bat Cheatsheet
A modern replacement for cat with syntax highlighting, Git integration, and automatic paging.
Installation
| Platform | Command |
|---|
| Ubuntu/Debian | sudo apt install bat (binary may be named batcat) |
| Arch Linux | sudo pacman -S bat |
| Fedora/RHEL | sudo dnf install bat |
| macOS (Homebrew) | brew install bat |
| macOS (MacPorts) | sudo port install bat |
| Windows (Scoop) | scoop install bat |
| Windows (Chocolatey) | choco install bat |
| Windows (Winget) | winget install sharkdp.bat |
| Rust/Cargo | cargo install --locked bat |
| Docker | docker pull danlynn/bat |
Note: On Debian/Ubuntu, create alias if needed: alias bat='batcat'
Basic Commands
| Command | Description |
|---|
bat file.txt | Display file with syntax highlighting and line numbers |
bat file1.txt file2.py | Display multiple files with headers |
bat -n file.txt | Explicitly show line numbers (enabled by default) |
bat -p file.txt | Plain mode (no decorations, like cat) |
bat -pp file.txt | Extra plain mode (completely plain output) |
bat -A file.txt | Show all non-printable characters (tabs, spaces, line endings) |
bat -r 10:20 file.txt | Display specific line range (lines 10-20) |
bat -r :50 file.txt | Display first 50 lines |
bat -r 100: file.txt | Display from line 100 to end |
echo "text" | bat | Display piped input with syntax highlighting |
bat --list-languages | Show all supported programming languages |
bat --list-themes | Display all available color themes |
bat -l python file.txt | Force specific language/syntax highlighting |
bat --plain file.txt | Disable syntax highlighting |
bat --paging=never file.txt | Disable automatic paging |
Advanced Usage
| Command | Description |
|---|
bat --theme="Dracula" file.py | Use specific color theme |
bat --diff file.txt | Show Git modifications with syntax highlighting |
bat --no-git file.txt | Disable Git integration markers |
bat --tabs=4 file.py | Set custom tab width |
bat --wrap=never file.txt | Disable line wrapping |
bat --terminal-width=80 file.txt | Force specific terminal width |
bat --style=numbers,changes file.txt | Show only line numbers and Git changes |
bat --style=header,grid file.txt | Show only header and grid separators |
bat --style=plain file.txt | Remove all decorations |
bat --file-name="Custom" file.txt | Display custom name in header |
bat --decorations=never file.txt | Disable all decorations (even when appropriate) |
bat --color=always file.txt | Force color output (even when piping) |
bat --paging=always file.txt | Force pager even for small files |
bat --pager="less -RF" file.txt | Use custom pager with options |
bat --map-syntax='*.conf:INI' file.conf | Map file extension to specific syntax |
bat --generate-config-file | Generate default configuration file |
bat cache --build | Rebuild syntax/theme cache |
bat cache --clear | Clear syntax/theme cache |
Configuration
Configuration File Locations
| Platform | Path |
|---|
| Linux/macOS | ~/.config/bat/config |
| Windows | %APPDATA%\bat\config |
Sample Configuration File
Create ~/.config/bat/config with your preferences:
# Set default theme
--theme="Dracula"
# Always show line numbers and changes
--style="numbers,changes,header,grid"
# Use 4-space tabs
--tabs=4
# Automatic paging
--paging=auto
# Show non-printable characters
--show-all
# Enable italic text (if terminal supports)
--italic-text=always
# Custom syntax mappings
--map-syntax="*.conf:INI"
--map-syntax=".ignore:Git Ignore"
--map-syntax="*.jenkinsfile:Groovy"
--map-syntax="*.log:Log"
--map-syntax=".env:Bash"
Environment Variables
# Set default theme
export BAT_THEME="Dracula"
# Set default style components
export BAT_STYLE="numbers,changes,header"
# Set default pager
export BAT_PAGER="less -RF"
# Disable paging entirely
export BAT_PAGER=""
# Custom config directory
export BAT_CONFIG_PATH="/custom/path/to/config"
Custom Themes
# Create themes directory
mkdir -p "$(bat --config-dir)/themes"
# Download theme file (.tmTheme format)
cd "$(bat --config-dir)/themes"
wget https://example.com/theme.tmTheme
# Rebuild cache to use new theme
bat cache --build
Style Components
Available style components (comma-separated):
| Component | Description |
|---|
full | All components (default) |
auto | Automatic based on output |
plain | No decorations |
numbers | Line numbers |
changes | Git modification markers |
header | File name header |
grid | Grid separators |
rule | Horizontal rules |
