README.md

May 30, 2026 · View on GitHub

zerobrew

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zerobrew brings uv-style architecture to Homebrew packages on macOS and Linux.

Install

curl -fsSL https://zerobrew.rs/install | bash

The installer updates your shell config. After it finishes, restart your terminal or run the source command it prints.

Or via Homebrew:

brew install lucasgelfond/zerobrew/zerobrew

Update zerobrew

If you used the standalone installer, rerun it:

curl -fsSL https://zerobrew.rs/install | bash
zb --version

If you installed with Homebrew:

brew update && brew upgrade zerobrew

Quick start

zb install jq                   # install one package
zb install wget git             # install multiple
zb bundle                       # install from Brewfile
zb bundle install -f myfile     # install from custom file
zb bundle dump                  # export installed packages to Brewfile
zb bundle dump -f out --force   # dump to custom file (overwrite)
zb uninstall jq                 # uninstall one package
zb outdated                     # list packages with newer versions
zb upgrade                      # upgrade all outdated packages
zb upgrade jq wget              # upgrade specific packages
zb reset                        # uninstall everything
zb gc                           # garbage collect unused store entries
zbx jq --version                # run without linking

Performance snapshot

Package	Homebrew	ZB (cold)	ZB (warm)	Cold Speedup	Warm Speedup
Overall (top 100)	452s	226s	59s	2.0x	7.6x
ffmpeg	3034ms	3481ms	688ms	0.9x	4.4x
libsodium	2353ms	392ms	130ms	6.0x	18.1x
sqlite	2876ms	625ms	159ms	4.6x	18.1x
tesseract	18950ms	5536ms	643ms	3.4x	29.5x

Relationship with Homebrew

zerobrew is more of a performance-optimized client for the Homebrew ecosystem. We rely on:

Homebrew's formula definitions (homebrew-core)
Homebrew's pre-built bottles when available
Homebrew's package metadata and infrastructure

Our innovations focus on:

Content-addressable storage for deduplication
APFS clonefiles for zero-overhead copying
Source build fallback using Homebrew's Ruby DSL

zerobrew is experimental. We recommend running it alongside Homebrew rather than as a replacement, and do not recommend purging homebrew and replacing it with zerobrew unless you are absolutely sure about the implications of doing so.

Project status

Status: Experimental, but already useful for many common Homebrew formulas.
Feedback: If you hit incompatibilities, please open an issue or PR.
License: Dual-licensed under Apache 2.0 OR MIT, at your choice.