Git Basics: Saving Unfinished Work with Stash

A stash temporarily sets aside local edits so you can return to a clean working tree. Practice saving and restoring one tracked file before using it during an interruption.

Run these commands in Bash with Git 2.28 or newer installed. Start a fresh temporary repository for this article:

git_practice=$(mktemp -d) || exit
cd "$git_practice" || exit
git init -q -b main
git config user.name 'Practice User'
git config user.email 'practice@example.invalid'
git config commit.gpgsign false

The identity and signing settings apply only to this repository. Use your own identity in real projects. The temporary files remain afterward. Examples assume default Git settings; if a pager opens, press q to leave it.

Prepare an unfinished edit

printf 'port=8080\n' > app.conf
git add app.conf
git commit -q -m 'Add application config'
printf 'port=9090\n' > app.conf
git status --short

 M app.conf

The modification is in the working file and has not been staged.

Save it for later

git stash push -q -m 'Try another port'
cat app.conf
git stash list --format='%gd %s'

port=8080
stash@{0} On main: Try another port

The working file is back at the committed value. stash@{0} names the newest stash. By default, stash saves changes to tracked files; untracked and ignored files are left alone. git stash push -u also includes untracked files, but still excludes ignored files.

Restore without removing the stash

git stash apply -q 'stash@{0}'
cat app.conf
git status --short

port=9090
 M app.conf

apply restores the saved changes and keeps the stash entry. In this example the edit remains unstaged. Restoring the original staging state is a separate choice, using --index.

Applying to changed files can cause conflicts. Start with a clean working tree and inspect the result before deleting the stash. A stash is local temporary storage, not a backup uploaded to your remote.

Commit before removing the saved copy

git add app.conf
git commit -q -m 'Change application port'
git log -1 --format=%s

Change application port

The edit is now safely in a commit. The next command deletes the selected stash entry; do not drop an entry until you have verified that you no longer need it.

git stash drop -q 'stash@{0}'
git stash list

No output means the stash list is empty. git stash pop combines applying with removal after a successful apply; using apply first gives you a chance to inspect the result.

Reference

Git stash manual

Acknowledgements

This post was created with assistance from AI.