Linux terminal environment is where the real power lies. Savvy users, network admins, programmers, and tech enthusiasts always prefer the terminal environment when working with a Linux system. It gives you the raw power and flexibility to do things you may not be able to do through a GUI application. A command line environment is comparatively faster than a GUI for resource-consuming tasks. Today, we will learn about some of the most useful and productive tools aimed at power users who prefer Linux command-line environments. These tools should make your daily workflow—a breeze!
All these tools can work on any Linux distribution you are currently using. The only thing that may differ is the installation method. Some of these handpicked tools are general-purpose and intended for all users.
While others may be used only by a certain group of users. Whatever the case, mastering these powerful command-line tools will give you an edge over other Linux users. Let's get started!
1. tmux – Terminal Multiplexer
Now this one is for true power users. This powerful terminal multiplexer enables you to open multiple panes of terminal sessions to help you multitask like a pro. If you are using a large monitor, take advantage of the screen space and use this tool.
How to Install tmux
Here's how you install this powerful terminal multiplexer:
sudo apt install tmux # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo yum install tmux # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
tmux new -s summerprojectKey Features
- Split multiple terminals into panes
- Create persistent terminal sessions
- Easily adjust the pane position
- Customize through configuration scripts
- Quickly attach and detach terminal sessions
Network administrators and developers often use this tool to either manage multiple servers or to compile and run multiple projects.
2. htop – Interactive Process Viewer
This tool is an advanced replacement for the good old top utility. It comparatively gives you much more processes information and that too through a nice interface. If you frequently monitor processes on your Linux network, this one is a must-have tool in your arsenal as a pro network administrator.
How to Install htop
Use the following commands to install htop on your Linux computer:
sudo apt install htop # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo dnf install htop # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
htopKey Features
- Enables process-killing keystrokes
- Easy-to-understand color-coded interface
- Switch between regular and tree process views
- Real-time processes information
- Easy sorting and filtering of data
Viewing which processes are running and what resources they are consuming has never been easier. This excellent tool makes it easy to analyze and manage the currently running processes.
3. ncdu – Disk Usage Analyzer
The traditional du tool gives you a concentrated storage summary of attached disk drives. But, ncdu gives you detailed information about disk's space usage and easily identlifies the files and directories that are consuming a lot of space. Weeding out space hoggers through this tool is so easy.
How to Install ncdu
This is how can get ncdu on your Linux system:
sudo apt install ncdu # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo dnf install ncdu # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
ncdu /Key Features
- Easy-to-navigate interface
- Quick sorting options
- Delete files easily
- Easily identify large files and directories
- Fast and lightweight
If you work on large projects with a lot of temporary files, this tool be used to clean up the workspace by pinpointing the unnecessary files taking a lot of disk space.
4. fzf – Fuzzy Finder
It's a powerful, lightweight, and extremely flexible search utility for Linux. You can pipe the results of other tools and commands and then find the desired information quickly to filter out unnecessary data. It can also be used to filter and send the data to other tools.
How to Install fzf
This search utility can be installed using the following commands:
sudo apt install fzf # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo dnf install fzf # On a CentOS/RHEL system
Example usage
ps -ef | fzfKey Features
- Fast fuzzy search
- Integrates nicely with Vim and Git
- Search through almost everything
- Easily pipe results to other tools and applications
- Highly customizable
You should use this tool as an intermediate data filtering funnel when using a multi-stage pipe command in Linux. Once try it you'll never use any other similar tool.
5. ripgrep (rg) – Supercharged Search Tool
This tool is like grep supercharged with loads of extra features. It's comparatively faster than the old tool and is able to perform a search on a large data set in a quick time. It's search is always recursive. Once you try it, you'll never again use the old grep tool.
How to Install ripgrep
Here's how to install ripgrep utility:
sudo apt-get install ripgrep # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo dnf install ripgrep # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
rg "function_name" ~/ProjectDirKey Features
- Full regex support
- Fast recursive search
- Prominently highlights matches
- Git aware execution
- Supports Unicode out of the box
This tool automatically honors .gitignore files to speed up the search by many folds. Its support for Unicode and color-coded output makes it one of the best in its category.
