Git Worktree vs Stash

Both git worktree and git stash help you deal with in-progress work, but they solve different problems. Stash temporarily shelves changes so you can switch branches. Worktree gives you a second working directory so you never need to switch at all.

Comparison at a Glance

Aspect	Git Stash	Git Worktree
What it does	Saves uncommitted changes to a stack and reverts the working tree to a clean state	Creates a separate directory with its own checked-out branch
Context switching	Sequential — stash, switch, work, switch back, pop	Parallel — both branches are available at the same time
Risk of conflicts	`git stash pop` can produce merge conflicts	No conflict risk — each worktree is independent
Build state	Destroyed on every switch — `node_modules`, build caches, etc. are shared	Preserved — each worktree has its own files on disk
Disk cost	None (stash entries are stored as commits in the object store)	Size of the checked-out files
Forgetting about it	Easy to forget stashed work; stash list grows silently	The directory is visible on disk; `git worktree list` shows all worktrees

When to Use Git Stash

You need to quickly switch branches for a few minutes and come right back.
The context switch is short and your project has no expensive build step.
You want to temporarily clean your working tree without committing half-done work.
You are on a machine with limited disk space and cannot afford a second checkout.

When to Use Git Worktree

You will be going back and forth between branches frequently throughout the day.
Your project has a slow build or install step (e.g., npm install, cargo build) and switching branches would invalidate caches.
You want to run two dev servers side by side to compare behaviour.
You have been burned by stash conflicts before and want to avoid them entirely.

How to Move Stashed Changes to a Worktree

If you have already stashed changes and now want to apply them in a separate worktree, here is how:

Step 1: Create a new worktree

# Create a worktree with a new branch based on where you stashed
git worktree add -b feature/resume-work ../resume-work

Step 2: Apply the stash in the new worktree

cd ../resume-work

# List stashes to find the right one
git stash list
# stash@{0}: WIP on main: abc1234 Add header component
# stash@{1}: WIP on main: def5678 Update API client

# Apply the stash (keeps it in the stash list)
git stash apply stash@{0}

# Or pop it (removes it from the stash list)
git stash pop stash@{0}

Because stashes are stored in the shared object store, they are accessible from any worktree. You do not need to do anything special to transfer them.

Alternative: Create a Branch Directly from a Stash

Git has a built-in command that creates a branch from a stash and applies the changes in one step. You can combine this with worktrees:

# Create branch from stash (in current directory)
git stash branch feature/from-stash stash@{0}

# Or create a worktree first, then apply:
git worktree add -b feature/from-stash ../from-stash
cd ../from-stash
git stash pop

What Is Git Worktree? — A beginner-friendly introduction
Worktree vs Branch — How worktrees and branches work together
Worktree vs Clone — Worktree vs a full separate repository copy