{"data":{"slug":"bat","name":"bat","tagline":"MIT/Apache-2.0 cat clone with syntax highlighting and Git integration","category":"rust","categoryName":"Rust","url":"https://github.com/sharkdp/bat","github":"https://github.com/sharkdp/bat","pricing":"open-source","hook":"bat is `cat` with wings — syntax highlighting, line numbers, and Git diff markers in your terminal.","whatsGood":"MIT OR Apache-2.0 dual-license. Drop-in cat replacement that detects language and applies syntax highlighting automatically. Shows Git modifications in the gutter. Integrates with pagers, supports themes, and handles non-printable characters gracefully. Pairs beautifully with ripgrep (`rg --json | delta` or `rg -l | xargs bat`).","theCatch":"Vs cat (POSIX baseline): bat is heavier — startup and memory cost for highlighting. Not a POSIX cat drop-in for scripts expecting raw byte streams. Large files or binary content should still use plain cat. Theme configuration is optional but becomes a rabbit hole.","verdict":"MIT/Apache-2.0 cat clone. Free forever; alias cat=bat and never look at monochrome output again.","addedAt":"2026-09-09","featured":false,"domain":"Rust","subSpecialty":"Terminal","subcategory":"Terminal","tags":["cli","self-host","permissive","git","active"],"capabilities":["cli","syntax","git"],"surfaces":["CLI","Self-host"],"ecosystem":["Rust","Multi-platform"],"licenseModel":"Apache-2.0","githubStars":60835,"starsPerWeek":137,"access":"free","archived":false,"repo":{"createdAt":"2018-04-21","pushedAt":"2026-10-17","license":"Apache-2.0","archived":false,"checkedAt":"2026-10-19"}},"related":[{"slug":"rust-lang","name":"Rust","tagline":"Systems programming without the footguns"},{"slug":"tokio","name":"Tokio","tagline":"Async runtime for Rust"},{"slug":"axum","name":"Axum","tagline":"Web framework from the Tokio team"},{"slug":"actix-web","name":"Actix Web","tagline":"Fast Rust web framework"},{"slug":"serde","name":"Serde","tagline":"Serialization framework for Rust"}],"links":{"self":"/api/gems/bat","html":"/gems/bat","markdown":"/gems/bat.md","category":"/api/gems?category=rust","categoryPage":"/stacks/rust"}}