Applying Stash

After stashing your work, you need to know how to bring it back. Git gives you several ways to apply, inspect, and clean up stashed changes.

Apply the Most Recent Stash

Applies the latest stash and leaves it in the stash list:

git stash apply

Pop the Most Recent Stash

Applies the latest stash and removes it from the stash list:

git stash pop

pop is the most common choice — apply and remove in one step.

Apply a Specific Stash

If you have multiple stashes, reference them by index:

git stash apply stash@{2}

Pop a Specific Stash

git stash pop stash@{1}

Handle Conflicts When Applying

If the stashed changes conflict with your current working directory, Git will show conflict markers just like a merge conflict. Resolve the conflicts, then stage the resolved files:

git add filename.txt

When using git stash apply, the stash stays in the list after a conflict. Drop it manually once resolved:

git stash drop stash@{0}

Drop a Stash Without Applying

Remove a stash you no longer need:

git stash drop stash@{0}

Clear All Stashes

git stash clear

warning

git stash clear permanently removes all stashes with no way to recover them. Double-check with git stash list before running this.

Apply a Stash to a New Branch

If your stashed changes no longer apply cleanly to the current branch, apply them to a fresh branch instead:

git stash branch feature/login-work stash@{0}

This creates a new branch from the commit at which the stash was created, applies the stash, and removes it from the stash list.

tip

Use git stash pop for everyday use. Use git stash apply when you want to apply the same stash to multiple branches.

Common Mistakes

Applying a stash to the wrong branch — stashes are not tied to a branch. Always check git branch before running git stash pop to confirm you're on the right branch.

Losing a stash by running git stash clear — this removes everything permanently. Drop individual stashes (git stash drop) rather than clearing the whole list.

Not resolving conflicts after applying — if git stash apply produces conflicts, your files will have conflict markers. Don't ignore them. Resolve them the same way you would a merge conflict before continuing.

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