PromptHive 🐝
Lightning-fast open source prompt manager for developers. Terminal-native, sub-15ms operations, works with any AI tool. 1000+ organic downloads.
🚀 Website: prompthive.sh | 🤝 Companion Tool: CalmHive for background AI processing
TL;DR
# Install (Latest: v0.2.8)
# OR: curl -sSL https://prompthive.sh/install.sh | bash
# Multiple Workflows - Choose Your Style
# 1. Perfect commit messages (PRODUCTION READY ✅)
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# 2. Instant debugging (BATTLE TESTED ✅)
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# 3. Complete PR workflows
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Why? Because copy-pasting from ChatGPT history takes 30+ seconds. PromptHive operations average 8ms.
Current Version: 0.2.8 - Open source with community registry, instant authentication, team collaboration, and prompt sharing. All features included, no paid tiers.
🚀 Philosophy: Terminal-First Development | Spec-Driven AI Engineering 📁 Complete Guide: prompthive.sh | 🤖 Background AI: calmhive.com
Core Promise: Every command under 15ms. It's a TOOL, not a LIBRARY.
Unix Philosophy: We don't run AI. We manage prompts perfectly, and pipe them to ANY AI tool you prefer. Like
npmdoesn't run JavaScript, we don't run prompts. We just make them instantly accessible.
# PromptHive + Your Favorite AI Tools - Three Patterns:
# 1. Command Substitution (Interactive AI):
# 2. Piped with -p flag (Non-interactive/Scripting):
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# 3. Direct Output (Auto-clipboard):
🚀 Installation
Cargo (Rust) - Available Now ✅
# Install from crates.io
# Verify installation
Quick Install Script
# Automatic installation with platform detection
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# Verify installation
Current Status: Version 0.2.8 is available on crates.io. The install script automatically downloads pre-built binaries for your platform.
Shell Completions
After installation, set up shell completions for the best experience:
Bash
Zsh
# Add to ~/.zshrc: fpath=(~/.zsh_completions $fpath)
Fish
Quickstart
# Use built-in essentials (ready to go!)
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# Use immediately with real workflows
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# Use with ANY AI tool (copies to clipboard if terminal, pipes if piped)
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# Lightning-fast operations
# Share and organize with banks
# Create custom banks from your favorite prompts
"But Why Not Just..."
1000+ developers chose PromptHive. Here's why existing alternatives don't scale:
...use text files in ~/prompts/?
Reality check: You tried this. It works until you have 20+ prompts, then:
- Can't fuzzy search across them in 8ms (try
find+grep—it's slow) - No smart matching (
ph u au→auth-basicinstantly) - No metadata, descriptions, or organization
- No team sharing or version control
- Biggest issue: You stop using them because access isn't instant
...use shell aliases?
# This worked for 5 prompts. What about 50?
# Your .bashrc becomes unmaintainable
# vs PromptHive:
...use Neovim with snippets?
For developers who live in Neovim: You could build this with:
- Snippet plugins (20 minutes setup)
- Custom fuzzy search (another plugin)
- Template variables (more configuration)
- Team sharing (Git repos + more setup)
Reality: Most developers want prompts to "just work" across all contexts—terminal, browser, any AI tool. PromptHive is purpose-built for this.
...use ChatGPT/Claude history search?
- 30+ seconds to find that perfect prompt from last week
- Lost when you clear browser history
- Can't compose: No
cat error.log | [your-prompt] | claude - No iteration: Can't improve prompts over time
- No sharing: Your team reinvents the same prompts
...use GitHub Gists or company wikis?
- Network dependency: Fails when WiFi is down
- No terminal integration: Can't pipe directly
- Context switching: Breaks flow between terminal and browser
- Slow: 2-5 seconds minimum to access
The Real Differentiator: Workflow Velocity
When prompt access drops below 80ms, something profound happens: You stop thinking about the tool and start thinking with it.
This isn't about saving 30 seconds once. It's about saving 5 minutes, 20 times per day, while maintaining flow state.