snip | Snip markers for line ranges |
Common Use Cases
Use Case: Code Review with Git Integration
# View file with Git changes highlighted
bat --diff src/main.py
# Compare with previous commit
git show HEAD~1:config.yaml | bat -l yaml --file-name="Previous Version"
# Review multiple changed files
git diff --name-only | xargs bat --diff
Use Case: Log File Analysis
# View application logs with syntax highlighting
bat --language=log /var/log/application.log
# View specific error section
bat -r 1000:2000 /var/log/syslog | grep ERROR
# Monitor live logs (disable paging)
tail -f /var/log/app.log | bat --paging=never -l log
# Search logs with context
bat /var/log/nginx/error.log | grep -C 5 "ERROR"
Use Case: Configuration File Management
# Review system configurations
bat /etc/nginx/nginx.conf /etc/ssh/sshd_config
# Compare configurations side by side
diff <(bat -p config.prod.yml) <(bat -p config.dev.yml)
# Check for hidden characters in config
bat -A .env
# View Kubernetes resources
kubectl get deployment myapp -o yaml | bat -l yaml
Use Case: Docker and Container Workflows
# View Dockerfile with syntax highlighting
bat Dockerfile
# Inspect docker-compose configurations
bat docker-compose.yml docker-compose.override.yml
# View container logs with syntax
docker logs container_name 2>&1 | bat --paging=never -l log
# Display formatted JSON from API
curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/sharkdp/bat | bat -l json
Use Case: Script Development and Debugging
# View shell script with line numbers
bat -n deploy.sh
# Check specific function (lines 45-78)
bat -r 45:78 automation.sh
# Detect problematic characters
bat -A problematic-script.sh
# View multiple related scripts
bat scripts/*.sh
Best Practices
- Use
-p for scripting: When piping or scripting, use bat -p or bat --plain to avoid decorations that might interfere with processing
- Configure defaults: Set up
~/.config/bat/config with your preferred theme and style to avoid repetitive flags
- Alias for cat replacement: Add
alias cat='bat --paging=never --style=plain' to your shell config for seamless replacement
- Leverage Git integration: Use
--diff when reviewing code changes to see modifications inline with syntax highlighting
- Map custom extensions: Use
--map-syntax in config file for project-specific file types (e.g., .jenkinsfile, .conf)
- Disable paging for pipes: Always use
--paging=never when piping output to other commands to prevent interactive pager issues
- Use language hints: For files without extensions, explicitly specify language with
-l for proper syntax highlighting
- Theme consistency: Choose a theme that matches your terminal color scheme for better readability
- Cache management: After adding custom themes or syntaxes, run
bat cache --build to make them available
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Solution |
|---|
Binary named batcat instead of bat | Create alias: alias bat='batcat' or symlink: ln -s /usr/bin/batcat ~/.local/bin/bat |
| No syntax highlighting | Check language support with bat --list-languages and use -l to force language |
| Pager interferes with pipes | Use bat --paging=never or set export BAT_PAGER="" |
| Theme not displaying correctly | Verify terminal supports 256 colors; try different theme with bat --theme="GitHub" |
| Custom theme not appearing | Ensure theme file is in $(bat --config-dir)/themes/ and run bat cache --build |
| Line numbers misaligned | Check tab width setting; adjust with --tabs=4 or in config file |
| Git integration not working | Ensure file is in Git repository; disable with --no-git if not needed |
| Config file changes ignored | Verify file location with bat --config-file; check for syntax errors in config |
| Performance issues with large files | Use --paging=never and pipe to less, or use line ranges with -r |
| Unicode characters display incorrectly | Ensure terminal uses UTF-8 encoding; check locale settings |
Quick Reference: Common Flags
| Short | Long | Purpose |
|---|
-p | --plain | Plain output mode |
-n | --number | Show line numbers |
-A | --show-all | Show non-printable characters |
-l | --language | Set syntax language |
-r | --line-range | Display line range |
-H | --highlight-line | Highlight specific lines |
-d | --diff | Show Git diff |
| --theme | Set color theme |
| --style | Set style components |
| --paging | Control pager behavior |
| --tabs | Set tab width |
| --wrap | Control line wrapping |
