clean-worktrees

name	clean-worktrees
description	Remove all git worktrees for merged branches. Accepts --dry-run to preview. Use after merging PRs or for weekly maintenance.

Clean Worktrees Skill

Automatically remove all worktrees for branches merged into the default branch (main or master). No interaction required.

Usage

$clean-worktrees              # Remove all merged worktrees
$clean-worktrees --dry-run    # Preview what would be deleted

Implementation

Execute this script:

#!/bin/bash
set -euo pipefail

DRY_RUN=false
if [[ "${ARGUMENTS:-}" == *"--dry-run"* ]]; then
  DRY_RUN=true
fi

DEFAULT_BRANCH=$(git symbolic-ref refs/remotes/origin/HEAD 2>/dev/null | sed 's|.*/||' || \
                 git branch --list main master 2>/dev/null | head -1 | xargs || \
                 echo "main")

echo "Cleaning Worktrees"
echo "=================="
echo "Default branch: $DEFAULT_BRANCH"
echo ""

echo "1. Pruning stale git references..."
PRUNED=$(git worktree prune -v 2>&1)
[ -n "$PRUNED" ] && echo "$PRUNED" || echo "No stale references found"
echo ""

echo "2. Finding merged worktrees..."
MERGED_COUNT=0
MERGED_BRANCHES=()
CURRENT_DIR="$(pwd)"

while IFS= read -r line; do
  path=$(echo "$line" | awk '{print $1}')
  branch=$(echo "$line" | grep -oE '\[.*\]' | tr -d '[]' || true)
  [ -z "$branch" ] && continue
  [ "$branch" = "master" ] && continue
  [ "$branch" = "main" ] && continue
  [ "$path" = "$CURRENT_DIR" ] && continue
  if git branch --merged "$DEFAULT_BRANCH" 2>/dev/null | grep -q "^[* ] ${branch}$"; then
    MERGED_COUNT=$((MERGED_COUNT + 1))
    MERGED_BRANCHES+=("$branch|$path")
    echo "  - $branch (merged)"
  fi
done < <(git worktree list)

if [ $MERGED_COUNT -eq 0 ]; then
  echo "No merged worktrees found"
  git worktree list
  exit 0
fi

echo "Found $MERGED_COUNT merged worktree(s)"

if [ "$DRY_RUN" = true ]; then
  echo "DRY RUN — Would delete:"
  for item in "${MERGED_BRANCHES[@]}"; do
    branch=$(echo "$item" | cut -d'|' -f1)
    path=$(echo "$item" | cut -d'|' -f2)
    echo "  - $branch ($path)"
  done
  echo "Run without --dry-run to actually delete"
  exit 0
fi

echo "3. Removing merged worktrees..."
REMOVED_COUNT=0
for item in "${MERGED_BRANCHES[@]}"; do
  branch=$(echo "$item" | cut -d'|' -f1)
  path=$(echo "$item" | cut -d'|' -f2)
  echo "Removing: $branch"
  git worktree remove "$path" 2>/dev/null || { rm -rf "$path" 2>/dev/null; git worktree prune 2>/dev/null; }
  git branch -d "$branch" 2>/dev/null || true
  REMOVED_COUNT=$((REMOVED_COUNT + 1))
done

echo ""
echo "Removed: $REMOVED_COUNT worktree(s)"
git worktree list

Safety Features

• Only removes branches merged into main/master
• Auto-detects default branch via git symbolic-ref
• Never removes main or master
• Never removes the current working directory
• Dry-run mode to preview before deletion

When to Use

• After merging PRs
• Weekly maintenance
• Before creating new worktrees: $clean-worktrees --dry-run first