# usagi-flow/evil-helix

Bringing the Helix editor to the evil side

Repository: https://github.com/usagi-flow/evil-helix
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/evil-helix
Homepage: https://evil-helix.github.io
Language: Rust
License: MPL-2.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: cli, command-line, editor, helix, ide, vim, neovim
Last push: 2026-04-04T21:04:06+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 66/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 75, release rhythm 36, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 1580, "days_push": 151, "days_rel": 351, "gap_med": 65.5, "n_releases_24m": 5}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1352, forks 39 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:28.408320+00:00)

## What it is
evil-helix is a soft fork of the Helix terminal editor that adds Vim keybindings and other quality-of-life features as built-in, configurable options. It is written in Rust and distributed as prebuilt packages for major platforms.

## Use cases
- use vim keybindings in a helix-like terminal editor
- modal text editing with familiar vim motions
- terminal code editor with vim commands like d, y, c, w
- switch from neovim to helix without relearning keybindings
- editor with vim modeline support
- disable vim mode with a config option while keeping helix

## When to choose
- you want Helix's built-in features but prefer Vim keybindings
- you want features compiled into the editor instead of a plugin system
- you want a terminal editor installable via package managers or prebuilt binaries

## When to avoid
- you are happy with upstream Helix's Kakoune-style selections
- you need a plugin ecosystem rather than built-in configurable features
- you want to contribute changes upstream to Helix itself

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: editor, cli
- domain: text-editors, developer-tools
- platform: windows, cli, cross-platform
- tags: helix, vim-keybindings, soft-fork, modal-editing, terminal-editor, rust, command-line, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- usagi-flow/evil-helix (main) score 66

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:28.408320+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T04:42:11.351715+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/usagi-flow/evil-helix (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:28.408320+00:00, sha 1c143320e1e0)
  - homepage: https://evil-helix.github.io (fetched 2026-08-29T12:00:46.097387+00:00, sha ac4197b8fa90)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.