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The diff command checks for updates to your installed components against the registry. It compares your local files with the latest versions and shows differences.

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Usage

shadcn diff [component]

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Arguments

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component
string
The component name. If not provided, checks all installed components for updates.

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Options

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--yes
boolean
default:"false"
Skip confirmation prompt.
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--cwd
string
The working directory. Defaults to the current directory.

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Examples

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Check all components for updates

shadcn diff
Output: 
The following components have updates available:
- button
  - components/ui/button.tsx
- card
  - components/ui/card.tsx

Run diff <component> to see the changes.

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Check a specific component

shadcn diff button
Output: 
- components/ui/button.tsx
- import * as React from "react"
+ import { forwardRef } from "react"
  import { Slot } from "@radix-ui/react-slot"
  import { cva, type VariantProps } from "class-variance-authority"
  
  import { cn } from "@/lib/utils"
  
- const Button = React.forwardRef<HTMLButtonElement, ButtonProps>(
+ const Button = forwardRef<HTMLButtonElement, ButtonProps>(
    ({ className, variant, size, asChild = false, ...props }, ref) => {
      const Comp = asChild ? Slot : "button"

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Check component in specific directory

shadcn diff button --cwd ./my-project

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What it does

  1. Reads your components.json configuration
  2. Fetches the latest version from the registry
  3. Compares local files with registry versions
  4. Shows a line-by-line diff of changes
  5. Highlights additions in green and removals in red

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Use cases

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Track component updates

Regularly check for updates to installed components: 
shadcn diff

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Review changes before updating

Before manually updating a component, review what changed: 
shadcn diff button

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Verify customizations

Check if your customizations conflict with upstream changes: 
shadcn diff card

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Output format

The diff output uses standard diff notation:
  • Lines starting with - (red) are removed in the registry version
  • Lines starting with + (green) are added in the registry version
  • Lines without prefix are unchanged

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No updates found

If a component is up-to-date: 
No updates found for button.
If all components are up-to-date: 
No updates found.

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Notes

  • The diff compares the transformed registry code against your local files
  • Transformations are applied based on your components.json configuration
  • Only checks components that exist in your project
  • Requires a valid components.json file

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