stays within the same context as your terminal workflow.
The AI agent angle
This is the part that motivated the project. When you're pair-programming with a terminal-based AI agent, your workflow lives in the terminal. The agent runs commands, edits files, runs tests — all in the terminal. If your editor also lives there, you never leave. You can review what the agent changed, search the codebase for context, open a PR diff — all without switching windows.
Your agent works. You review. Same context, same window.
Try it
TTT is a single Go binary with zero runtime dependencies.
macOS:
brew tap eugenioenko/ttt
brew install ttt
Linux:
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/eugenioenko/ttt/main/install.sh | bash
From source:
git clone https://github.com/eugenioenko/ttt.git
cd ttt
make build
./bin/ttt .
- Site: tttedit.dev
- Source: github.com/eugenioenko/ttt
Feedback welcome — especially from developers who've tried terminal editors before and bounced off them.
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