How to install

Using packages

• Arch Linux: community/zsh-syntax-highlighting / AUR/zsh-syntax-highlighting-git
• Debian: zsh-syntax-highlighting package in stretch (or in OBS repository)
• Fedora: zsh-syntax-highlighting package in Fedora 24+ (or in OBS repository)
• FreeBSD: pkg install zsh-syntax-highlighting (port name: shells/zsh-syntax-highlighting)
• Gentoo: app-shells/zsh-syntax-highlighting
• Mac OS X / Homebrew: brew install zsh-syntax-highlighting
• NetBSD: pkg_add zsh-syntax-highlighting (port name: shells/zsh-syntax-highlighting)
• OpenBSD: pkg_add zsh-syntax-highlighting (port name: shells/zsh-syntax-highlighting)
• openSUSE / SLE: zsh-syntax-highlighting package in OBS repository
• RHEL / CentOS / Scientific Linux: zsh-syntax-highlighting package in OBS repository
• Ubuntu: zsh-syntax-highlighting package in Xenial (or in OBS repository)
• Void Linux: zsh-syntax-highlighting package in XBPS

See also repology's cross-distro index

In your ~/.zshrc

Simply clone this repository and source the script:

git clone https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting.git
echo "source ${(q-)PWD}/zsh-syntax-highlighting/zsh-syntax-highlighting.zsh" >> ${ZDOTDIR:-$HOME}/.zshrc

Then, enable syntax highlighting in the current interactive shell:

source ./zsh-syntax-highlighting/zsh-syntax-highlighting.zsh

If git is not installed, download and extract a snapshot of the latest development tree from:

https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting/archive/master.tar.gz

Note the source command must be at the end of ~/.zshrc.

With a plugin manager

Note that zsh-syntax-highlighting must be the last plugin sourced.

The zsh-syntax-highlighting authors recommend manual installation over the use of a framework or plugin manager.

This list is incomplete as there are too many frameworks / plugin managers to list them all here.

Antigen

Add antigen bundle zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting as the last bundle in your .zshrc.

Oh-my-zsh

1. Clone this repository in oh-my-zsh's plugins directory:

   git clone https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting.git ${ZSH_CUSTOM:-~/.oh-my-zsh/custom}/plugins/zsh-syntax-highlighting

2. Activate the plugin in ~/.zshrc:

   plugins=( [plugins...] zsh-syntax-highlighting)

3. Restart zsh (such as by opening a new instance of your terminal emulator).

Prezto

Zsh-syntax-highlighting is included with Prezto. See the Prezto documentation to enable and configure highlighters.

zgen

Add zgen load zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting to the end of your .zshrc.

zplug

Add zplug "zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting", defer:2 to your .zshrc.

zplugin

Add zplugin load zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting to the end of your .zshrc.

System-wide installation

Any of the above methods is suitable for a single-user installation, which requires no special privileges. If, however, you desire to install zsh-syntax-highlighting system-wide, you may do so by running

make install

and directing your users to add

source /usr/local/share/zsh-syntax-highlighting/zsh-syntax-highlighting.zsh

to their .zshrcs.