6. bat – Better `cat` with Syntax Highlighting
This should be your go-to tool for displaying content of files. I generally use it for displaying content of standard log files that are nicely formatted for easy understanding. This tool automatically pipes the large output to the less command.
How to Install bat
It's dead simple to install bat on Linux. The following are the commands:
sudo apt install bat # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo dnf install bat # On a CentOS/RHEL system
$ Example usage
bat ~/server.cKey Features
- Syntax highlighting
- Git integration for better visualization of changes
- Line numbers to find the location easily
- Paging support
- Makes reading config files—easy
If you are using this tool on Ubuntu, it may be possible that it is available as batcat. So make sure you create an alias for the same.
7. eza – Modern Replacement for `ls`
If you are used to using ls for listing files and directories, it's time to switch to eza as it is packed with features you can never find in the old one. It makes the listing much more pleasing to the eyes as well as easy to understand. You must use this tool without giving a second thought.
How to Install eza
Get eza on your system by firing these commands:
# On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo mkdir -p /etc/apt/keyrings
wget -qO- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/eza-community/eza/main/deb.asc | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/keyrings/gierens.gpg
echo "deb [signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/gierens.gpg] http://deb.gierens.de stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/gierens.list
sudo chmod 644 /etc/apt/keyrings/gierens.gpg /etc/apt/sources.list.d/gierens.list
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y eza
# On a CentOS/RHEL system
sudo dnf install exa
$ Example usage
eza -l --git --iconsKey Features
- Colored output
- Formatted for human reading
- Git information
- Tree view
- Supports icons
It also understands hyperlinks and gives details about the mount points as well. Not just Linux, but it's available for other popular operating systems too.
8. glances – Cross-Platform System Monitor
You can compare this tool with the performance tab of the Windows Task Manager. You get all the details about the system metrics in a nicely formatted output. All the metrics are updated in real time enabling you to easily asses the system performance—at a glance.
How to Install glances
Use the following commands to run glances on your Linux machine:
# On a Ubuntu system
sudo apt install python3
sudo apt install python3-pip
sudo pip3 install --upgrade pip
pip install --user 'glances[all]'
# On a CentOS/RHEL system
sudo dnf install --assumeyes python3-pip
pip install --user 'glances[all]'
# Example usage
glancesKey Features
- Both CLI and web support
- Easy export options for system metrics
- Interface scales automatically depending on the screen size
- Detailed system metrics
- Works on all major distros
It's available for macOS and Windows too. Advanced users can use its JSON API for their projects. If you have a large monitor, you are going to love this system metrics display tool.
9. tldr – Simplified Man Pages
The regular man pages on Linux are overwhelmingly filled with loads of extra information you may not even need at all. That's where tldr comes into play. It gives you a practical help manual for a command or tool enabling you to easily grab the essentials to get the work done.
How to Install tldr
It's dead simple to install tldr on a Linux system:
# On all Linux distros
npm install -g tldr
# Example usage
tldr psKey Features
- Better help pages with practical examples
- Nicely formatted
- Growing list of commands and tools
- Can be used as a reference manual
- Lightweight
Since it is community-powered, the list of commands and tools added to tldr is growing day by day. If you have limited time and do not want to go deep into a man page, this tool is your best bet.
10. jq – Command-Line JSON Processor
If you want a command-line tool to process JSON data in different possible ways, jq is the best utility out there. It's extremely powerful and flexible when it comes to transforming JSON data. Both frontend and backend developers prefer to use this app while testing JSON data on the command line.
How to Install jq
Use the following commands to install jq on your system:
# On all Linux distros
git submodule update --init
autoreconf -i
./configure --with-oniguruma=builtin
make clean
make -j8
make check
sudo make install
# Example usage
echo '["foo","cat","func"]' | jq '.[]'Key Features
- Formatted display of JSON data
- Filter and change JSON data with ease
- Slice and dice JSON data
- Supports array filtering
- Extremely flexible and powerful
You can push JSON data to this tool either from the files or through the output of another tool followed by complex processing to get the desired result.