Commands (v0.2.8)
# Just run 'ph' to launch the TUI (like lazygit)
### Advanced Features
🚀 Power User Examples
Built-in Template Variables
# Prompts automatically support built-in variables
# Environment variables work too
# Variables are replaced when you use the prompt
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# Output includes current date, username, and hostname automatically
Version Control - Never Lose a Good Prompt
# Tag important versions of your prompts
# View history
# 📚 Version history for 'api-design'
# 📌 v2.0 (a3b4c5d6) - Complete rewrite for REST best practices
# 📌 v1.1 (87654321) - Added error handling section
# 📌 v1.0 (12345678) - Initial stable API prompt
# Rollback when needed
# ✅ Rolled back 'api-design' to version 'v1.1'
Diff & Merge - Collaborate on Prompts
# Compare prompt versions
# Merge improvements
Web Dashboard - Visual Analytics
# Open interactive dashboard
🎯 Unified I/O Design - Smart Defaults
PromptHive uses intelligent defaults based on context, reducing typing while maintaining flexibility:
Text Transformation Commands (use, show, clean)
In Terminal (TTY):
- Auto-copies to clipboard by default
- No stdout output (content is on clipboard)
- Use
-qto suppress clipboard and output to stdout instead
When Piping:
- Outputs to stdout for pipe compatibility
- No auto-clipboard (use
-cto force clipboard)
# Terminal usage - auto-clipboard
# Piping - outputs to stdout
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# Force clipboard even when piping
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# Quiet mode in terminal
Query Commands (ls, find)
Always outputs to stdout (auto-clipboard would be too noisy)
- Use
-cto explicitly copy results - Use
-sto save as a new prompt
Universal I/O Flags
Every command supports these consistent flags:
-s NAME- Save output as a new prompt-a NAME- Append output to existing prompt-c- Force copy to clipboard-f PATH- Write to file (with bidirectional sync)-q- Quiet mode (suppress default behaviors)-e- Edit before output (where applicable)
Smart File Operations
The -f flag creates bidirectional sync by default:
# Create prompt with automatic file sync
# Smart naming when path not provided
# Bidirectional sync means:
# - Edit the file → prompt updates
# - Edit the prompt → file updates
# - Always stay in sync!
Composable Flags
All flags work together sensibly:
# Clean, save, append, copy, and write to file
# Use prompt, edit result, save, and sync to file
# Find prompts, save results, copy to clipboard
Design Philosophy
- Smart defaults: Do the right thing based on context
- Explicit overrides: Flags always override defaults
- Composability: All flags combine logically
- No surprises: Predictable behavior in all contexts
Configuration
Disable Logging
# Temporary (this session only)
# Only errors
# Complete silence
# Permanent (add to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc)
Other Environment Variables
PROMPTHIVE_BASE_DIR=/custom/path # Change storage location
PROMPTHIVE_EDITOR=code # Set preferred editor
PROMPTHIVE_LOG_FORMAT=json # JSON logs for production
Creative Usage Patterns
🎯 Daily Journaling & Reflection
# Create a journal bank
# Daily workflow
🧠 Learning & Study Assistant
# Create study prompts
# Study session
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💼 Meeting & Communication Templates
# Professional templates
# Quick usage
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🎨 Creative Writing & Content
# Writing helpers
# Content creation
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🔧 DevOps & Operations
# Runbook templates
# Incident response
📊 Data Analysis & Research
# Analysis templates
# Research workflow
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🎮 Personal Productivity
# Life management
# Daily use
🚀 API & Integration Patterns
# Combine with other tools
# Scheduled prompts
# 0 9 * * 1 ph use work/weekly-goals | mail -s "Weekly Goals" me@example.com
# 0 17 * * * git log --since="9am" | ph use journal/daily | ph save today
Performance
PromptHive operations are optimized for instant prompt access:
)
)
&
What these times represent:
- PromptHive operations: File I/O, prompt processing, fuzzy matching (~2-50ms)
- AI processing time: Separate - depends on your AI tool (5-30+ seconds)
- Value proposition: Zero-latency prompt access vs. writing prompts from scratch
The real speed gain: Instead of spending 2-5 minutes crafting the perfect prompt, you get battle-tested prompts instantly.
Partial Matching (Like JJ)
PromptHive uses smart partial matching:
# If unique, uses the match
# If ambiguous, shows options:
) &
)
)
The Magic: Composition
PromptHive is the ONLY tool that lets you chain prompts:
# Fix a bug completely
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# Each prompt transforms the previous output
# Total time: 250ms for 5 prompts
Real-World Usage
Daily Developer Workflows
# 🔥 Auto-generate perfect commit messages
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# 🐛 Debug errors instantly
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# 📝 Generate PR descriptions
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# 🧪 Create tests from code
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# 📚 Document your code
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# 🔍 Code review helper
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Advanced Workflows
# Chain multiple prompts for complex tasks
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# Morning standup automation
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# Refactor legacy code
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🧙 Workflow Automation Examples
# AI-Powered Git Workflow
# Automated Code Review Pipeline
# Daily Standup Generator
# Smart Documentation Generator
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🔰 Shell Pipes Primer (for Terminal Newbies)
The Basics
# The pipe | sends output from one command to another
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# Redirect > saves output to a file
# Append >> adds to a file without overwriting
# Input < reads from a file
With PromptHive
# Simple: Copy to clipboard (when in terminal)
# Pipe to AI: Send prompt to AI tool
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# Chain: Multiple operations
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# Save: Capture output
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# Combine: Mix different sources
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When to Use What
- No pipe: When you just want to copy a prompt
- Single pipe |: When sending to one AI tool
- Multiple pipes |: When chaining operations
- Redirect >: When saving results
- Cat/Echo: When adding context to prompts
🏦 Prompt Banks - Instant Productivity
Built-in Prompts Ready to Use
# essentials/ - Core developer workflows
# 10x/ - Advanced productivity workflows
Create Your Own Banks
# Option 1: From existing prompts
# Option 2: From Claude commands (if you have them)
# Now use: ph use claude/command-name
# Option 3: Create specialized banks
Sharing Banks with Your Team
# Share via Git (recommended)
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# Team members clone it
# Now everyone can: ph use team/api-design
# Keep banks in sync
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# Or use PromptHive's built-in sharing
Real Workflows with Banks
# Developer workflows
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# Professional communication
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# Infrastructure & DevOps
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# Design patterns
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# Advanced workflows
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# Create aliases for common workflows
Building PromptHive with Itself
We built PromptHive using PromptHive:
# Bootstrap phase
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# Every feature after
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# Test and iterate
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File Structure
Dead simple, just markdown files:
~/.prompthive/
├── prompts/ # Your personal prompts
│ ├── api.md
│ ├── auth.md
│ └── test.md
├── banks/ # Organized prompt collections
│ ├── essentials/ # Built-in essentials
│ ├── 10x/ # Productivity workflows
│ ├── workflow/ # Complex processes
│ └── myteam/ # Your custom banks
├── registry/ # Cached registry packages
└── config.toml # Configuration
Prompt Format
Just markdown with optional frontmatter:
id: api
description: REST API design
Design a REST API with these requirements:
- ---
Why PromptHive?
