autojump
Quickly jump to frequently used directories
TLDR
Add the autojump aliases to your shell
Jump to a directory that contains the given pattern
Jump to a sub-directory (child) of the current directory that contains the given pattern
Open a directory that contains the given pattern in the operating system file manager
Remove non-existing directories from the autojump database
Show the entries in the autojump database
SYNOPSIS
j [-a DIR] [-c] [-s] [-l NUM] [-m] [-r] [--stat] [QUERY]
PARAMETERS
-a, --add DIR
Manually add directory to database
-c
Output only the directory path (for scripting)
-s, --stat
Display statistics for matched directories
-l NUM, --list NUM
List top NUM matches without jumping
-m, --match
Jump to first matching directory
-r, --regex
Treat QUERY as regex pattern
-h, --help
Show help message
--version
Display version information
DESCRIPTION
Autojump enhances shell navigation by allowing users to jump to frequently visited directories using partial matches, rather than full paths. It maintains a database of visited directories, weighting them by access frequency for smarter suggestions.
Installation typically involves adding a shell hook (e.g., sourcing /usr/share/autojump/autojump.sh in ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc). This defines aliases like j (jump), jc (jump and cd to current), and jo (jump and open in file manager).
Core usage: j partial_name jumps to the best match. It learns automatically via shell hooks on cd. Over time, it prioritizes directories like projects or downloads. Supports multiple shells (bash, zsh, fish) and is lightweight, with no daemon process.
Ideal for power users tired of typing long paths, it reduces keystrokes significantly after building history.
CAVEATS
Requires shell integration for database updates; ineffective initially without visit history. May conflict with similar tools like fasd. Database location varies by install (~/.local/share/autojump/autojump.txt).
SHELL INTEGRATION
Add to ~/.bashrc:
source /usr/share/autojump/autojump.sh
Reload shell or source ~/.bashrc.
EXAMPLES
j doc → ~/Documents
jc proj → cd to project dir
j -s down → list Downloads matches
jo work → open workspace in file manager.
HISTORY
Created by João Paulo Salgueiro in 2010 as a cd command enhancer. Gained popularity via GitHub (over 10k stars). Maintained by community post-2013, with zsh/fish ports. Widely packaged in distros like Ubuntu, Fedora since ~2012.
