Catppuccin is a pastel color palette that’s gained a lot of traction in the terminal and editor communities. Tmux, being a terminal multiplexer, can also be themed to match.
Here’s how you can get Catppuccin working in your tmux:
First, you’ll need a plugin manager for tmux. tpm (tmux plugin manager) is a popular choice. If you don’t have it installed, clone it into your tmux plugin directory:
git clone https://github.com/tmux-plugins/tpm ~/.tmux/plugins/tpm
Next, you need to tell tmux to use tpm and which plugins to load. Open your ~/.tmux.conf file and add the following lines at the top:
# Install TPM
run '~/.tmux/plugins/tpm/tpm'
# List of plugins
set -g @plugin 'tmux-plugins/tpm'
set -g @plugin 'tmux-plugins/tmux-sensible'
set -g @plugin 'catppuccin/tmux'
Now, you need to configure the Catppuccin theme itself. You can choose from several flavors: latte, frappe, macchiato, and mocha. Add these lines after the plugin list in your ~/.tmux.conf:
# Catppuccin theme configuration
set -g @catppuccin_flavour 'mocha' # Or 'latte', 'frappe', 'macchiato'
You can also customize specific elements of the theme. For example, to change the color of the status bar’s left side:
# Customize status bar left side
set -g @catppuccin_status_left_separator_icon ""
set -g @catppuccin_status_left_separator_icon_text ""
To apply these changes, you need to reload your tmux configuration. With tpm installed and configured, you can press Prefix + I (where Prefix is typically Ctrl+b or Ctrl+a) to install the plugins. Then, press Prefix + R to reload your ~/.tmux.conf.
Your tmux status bar should now be themed with Catppuccin.
The real magic of Catppuccin in tmux lies in how it uses tmux’s built-in color capabilities and integrates with the plugin to override default styles. It doesn’t just set a few colors; it maps the Catppuccin palette to tmux’s attribute system, affecting pane borders, status line elements, and even the colors used for text and backgrounds within panes if you configure it to do so.
What most people miss is that the catppuccin/tmux plugin doesn’t just change the status bar. If you want to theme everything, including the colors of text and backgrounds within your panes to match the Catppuccin palette, you need to tell your terminal emulator to use a Catppuccin color scheme. Tmux itself will then leverage these terminal colors. Many Catppuccin tmux configurations assume you’ve already set up your terminal emulator’s colors.
The next concept you’ll likely explore is how to dynamically switch between Catppuccin flavors or apply other advanced theming options within tmux.