- Speed: 8ms operations are addictive (ChatGPT: 30+ seconds)
- Simple: Just like
lsandcat- no learning curve - Universal: Works with ALL AI tools, not locked to one
- Offline: Your prompts work without internet
- Composable: Chain prompts like Unix commands
- Smart I/O: Auto-clipboard, save, append - works how you think
8ms vs 30 seconds. Every time. That's the difference.
Features
Core Features (Production Ready)
- ✅ Lightning-fast prompt management - Create, edit, search, and use prompts
- ✅ Intelligent fuzzy matching -
ph u ap→api-designinstantly - ✅ Universal shell integration - Copy to clipboard or pipe to ANY tool
- ✅ Smart I/O operations - Auto-clipboard, save, append, file output
- ✅ Text cleaning & formatting - AI-style text processing with
ph clean - ✅ Smart completions - Tab completion for bash, zsh, fish
- ✅ Cross-platform - Works on macOS, Linux, Windows
- ✅ Prompt composition - Chain prompts for complex workflows
- ✅ Magic link authentication - Secure login for registry sync
- ✅ Performance guarantee - All operations under 15ms
Advanced Features (All Included - Free & Open Source)
- ✅ Registry sync - Cloud backup and device sync
- ✅ Magic link authentication - Passwordless secure login
- ✅ Team collaboration - Private prompt banks and sharing
- ✅ Prompt sharing - Public and invite-based prompt sharing
- ✅ Community registry - Growing library of quality prompts
- ✅ Usage analytics - Productivity tracking with achievements
- ✅ Web dashboard - Visual prompt management and statistics
Development Build
# Development build (all features)
# Run tests
# Performance benchmark
Troubleshooting
Command not found
# Ensure binary is in PATH
# If using cargo install
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Clipboard not working
# If terminal, it copies automatically
# Or pipe explicitly
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Shell completions not working
# Regenerate completions
🤝 The Complete Terminal AI Stack
PromptHive + CalmHive = Ultimate AI Development Workflow
PromptHive handles instant prompt access (8ms), while CalmHive handles background processing, voice control, and smart execution management.
# Install the complete stack
# Use together for powerful workflows
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Perfect Division of Labor:
- PromptHive: Instant prompt management, universal AI tool compatibility
- CalmHive: Background processing, usage limit handling, voice control
Learn more: prompthive.sh | calmhive.com
Performance
PromptHive is engineered for sub-15ms performance across all operations. Built with Rust for maximum efficiency and reliability, it handles thousands of prompts without slowing down your workflow.
Tested on version 0.2.8: All core operations (new, use, show, edit, ls, find) complete in under 15ms on modern hardware.
Join the Community 🐝
🌟 100% Open Source & Free
- ✅ Unlimited local prompts
- ✅ Lightning-fast performance (<15ms)
- ✅ Compose & chain prompts
- ✅ Cross-platform support
- ✅ Text cleaning & formatting
- ✅ Magic link authentication
- ✅ Cloud sync across devices
- ✅ Private prompt banks
- ✅ Team collaboration & sharing
- ✅ Prompt sharing features
- ✅ Advanced analytics & insights
- ✅ Community registry access
- ✅ Self-hostable infrastructure
"Professional prompt management for everyone"
🤝 Contributing
- Report bugs and request features
- Submit prompts to the community registry
- Contribute code improvements
- Help with documentation
- Join discussions and share workflows
Visit our GitHub repository to get involved!
📚 Resources & Links
- PromptHive.sh - Official website with documentation and installation guides
- CalmHive.com - Perfect companion for background AI processing and voice control
- GitHub Repository - Source code, issues, and contributions
- Crates.io Package - Rust package with version history
- Blog - Terminal velocity philosophy and AI development insights
"Prompts that just work."