Starship Prompt — Complete Reference

Starship is the minimal, blazing-fast, infinitely customizable prompt for any shell. Written in Rust. Installed at /usr/sbin/starship v1.24.2 on this system.

This skill covers the entire Starship surface: CLI, configuration, all ~70 modules, advanced features, presets, Fish-specific integration, and debugging.

1. Installation

Linux (Fedora — this system)

# Via Copr (recommended for Fedora)
dnf copr enable atim/starship
dnf install starship

# Via curl install script
curl -sS https://starship.rs/install.sh | sh

# Via cargo
cargo install starship --locked

# Via Linuxbrew
brew install starship

Fish Shell Setup

Add this to the end of ~/.config/fish/config.fish:

starship init fish | source

Verify with: starship --version (expected: starship 1.24.2)

2. CLI Reference

starship <COMMAND>

Commands:
  bug-report    Create a pre-populated GitHub issue with config info
  completions   Generate shell completions for your shell to stdout
  config        Edit the starship configuration
  explain       Explains the currently showing modules
  init          Prints the shell function used to execute starship
  module        Prints a specific prompt module (e.g. `starship module rust`)
  preset        Prints a preset config to stdout or file
  print-config  Prints the computed starship configuration
  prompt        Prints the full starship prompt
  session       Generate random session key
  timings       Prints timings of all active modules (debugging)
  toggle        Toggle a given starship module on/off
  help          Print this message or the help of the given subcommand(s)

Key flags for starship prompt: --status, --jobs, --cmd-duration, --keymap, --terminal-width, --logical-path, --path.

3. Configuration File

Default path: ~/.config/starship.toml

Override via environment variable: STARSHIP_CONFIG

Schema

"$schema" = 'https://starship.rs/config-schema.json'

Top-Level Options

Format Strings

• Variables: $variable_name (letters, numbers, _)
• Text groups: [content](style) — styles the content
• Conditionals: (@$region) — only shows if $region is non-empty
• $all — expands to all enabled modules (in default order)

Style Strings

Space-separated tokens: bold, italic, underline, dimmed, inverted, blink, hidden, strikethrough, fg:<color>, bg:<color>, <color>, none

Color specifiers:

• Named: black, red, green, blue, yellow, purple, cyan, white
• Bright: bright- prefix (e.g. bright-red)
• Hex: #RRGGBB
• ANSI 8-bit: 0–255
• Contextual: prev_fg, prev_bg

4. All Modules

VCS Modules

Language Runtimes (60+)

All share this pattern:

[<module>]
format = 'via [$symbol($version )]($style)'
version_format = 'v${raw}'
symbol = '...'
style = '<style>'
detect_extensions = [...]
detect_files = [...]
detect_folders = [...]
disabled = false

Modules include: bun, c, cmake, cobol, cpp, daml, dart, deno, dotnet, elixir, elm, erlang, fennel, fortran, gleam, golang, gradle, haskell, haxe, helm, java, julia, kotlin, lua, maven, mojo, nim, nodejs, ocaml, odin, opa, perl, php, pulumi, purescript, python, quarto, raku, rlang, red, ruby, rust, scala, solidity, swift, terraform, typst, vlang, vagrant, xmake, zig, buf, crystal, meson

Cloud & DevOps

Shell & System

Directory & Navigation

Utilities

Package

Claude Code Statusline

Three dedicated modules for Claude Code statusline (via starship statusline claude-code):

• claude_model — current model being used
• claude_context — context usage gauge + percentage with threshold styling
• claude_cost — session cost in USD with threshold styling

Customize via [profiles]:

[profiles]
claude-code = "$claude_model$git_branch$claude_context$claude_cost"

5. Fish Shell Integration

Basic Setup

# ~/.config/fish/config.fish
starship init fish | source

Transient Prompt (Fish)

Replace previous prompt with a minimal one after command execution. Requires Fish 3.7+ (Fish 4.6+ on this system).

Critical ordering: enable_transience must come AFTER starship init fish | source:

# ~/.config/fish/config.fish
starship init fish | source

# ── Transient prompt ──
enable_transience

function starship_transient_prompt_func
    # Collapse to just the ❯ character on success/error
    starship module character
end

function starship_transient_rprompt_func
    # Clear right prompt so no leftover time/memory shows
end

How it works: With enable_transience, Fish redraws the prompt after command execution. The starship_transient_prompt_func is called instead of the full Starship init, producing a minimal collapsed prompt. The starship_transient_rprompt_func similarly controls the right prompt (set it to empty to clear).

