Difference between git stash pop and git stash apply

I've been using git stash pop for quite some time. I recently found out about the git stash apply command. When I tried it out, it seemed to work the same as git stash pop.

What is the difference between git stash pop and git stash apply?

git stash pop throws away the (topmost, by default) stash after applying it, whereas git stash apply leaves it in the stash list for possible later reuse (or you can then git stash drop it).

This happens unless there are conflicts after git stash pop, in which case it will not remove the stash, leaving it to behave exactly like git stash apply.

Another way to look at it: git stash pop is git stash apply && git stash drop.

Got this helpful link that states the difference, as John Zwinck has stated and a drawback of git stash pop.

For instance, say your stashed changes conflict with other changes that you’ve made since you first created the stash. Both pop and apply will helpfully trigger merge conflict resolution mode, allowing you to nicely resolve such conflicts… and neither will get rid of the stash, even though perhaps you’re expecting pop too. Since a lot of people expect stashes to just be a simple stack, this often leads to them popping the same stash accidentally later because they thought it was gone.

Link: http://codingkilledthecat.wordpress.com/2012/04/27/git-stash-pop-considered-harmful/

git stash pop applies the top stashed element and removes it from the stack. git stash apply does the same, but leaves it in the stash stack.

Seeing it in action might help you better understanding the difference.

Assuming we're working on master branch and have a file hello.txt that contains "Hello" string.

Let's modify the file and add " world" string to it. Now you want to move to a different branch to fix a minor bug you've just found, so you need to stash your changes:

git stash

You moved to the other branch, fixed the bug and now you're ready to continue working on your master branch, so you pop the changes:

git stash pop

Now if you try to review the stash content you'll get:

$ git stash show -p
No stash found.

However, if you use git stash apply instead, you'll get the stashed content but you'll also keep it:

$ git stash show -p
diff --git a/hello.txt b/hello.txt
index e965047..802992c 100644
--- a/hello.txt
+++ b/hello.txt
@@ -1 +1 @@
-Hello
+Hello world

So pop is just like stack's pop - it actually removes the element once it's popped, while apply is more like peek.

Assuming there will be no errors thrown, and you want to work on the top stash item in the list of available stashes:

git stash pop = git stash apply + git stash drop