Clean Git Branch
Clean up the local Git branches you no longer need, right from the VS Code sidebar.
Over time, local branches pile up: merged features, branches deleted on the server, experiments. Clean Git Branch lists them with their status, shows which ones no longer exist on the remote, and deletes the ones you pick in one click.
Features
- 📊 List all local branches with their status
- 🔄 Show which branches still exist on the remote (
git fetch --prune on refresh)
- 🗂️ Repository selector for multi-root workspaces and nested repositories
- ⚡ Automatic update when Git changes (checkout, new or deleted branch, fetch…), without polling
- 🗑️ Delete several local branches at once, with confirmation
- 🔒 Current and main branches are protected from deletion
- 🎨 Follows your VS Code theme
Installation
Download the .vsix file from the GitHub releases, then in VS Code run Extensions: Install from VSIX... from the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P).
If the original extension by monkeykjy is installed, uninstall it first to avoid two similar views.
How to Use
- Open a folder or workspace containing one or more Git repositories
- Click the Clean Git Branch icon in the activity bar
- Pick a repository in the selector (shown when there are several)
- Check the branches to delete and click Delete N branches
Click the refresh icon to fetch the remote and update the remote status. Enable VS Code's git.autofetch setting to keep it up to date automatically.
Branches are sorted by last commit, newest first. The date of the last commit (MM-DD) is shown on the right of the tags; hover it for the full date and time.
remote: the branch exists on the remotelocal only: no matching branch on the remote (never pushed, or deleted remotely)current: the checked-out branch (cannot be deleted)main: the default branch from origin/HEAD, else main or master (cannot be deleted)
Requirements
- VS Code 1.80.0 or higher
- Git installed (the one configured in VS Code's
git.path setting is used)
- A trusted workspace: the extension is disabled in Restricted Mode
Important Notes
- Delete operations only affect local branches, not remote branches
- Branches are deleted with
git branch -D (force): make sure their changes are merged first
- Nested repositories are discovered up to
git.repositoryScanMaxDepth levels (VS Code setting, default 1)
Origin
This project is a fork of git-branch-pruner by monkeykjy, forked on 2026-09-24 from version 0.1.1. Since then it gained multi-repository support, automatic updates, a redesigned interface, and security and performance fixes. See the changelog for details.
Feedback
Found a bug or have a suggestion? Open an issue on GitHub.
Want to contribute or run it locally? See the development guide.
License
MIT