Important: Transient prompt only prints when the commandline is non-empty and syntactically correct.

Right Prompt

Supported in Fish via right_format in starship.toml:

right_format = "$all"

Vim Mode Detection

The character module supports vim-mode symbols in Fish:

• vimcmd_symbol (normal mode, ❮ green)
• vimcmd_replace_one_symbol (❮ purple)
• vimcmd_replace_symbol (❮ purple)
• vimcmd_visual_symbol (❮ yellow)

6. Advanced Features

Custom Modules

Define arbitrary command outputs:

[custom.mything]
command = "echo hello"
when = "test -f .mything"       # Boolean or shell command
shell = ['bash', '--noprofile']  # Optional shell override
require_repo = true              # Only in git repos
detect_files = ['.mything']
detect_folders = ['mything']
detect_extensions = ['thing']
os = "linux"                     # OS filter
unsafe_no_escape = false         # Escape shell sequences
ignore_timeout = false           # Bypass global timeout

Reference ${custom.foo} in top-level format.

Color Palettes

palette = "mytheme"

[palettes.mytheme]
blue = "21"
mustard = "#af8700"
green = "bright-green"

Palettes override color names used in style strings.

Path Substitutions

[directory.substitutions]
'/Volumes/network/path' = '/net'
'src/com/long/java/path' = 'mypath'

Regex substitutions also supported:

substitutions = [
  { from = "^/", to = "<root>/", regex = true },
  { from = "/", to = " | " },
]

Window Title

function set_win_title
    echo -ne "\033]0; (basename "$PWD") \007"
end
starship_precmd_user_func="set_win_title"

7. Presets

Apply presets with:

starship preset <preset-name> -o ~/.config/starship.toml

Available presets:

8. Debugging & Troubleshooting

Logging

# Set log level
STARSHIP_LOG=trace starship module rust     # Debug a single module
STARSHIP_LOG=trace starship timings          # Find slow modules
STARSHIP_LOG=error starship prompt           # Suppress non-critical warnings

Logs written to ~/.cache/starship/session_${STARSHIP_SESSION_KEY}.log. Override with STARSHIP_CACHE.

Useful Debug Commands

starship explain        # Explain each visible module in current prompt
starship timings        # Show execution time of each module (>1ms)
starship print-config   # Print full resolved config
starship bug-report     # Generate pre-populated GitHub issue

Common Issues

1. Glyphs not showing: Install a Nerd Font, set terminal to use it, ensure UTF-8 locale (locale, LANG=en_US.UTF-8)
2. Command timeouts: Increase command_timeout = 500 in config, or set ignore_timeout = true on custom modules
3. Slow prompt: Use starship timings to identify slow modules
4. Module not appearing: Check disabled = false, verify detection conditions match
5. No right prompt: Only supported in: elvish, fish, zsh, xonsh, cmd, nushell, bash (with Ble.sh)

TOML Pitfalls (Config-writing)

1. DO NOT use [format] / [right_format] section headers. These are top-level string variables, not TOML tables. Write them unpackaged:

   # ✅ Correct
   format = """
   [┌─](bold bright-white)$directory
   │  $python
   [└─](bold bright-white) ❯
   """
   
   # ❌ Wrong — "invalid type: map, expected a string"
   [format]
   format = """..."""
   

2. format / right_format are raw strings, not Starship format strings wrapped in TOML tables. They go at the top level, period.

3. TOML multiline basic strings ("""...""") — Real newlines inside are preserved, and Starship treats them the same as $newline. So you can use literal newlines directly:

   format = """
   Line 1
   Line 2
   """
   

   This produces a two-line prompt with a blank line between them. Starship collapses consecutive newlines the same way $newline does.

4. \\ at end of line in TOML multiline strings is a line continuation — it strips the real newline, concatenating the next line as if it's the same line. Use this when you want to write a very long format string across multiple source lines:

   format = """\
   $directory$git_branch\
   $fill$time\
   $newline\
   $character\
   """
   # Actual string value: "$directory$git_branch$fill$time$newline$character"
   

5. [fill] dots: By default, $fill in the format expands to . characters. Set symbol = " " under [fill] to make it invisible (spaces instead of dots).

6. up_to_date in [git_status]: The key is up_to_date (with underscores), not uptodate. Using uptodate produces a warning: "Unknown key".

