⌘ K
bash · shell · indent · live

Format Bash shell scripts

Normalises indentation around if/then/fi, for/do/done, and brace blocks. Basic indent only — use shfmt for production. Runs locally.

Bash / Shell Formatter
Input
85 B
7 lines
Output
96 B
8 lines
Status
ready
live
Ratio
1.13×
out/in
input · bash
output · formatted shell
#!/bin/bash
if [ -f file.txt ]; then
  echo "exists"
  for i in 1 2 3; do
    echo $i
  done
fi
Quick Start

How to format Bash

A brace-tracking indenter for shell scripts — flags blocks that open with then/do and close with fi/done.

  1. 01

    Paste your script

    Drop in a #!/bin/bash file, devops snippet, or a one-liner.

    Parsing runs through Prettier’s standalone bundle (or the language-specific equivalent) loaded lazily — no parser ships until the tool is opened.

    bashPrettierASTstandalonelazy
    input · sourceraw · AST
    if [ -f f ]; then
    loaded · parsedAST · ready
  2. 02

    Set indent width

    2 spaces is the shfmt default; 4 is also common.

    Indent width, tab style, and print-width re-format through a memoised pass — switching 2 → 4 spaces never re-parses, only re-prints.

    optionsindentprint-widthmemoisedlive
    opts · optionsindent · live
    indent=2
    options applied · livelive
  3. 03

    Watch blocks align

    if/then bodies indent, fi/done dedent, else lines pull back to match the parent.

    The formatter is deterministic and idempotent: running it twice produces byte-identical output, which keeps diffs and git noise to a minimum.

    liveidempotentdeterministicdiff-cleanstable
    out · formattedindented · ready
    if x; then
  y
fi
    formatted · liveidempotent
  4. 04

    Copy or download

    Grab the .sh file or copy to clipboard. Source stays in your browser.

    Download writes a Blob with the language-appropriate extension; copy uses navigator.clipboard.writeText so the output preserves all whitespace exactly.

    exportclipboardbloblanguage MIMEclient-side
    ok · copiedready · done
    ✓ Copied
    shipped · ready to shipsuccess
Pro tips

Formatting tips that keep diffs sane

Pick one config and pin it

Inconsistent formatting causes diff churn. Commit .prettierrc / .editorconfig and enforce in CI.

Format on save

Editor integration is faster feedback than a pre-commit hook. Use both for belt-and-braces.

Idempotency matters

Running the formatter twice should produce identical output. Test this on a representative file.

Match the language community

Default to community conventions: 2 spaces for JS/CSS, 4 for Python, tabs for Go. Fights over indent are a productivity tax.

Print-width drives wrapping

80, 100, and 120 are the common targets. Wider lines parse fast but review slower side-by-side.

Don’t mix formatters and linters

Prettier handles whitespace; ESLint handles correctness. Disable overlapping rules to avoid fight-club configs.

Related toolsPowerShell FormatterDockerfile FormatterDotenv FormatterYAML FormatterNginx Config FormatterApache Config Formatter
Use Cases

When to format Bash

CI scripts, install snippets, dotfiles.

CI scripts

Tidy GitHub Actions / GitLab CI run blocks. Idempotent: running the formatter twice produces byte-identical output, which is the foundation of a clean CI gate. Pair with a pre-commit hook so PRs arrive already formatted, focusing review on logic.

idempotent

Install snippets

Format curl|sh install scripts before review. Pairs with EditorConfig + .prettierrc for end-to-end consistency. Whitespace-only changes vanish so reviewers see real diffs, and git blame stays honest about who wrote what.

CI-ready

Dotfiles

Indent legacy .bashrc / .zshrc helpers. Output respects your indent width, tab style, and print-width — settings carry over for repeat runs. Switching 2-space to 4-space costs nothing in CPU but standardises an entire codebase.

diff-clean

Code reviews

Normalise whitespace so diffs show real changes. Format-on-save is the fastest feedback loop; CI is the safety net. Together they make inconsistent indentation a thing of the past and free up review cycles for genuine concerns.

PR-friendly

Quick fix

Reformat a one-liner pasted from a tutorial. Whitespace-only changes don't trigger downstream content-hash invalidations, so CDN cache keys and CI cache layers stay warm. Real changes get all the rebuild budget.

review-ready

Docs examples

Standardise shell examples for runbooks. Pairs with linters (ESLint, Stylelint, pylint) that catch what formatting alone can't — bugs, unused imports, dead code. Each tool stays in its lane, and the codebase stays clean.

deterministic
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

No — it's a heuristic indenter. shfmt is the real thing if you need POSIX-correct behaviour.
No. Single and double-quoted strings are preserved verbatim.
Heredoc bodies are not detected — they may indent oddly. Treat with care.
No. Comments keep their original line position; only indentation changes.
No — the formatter runs locally in your browser tab.
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