Working on Several Branches with Worktrees

Normally a repository has one working tree, so working on another branch means stashing or committing and switching. git worktree lets you check out additional branches into separate folders that all share the same repository — so you can fix a bug on one branch while a long build or half-finished work sits untouched on another.

The situation

Sam is halfway through the wishlist feature, with uncommitted edits, when an urgent fix is needed on main:

git status -s
git branch

Output

 M wishlist.html
* feature/wishlist
  main

Adding a worktree

Instead of stashing, Sam checks out a new branch into a sibling folder:

git worktree add -b fix/footer-typo ../shop-hotfix main

Output

Preparing worktree (new branch 'fix/footer-typo')
HEAD is now at 271266e Create home page

This creates the folder ../shop-hotfix with branch fix/footer-typo (started from main) checked out. The original folder, with its uncommitted wishlist edits, is untouched.

git worktree list

Output

/home/sam/shop         dd929ef [feature/wishlist]
/home/sam/shop-hotfix  271266e [fix/footer-typo]

Working in it

The new folder is a full working tree; commits made there go into the same repository:

cd ../shop-hotfix
echo "<footer>Contact us</footer>" >> index.html
git commit -qam "Fix footer typo"
git log --oneline -1

Output

a59d734 (HEAD -> fix/footer-typo) Fix footer typo

Back in the main folder, the new branch and commit are immediately visible — there's only one repository, so no fetching or pushing between folders:

cd ../shop
git log --oneline -1 fix/footer-typo
git status -s

Output

a59d734 (fix/footer-typo) Fix footer typo
 M wishlist.html

One branch, one worktree

A branch can be checked out in only one worktree at a time, so two folders can't move the same branch in different directions:

git switch fix/footer-typo

Output

fatal: 'fix/footer-typo' is already checked out at '/home/sam/shop-hotfix'

Removing a worktree

When you're done, remove the folder through Git (the branch and its commits stay):

git worktree remove ../shop-hotfix
git worktree list

Output

/home/sam/shop  dd929ef [feature/wishlist]

If you delete a worktree folder by hand instead, run git worktree prune to clean up Git's records of it.

Commands

Command	Does
`git worktree add ../dir branch`	Check out an existing branch in a new folder
`git worktree add -b new ../dir start`	Create a branch from `start` and check it out there
`git worktree add --detach ../dir v1.0`	Check out a commit or tag without a branch
`git worktree list`	Show all worktrees
`git worktree remove ../dir`	Remove one (refuses if it has uncommitted changes, unless `--force`)
`git worktree prune`	Forget worktrees whose folders were deleted

When worktrees help

Urgent fixes without disturbing work in progress.
Reviewing a colleague's branch while your own build or tests keep running.
Comparing two versions of an app side by side.
Running several AI coding agents or long jobs in parallel, each on its own branch.

Each worktree needs its own installed dependencies and build output (for example its own node_modules), so they use more disk space than a single checkout — but far less than a second clone, because the history is shared.

Try it yourself

With uncommitted changes in your main folder, add a worktree for a new branch, commit something there, and confirm with git log --oneline --all from the main folder that the commit is visible. Then remove the worktree.

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