weaver Download
  1. Weaver
  2. GitHub Desktop alternative

A native alternative to GitHub Desktop

Weaver and GitHub Desktop do the same job: they make everyday Git visual. They get there differently. This page lays out both, including the places GitHub Desktop is ahead.

The short version

Choose Weaver if you want a small native app instead of an Electron one, if you work on Linux, if you use stashes, tags and Git LFS regularly, or if you like to tune your tools with themes and your own extensions.

Stay with GitHub Desktop if you depend on its pull request integration, if you stage individual lines often, if you are on an Intel Mac, or if you need signed installers and automatic updates today. Weaver is a development preview and does not have those yet.

Feature comparison

Weaver compared with GitHub Desktop
Feature Weaver GitHub Desktop
The app itself
How it is built Yes: Native code (Zig), GPU-drawn UI Partly: Electron (Chromium and Node.js)
Windows Yes: x64 Yes: Yes
macOS Partly: Apple Silicon only Yes: Apple Silicon and Intel
Linux Yes: Official build (Wayland) No: No official build
Price and license Yes: Free, MIT Yes: Free, MIT
Signed installers and automatic updates No: Not yet Yes: Yes
Maturity Partly: Development preview (0.1) Yes: Mature and widely used
Everyday Git
Syntax-highlighted diffs, unified and side by side Yes: Yes Yes: Yes
Stage whole files and single hunks Yes: Yes Yes: Yes
Stage individual lines No: Not yet Yes: Yes
Image diffs No: Not yet Yes: Yes
Merge, rebase, cherry-pick and revert Yes: Yes Yes: Yes
Stashes Yes: Yes Partly: One stash per branch
Resolve conflicts in the app Yes: Keep either side, continue or abort Yes: Yes
Git LFS tools Yes: Set up, track, status and locks Partly: Works with LFS repositories
Which Git runs Yes: The Git you installed, with your config Yes: A bundled copy of Git
Around Git
Works with any Git host Yes: Yes, over HTTPS or SSH Yes: Yes
GitHub sign-in Yes: One click, via Git Credential Manager Yes: Yes, including GitHub Enterprise
Pull requests No: Not yet Yes: Create, check out and see checks
Themes Yes: 11 themes, 12 accent colors Partly: Light and dark
Extensions Yes: Any language, JSON over stdin/stdout No: No extension API

Reviewed October 2026. Both apps change; if something here is out of date, please tell us and we will correct it.

Where Weaver is different

It is a native app

GitHub Desktop is built on Electron, which bundles a copy of Chromium and Node.js. Weaver is written in Zig and draws its own interface on the GPU, with no webview. The Windows download is about 5 MB, and the window is ready as soon as it opens.

It runs on Linux

GitHub Desktop has no official Linux build. Weaver ships one for x64 from the same source as the Windows and macOS apps. It needs a Wayland session and a Vulkan 1.3 driver; there is no X11 backend yet. See the Linux guide.

It uses your Git

GitHub Desktop runs its own bundled copy of Git. Weaver runs the Git you installed, with your configuration. Hooks, commit signing and LFS filters behave exactly as they do in your terminal, because it is the same Git.

You can make it yours

Weaver has eleven themes and twelve accent colors, and an extension API: a small executable in any language, speaking JSON over standard input and output, can add commands and settings to the app.

Where GitHub Desktop is ahead

  • Pull requests. It can create and check out pull requests and show their checks. Weaver has no pull request features yet.
  • Line-level staging. It can stage single lines. Weaver stages whole files and hunks.
  • Image diffs. Weaver’s previews are text only.
  • Polish and distribution. It is signed, updates itself, supports Intel Macs, and has years of use behind it.

Switching takes a minute

Both apps work on ordinary Git repositories, so there is nothing to migrate. Install Weaver, drag your repository folders into the window, and keep GitHub Desktop installed alongside it for as long as you like.

Try Weaver