Macos zsh default. If you’d like to use zsh as the default shell in Terminal for Mac OS rather than bash, you can do so rather easily with taking the following steps: Jun 21, 2025 · Setting up your macOS shell environment properly is crucial for an efficient development workflow. Aug 25, 2020 · A piece of friendly advice Oh My Zsh is a fun, colorful, and even productive add-on for Zsh that makes lots of changes and adds lots of scripts and functions to your Zsh environment. Notably it provides a comprhensive command-line completion system that can save a lot of time when you're working in the terminal. The ~/ translates to your user’s home directory and the . Zsh is an extension of bash, so you get all the benefits available in the latter, plus more. Apr 18, 2020 · Since macOS Catalina, zsh is the default shell instead of bash. To maximize your productivity as a developer, customizing your terminal with Zsh and useful plugins is a must. com Feb 15, 2023 · If you’ve just upgraded macOS and seen a message that says, 'The default interactive shell is now zsh', we’ll tell you why and what to do about it. You can change the shell that new Terminal windows and tabs open with. In this extensive guide, I‘ll explain in detail how to install Zsh, set it as the default shell, customize it to your needs, and troubleshoot any issues. However, if you wanted to use homebrew's zsh (which is installed under /usr/local/bin/zsh), this would be the proper way to do it Nov 24, 2024 · As a professional software engineer and coding instructor with over 15 years of experience, I‘ve come to master the art of customizing my terminal into a productive power tool. Apr 26, 2025 · The latest macOS systems comes with Z Shell (Zsh) as default shell, but who still preferred to use bash can still use it by switching the default shell. This comprehensive guide will walk you through configuring environment variables, managing shell profiles, and setting up aliases for optimal productivity. I don’t recommend this for novices. Jan 12, 2021 · As you can see above, I was on the bash shell ($) before and typing zsh switched me to Z Shell (%) ️ Since macOS Catalina Zsh is the default shell, you might see "The default interactive shell is now zsh. zshrc is the ZSH configuration file itself. . In this comprehensive 2800+ word […] Aug 24, 2024 · The default macOS terminal is basic and limited. Since macOS Catalina, Apple has made Zsh the default shell, replacing Bash. Aug 4, 2025 · Key Takeaways ZSH provides significant productivity improvements over default shells through auto-completion, syntax highlighting, and plugin support Installation is straightforward across all major operating systems using package managers Setting ZSH as your default shell requires the chsh command and a session restart The . - Installing ZSH · ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh Wiki Mar 26, 2024 · With macOS Catalina, Apple switched from using bash as the default terminal shell to Zsh. zshrc configuration file controls all ZSH behavior and customization They worked for OP because by default, Apple installs zsh at /bin/zsh. Are you looking to enhance your terminal and command-line workflow on Mac? Then setting Zsh as the default shell is an impactful upgrade. Includes 300+ optional plugins (rails, git, macOS, hub, docker, homebrew, node, php, python, etc), 140+ themes to spice up your morning, and an auto-update tool that makes it easy to keep up with the latest updates from the community. Dec 29, 2018 · Zsh, or z shell, is a popular shell alternative to bash and tcsh, complete with many improvements and customization options offered through the Oh-My-ZSH project. zshrc doesn’t exist by default in macOS so you need to create it. bash_profile doesn't help; you either need to change your zsh profile through open ~/. This tutorial will help you for switching between Zsh and Bash on macOS systems. Jun 4, 2019 · All newly created user accounts in macOS Catalina will use zsh by default. While macOS ships with the reliable bash shell, Zsh offers advanced functionality and customization options that make it worth upgrading to. Bash will still be available, but Apple is signaling that developers should start moving to zsh on macOS Mojave or See full list on howtogeek. Change the default shell in Terminal on Mac The default shell is zsh. The reason behind the switch, among other reasons, includes avoiding licensing obligations of GPLv3 license in the modern versions of bash, enhanced security, and adding new features. " message when you switch from zsh to bash. By default zsh is very capable and provides many improvements over bash (the previous macOS default). 🙃 A delightful community-driven (with 2,400+ contributors) framework for managing your zsh configuration. zshrc change your default shell to bash through chsh -s /bin/bash It's also possible to do this via the GUI but if you're already in Terminal, this is quicker. So changing ~/. It’s always better to gain some experience in the shell environment and see how things work before installing things Mar 6, 2015 · The ~/. Sep 5, 2025 · Wondering how to install and use Oh My Zsh on Mac? You've come to the right place as we'll show you everything there is to know. btiaq ypd tycnyz cbpti xjnvpf dnirxy vqi lsshc hafxu myx