brew-leaves
List top-level installed packages that are not dependencies
TLDR
List top-level packages (not dependencies)
$ brew leaves
List only manually installed leaves$ brew leaves -r
List only dependency-installed leaves$ brew leaves -p
Show dependency tree of leaves$ brew deps --tree $(brew leaves)
SYNOPSIS
brew leaves [options]
DESCRIPTION
brew leaves lists installed formulae that are not dependencies of any other installed formula or cask. These are your "top-level" packages that you explicitly installed.
This command shows the leaves of Homebrew's dependency graph - packages that can be safely uninstalled without breaking other packages.
PARAMETERS
-r, --installed-on-request
Only list leaves that were manually installed-p, --installed-as-dependency
Only list leaves that were installed as dependencies
USE CASES
Audit installations
Identify what you explicitly chose to installFind removable packages
Leaves can typically be safely uninstalledBackup core packages
Export list for recreating environmentUnderstand environment
See core components of development setup
RELATED COMMANDS
brew list
Shows all installed packages including dependenciesbrew autoremove --dry-run
Lists packages that are no longer neededbrew deps --tree $(brew leaves)
Shows dependency tree of your leaves
CAVEATS
Not the same as "manually installed" - shows packages with no dependents. A manually installed package might have dependents and won't appear. Use -r flag for truly manual installations.
SEE ALSO
brew(1), brew-list(1), brew-deps(1), brew-autoremove(1)
