rxvt-unicode ☆

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Description:
Rxvt fork with Unicode support

Type: Formula | Latest Version: 9.31@2 | Tracked Since: Dec 24, 2025

Links: Homepage | formulae.brew.sh

Category: System utilities

Tags: terminal terminal-emulator unicode rxvt cli

Install: brew install rxvt-unicode

About:
rxvt-unicode is a high-performance terminal emulator forked from rxvt, designed to provide superior Unicode support and extensibility. It features a client-server model that allows multiple terminal windows to share a single daemon process, reducing resource usage. Its lightweight architecture and Perl extension system make it a highly customizable alternative to standard terminal emulators.

Key Features:

Full Unicode support for complex scripts and characters
Client-server architecture (urxvtd/urxvtc) for low memory footprint
Extensible via Perl hooks for custom functionality
True transparency and anti-aliased font rendering

Use Cases:

Daily driver for developers and system administrators needing a fast, lightweight terminal
Running heavy text-based applications (e.g., TUI editors, htop) with minimal latency
Environments requiring specific character set handling or custom keybindings

Alternatives:

alacritty – Alacritty is a GPU-accelerated terminal that focuses on raw performance, whereas urxvt relies on CPU rendering and extensibility.
kitty – Kitty offers advanced graphics protocol features and GPU offloading, while urxvt prioritizes minimal resource usage and scriptability.

Version History

Detected	Version	Rev	Change	Commit
Dec 24, 2025 9:36am	9.31	2	VERSION_BUMP	fabb06a0
Oct 15, 2025 5:03pm		2	VERSION_BUMP	ec666949
Sep 16, 2025 12:47am		2	VERSION_BUMP	4a57d243
Dec 14, 2024 6:10pm		2	VERSION_BUMP	8579d4d8
Sep 14, 2024 12:59am		1	VERSION_BUMP	c0666898