pi-better-ctx

Pi Coding Agent extension that routes bash, read, grep, find, and ls through better-ctx for 60-90% token savings

Package details

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extension

Install pi-better-ctx from npm and Pi will load the resources declared by the package manifest.

npm repohome report
$ pi install npm:pi-better-ctx
Package
pi-better-ctx
Version
3.1.0
Published
Apr 14, 2026
Downloads
517/mo · 23/wk
Author
azeno
License
MIT
Types
extension
Size
21.9 KB
Dependencies
0 dependencies · 2 peers
Pi manifest JSON
{
  "extensions": [
    "./extensions"
  ]
}

Security note

Pi packages can execute code and influence agent behavior. Review the source before installing third-party packages.

README

pi-better-ctx

Pi Coding Agent extension that routes all tool output through better-ctx for 60–90% token savings.

What it does

Overrides Pi's built-in tools to route them through better-ctx:

Tool Compression
bash All shell commands compressed via better-ctx's 90+ patterns
read Smart mode selection (full/map/signatures) based on file type and size
grep Results grouped and compressed via ripgrep + better-ctx
find File listings compressed and .gitignore-aware
ls Directory output compressed

Install

# 1. Install better-ctx (if not already installed)
cargo install better-ctx
# or: brew tap jadzeino/betterctx-client && brew install better-ctx

# 2. Install the Pi package
pi install npm:pi-better-ctx

Binary Resolution

The extension locates the better-ctx binary in this order:

  1. BETTER_CTX_BIN environment variable
  2. ~/.cargo/bin/better-ctx
  3. ~/.local/bin/better-ctx (Linux) or %APPDATA%\Local\better-ctx\better-ctx.exe (Windows)
  4. /usr/local/bin/better-ctx (macOS/Linux)
  5. better-ctx on PATH

Smart Read Modes

The read tool automatically selects the optimal better-ctx mode:

File Type Size Mode
.md, .json, .toml, .yaml, etc. Any full
Code files (55+ extensions) < 24 KB full
Code files 24–160 KB map (deps + API signatures)
Code files > 160 KB signatures (AST extraction)
Other files < 48 KB full
Other files > 48 KB map

Code extensions include: .rs, .ts, .tsx, .js, .jsx, .py, .go, .java, .c, .cpp, .cs, .rb, .php, .swift, .kt, .vue, .svelte, .astro, .html, .css, .scss, .lua, .zig, .dart, .scala, .sql, .graphql, .proto, .tf, .sh, .bash, .zsh, .fish, .ps1, and more.

Partial reads (with offset/limit) are also routed through better-ctx using lines:N-M mode for compression.

Slash Command

Use /better-ctx in Pi to check which binary is being used.

Links