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bash

brew install bash v5.3.15 GPL-3.0-or-later

UNIX shell interpreter and command language implementing POSIX sh with extensions.

Why you might care

Bash is the de facto standard interactive shell on Linux and macOS, widely used for scripting and system administration. Install via Homebrew for a newer version than the system default (often outdated on macOS for licensing reasons). Essential if you need modern bash features, bug fixes, or consistent behavior across machines.

Categories

shell interpreter sysadmin

Alternatives

zsh ksh dash fish
54.9k
30-day installs · #115
107.0k
90-day · #175
403.6k
365-day · #174

Runtime dependencies

ncurses readline gettext

Links

Caveats

DEFAULT_LOADABLE_BUILTINS_PATH: $HOMEBREW_PREFIX/lib/bash:/usr/local/lib/bash:/usr/lib/bash:/opt/local/lib/bash:/usr/pkg/lib/bash:/opt/pkg/lib/bash:.

Blurb generated by claude-haiku-4-5 on today.

Raw metadata 
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