11. tree – Advanced Directory Visualizer
Instead of listing files and directories in a linear fashion, try out tree command to visualize the directory structure in a tree format. This gives you a clear picture how things are organized. It's flexible giving you ample options to customize the tree listing in your preferred format.
How to Install tree
To install tree, use the following commands:
sudo apt install tree # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo yum install tree # On a CentOS/RHEL system
#Example usage
tree -aKey Features
- Nicely formatted colored output
- List directories recursively
- Customize output through switches
- Wildcard support
- Print statistics in human-readable format
I often use it to visualize project structure to find out where new folders or sub-folders need to be created. Do give it a try!
12. rsync – Multi-Featured File Copying Tool
It's a must-have tool for Linux server administrators and web developers. Through it, you can easily copy huge volumes of files and directories across remote servers and that too in a secure and reliable manner. It's commonly use to automate disk mirroring and incremental backups.
How to Install rsync
Most probably, rsync comes preinstalled with your Linux distro. If not, use the following commands:
sudo apt install rsync # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo yum install rsync # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
rsync -zvh requests.log /project/logs/Key Features
- Fast and incremental file transfer
- Transfer files to remote servers
- Preserve file metadata during the transfer
- Easily resume interrupted transfers
- Lightweight and stable
If you are an advanced user and are good at shell scripting, use this tool to never lose important data on your Linux systems. It's my go-to file-copying tool for Linux.
13. httpie – User-Friendly API Tester
Both backend and frontend developers are going to love this powerful HTTP client supercharged with features. It's an ideal tool to test and debug APIs. Apart from the command line, you can also use it as a desktop app. Once you use it, you'll never return to any other API testing app.
How to Install httpie
Use the following commands to get httpie installed:
sudo apt install httpie # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo yum install httpie # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
https GET https://www.freshtechtips.comKey Features
- Full JSON processing support
- Colored and formatted output
- Create persistent sessions
- Test forms and create proxies
- Rich authentication support
If you are a curl user, comparatively this one has a simpler syntax making API testing—a breeze. To get a taste of it, try out its web version, right within your browser.
14. Zsh + Oh My Zsh – Supercharged Shell
The regular bash shell is boring. Try this new combination and you get a supercharged shell experience that'll make your entire workflow both productive and fun. I use it on all my Linux systems and benefit from the features it has on offer.
How to Install Oh My Zsh
Use this single command to install it easily:
sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"
Key Features
- Auto-completion of commands
- Git integration
- Themes and plugins
- Syntax highlighting
- Highly configurable to match your workflow
When you install it for the first time, you can go through its setup wizard to customize it as per your preferences. You can easily change it later through the config files.
15. mtr – Network Diagnostics Power Tool
It's an advanced and featured-packed network diagnostic tool network administrators should use when troubleshooting issues. It's open source and is one of the most reliable tools to test your Linux network. It's kind of a Swiss army knife when it comes to network troubleshooting.
How to Install mtr
Install mtr using the following commands:
sudo apt install mtr # On a Debian/Ubuntu system
sudo dnf install mtr # On a CentOS/RHEL system
# Example usage
mtr -4b github.comKey Features
- Combines features of both
tracerouteandpingutilities - Monitors network metrics in real time
- Both ICMP and UDP protocols are supported
- Choose between graphical and text modes
- Available for all major platforms
You can adjust the latency of the metrics display as well as the information you want to see. With ample switches, you can filter out the network metrics you don't want to monitor.
Conclusion
Think of the terminal as a powerful multitool—it becomes really useful once you learn how to use it well. The right tools can help you work faster, fix issues more easily, and make your time in the command line much smoother and more enjoyable.
Whether you're managing servers, coding, or tweaking your Linux setup, adding these tools to your routine can make a real difference. Try a few and see how they can help you get things done more efficiently.