7. Character module with literal ❯: If you hardcode ❯ or ❮ in the format string instead of using $character, disable the character module explicitly to avoid redundant rendering:

   [character]
   format = ''
   success_symbol = ''
   error_symbol = ''
   

8. starship module character still works even when the character module is disabled — it internally handles exit code detection and returns success_symbol or error_symbol. Use it in transient prompt functions even with a disabled character module.

9. Time zone duplicates: Having $time in both format and right_format causes it to render twice. Keep it only where you want it — typically right_format for right-edge alignment.

10. Runtime detection: Modules like python, nodejs, bun trigger on detect_files, detect_extensions, or detect_folders. They run shell commands (e.g., python --version) only when their trigger conditions match. This keeps the prompt fast — scanning the filesystem for triggers is cheaper than running version commands on every prompt.

Environment Variables

10. Reference Config: Transient Minimal (Fish + Fedora Atomic)

A complete, production-tested config designed for Fish with enable_transience on Fedora Atomic (Catppuccin Mocha terminal, JetBrainsMono Nerd Font). Demonstrates multi-line box-drawing layout, right-aligned time, runtime detection, and proper Fish transient wiring.

~/.config/starship.toml

"$schema" = 'https://starship.rs/config-schema.json'

format = """
[┌─](bold bright-white)$directory$git_branch$git_status$fill$time
│  $python$nodejs$bun$cmd_duration
[└─](bold bright-white) ❯
"""

[fill]
symbol = " "

[directory]
truncation_length = 3
truncation_symbol = '…/'
fish_style_pwd_dir_length = 1
style = 'bold cyan'
home_symbol = '~'
format = '[$path]($style)'
read_only = ' '

[git_branch]
format = '[$symbol$branch]($style)'
style = 'bold purple'
symbol = '  '
truncation_length = 20
truncation_symbol = '…'

[git_status]
format = '[$all_status$ahead_behind]($style)'
style = 'bold yellow'
conflicted = '🏳'
up_to_date = ''
ahead = '⇡${count}'
behind = '⇣${count}'
diverged = '⇕${ahead_count}⇣${behind_count}'
staged = '●${count}'
modified = '✎${count}'
deleted = '✗${count}'
renamed = '➜${count}'
stashed = '≡ '
untracked = '?${count}'
ignore_submodules = false

[time]
format = '[$time]($style)'
style = 'bright-black'
time_format = '%l:%M %p'
disabled = false

[nodejs]
format = 'via [$symbol$version]($style) '
style = 'bold green'
symbol = ' '
detect_extensions = ['js', 'ts', 'mjs', 'cjs', 'jsx', 'tsx', 'vue']
detect_files = ['package.json', '.node-version', 'bun.lock']
detect_folders = ['node_modules']

[python]
format = 'via [$symbol$version]($style) '
style = 'bold yellow'
symbol = ' '
detect_extensions = ['py', 'pyw']
detect_files = ['requirements.txt', 'pyproject.toml', 'Pipfile', 'poetry.lock']
detect_folders = ['.venv', 'venv', 'env', '.env']

[bun]
format = 'via [$symbol$version]($style) '
style = 'bold red'
symbol = '🥟 '
detect_files = ['bun.lock', 'bun.lockb', 'bunfig.toml']

[cmd_duration]
format = '  took [$duration]($style)'
style = 'bold yellow'
min_time = 2_000
show_milliseconds = false

[character]
success_symbol = '[❯](bold green)'
error_symbol = '[❯](bold red)'

# Disable unused modules
[package]
disabled = true

[shell]
disabled = true

[line_break]
disabled = true

[golang]
disabled = true

[rust]
disabled = true

[dart]
disabled = true

[elixir]
disabled = true

[helm]
disabled = true

[terraform]
disabled = true

~/.config/fish/config.fish (Starship section)

starship init fish | source

# ── Transient prompt ──
enable_transience

function starship_transient_prompt_func
    # Pass $argv so --status is forwarded for red ❯ on errors
    starship module character $argv
end

function starship_transient_rprompt_func
    # Clear right prompt on transient (no leftover time/memory)
end

Expected Visual

┌─ ~/src/my-project  main ●1 ⇡2                                         1:15 AM
│  via  v3.14.5   took 3s
└─ ❯

After command execution (transient): ❯

Verification

starship explain        # Explain each visible module
starship timings        # Ensure all modules <5ms
starship print-config   # Verify resolved config