Beans (Local Issue Tracker)

Name: Beans (Local Issue Tracker) Review
Item: Beans (Local Issue Tracker)
Rating: 3.8
Author: Aaron Matthews

Skill Development Solid

Works inClaude Code

Solid Scanned — metadata only

Popular in agent-first development workflows. Issues live in your repo, not in a separate platform. Purpose-built for AI-assisted development.

Local-first issue and task management for AI coding agents. Intuitive tracking that lives alongside your code, not in a separate tool.

Track coding tasks and bugs right alongside your source code
Let Claude manage your issue backlog as part of the development workflow
Keep project status visible without switching to a separate task manager

890 starsApache-2.0 (commercial OK)FreeQuick setup

Why it matters

Popular in agent-first development workflows. Issues live in your repo, not in a separate platform. Purpose-built for AI-assisted development.

Best for

Developers using Claude Code who want lightweight task tracking without leaving the terminal or setting up external tools.

Works in

Claude Code Claude Cowork Claude Chat

Source

https://github.com/hmans/beans

By hmans

How to Get It

Option 1: Claude Desktop App (Code Mode)Click the + button next to the prompt box → Plugins → Add plugin. Search and click Install. Skills work in Claude Code only.

Option 2: Paste into Claude CodeCopy the command below and paste it into your conversation. Claude will install it.

Command

brew install hmans/beans/beans

Tip: Paste this into a Claude Code conversation. Verify command matches your Claude Code version.

First thing to try

After installing, paste this into Claude:

Help me track coding tasks and bugs right alongside my source code

PrerequisitesHomebrew or Go to install the CLI. After installing, run 'beans init' in your project root, then add 'beans prime' as a SessionStart and PreCompact hook in .claude/settings.json so Claude Code loads task context (an official Claude plugin is still in the works).CostFree

Trust Signals Auto-scanned

Stars890Contributors12Last updated2026-04-06LicenseApache-2.0 (OK for commercial use)Known CVEsNone foundSources: GitHub Advisory Database + OSV.dev · Scanned 2026-07-31 · scanner v1

Community Pulse Active

Discussed on Hacker News, Reddit

Beans: A CLI-based, flat-file issue tracker for humans and robots — Hacker News · 1 pts
Why Have Humans Always Loved Beans? — Hacker News · 1 pts
Tested a migration from beans to beads on a 280 issue project to explore context — Reddit · 1 pts

3 mentions across 2 sources

Reviewer notes

Auto-scanned review. These are observations, not a security certification.

catalog_hygiene stale-eval refresh: Scored from trust signals (evidence-eval-v1): 847 GitHub stars; 12 contributors; last commit 97d ago; license Apache-2.0.

Things to check

Under heavy development — features, APIs, and the underlying data file schema may still change significantly; schema changes can require manual data migration (your agent can usually perform it when prompted). No official Claude Code plugin yet; integration is via settings.json hooks.

How to evaluate tools before deploying →

Data shown here comes from public APIs and automated scanning. Reviewer notes reflect one person's experience. This is not a security certification or legal recommendation. Always evaluate tools according to your own organization's policies.

Evaluation Scores

Evaluation

Ease of Use

4/5

Versatility

4/5

Reliability

4/5

Security

3/5

Overall score3.85 / 5.00 SolidEvaluatedJul 2026

catalog_hygiene stale-eval refresh: Scored from trust signals (evidence-eval-v1): 847 GitHub stars; 12 contributors; last commit 97d ago; license Apache-2.0.

← Back to the Claude Observatory