Codemod Grep
A code search tool that understands code structure, not just text — so you can search for a pattern like "any function call with 3+ arguments" across public GitHub repos instead of just matching literal strings.
🔗 Visit Codemod Grep
Description
Regular grep and GitHub's own code search match text — which means searching for a coding pattern (not a literal string) across many repositories is nearly impossible without writing and running a custom script against cloned repos. Codemod Grep uses AST-grep pattern syntax instead, which understands code structure, so you can search for structural patterns like specific function call shapes or deprecated API usage across public GitHub repositories directly in a browser.
It supports pattern rules, regex, and an AI-powered search mode for less precise queries, and it's built as part of the broader Codemod ecosystem, which focuses on automated code modification and refactoring. The realistic uses are systematic refactoring research, security audits (finding all instances of a risky pattern across open-source code), and standards enforcement checks. It's free to use.
💬 Our review
The short version: for the specific job of finding structural code patterns across public repositories, Codemod Grep is a much better instrument than GitHub's native text-based code search, and it costs nothing.
GitHub's own code search recently added some regex support but still fundamentally matches text, not code structure — so a query like "find all calls to a deprecated function regardless of argument formatting" is unreliable there but exactly what AST-grep syntax is built for. Sourcegraph is the closer competitor, with broader enterprise features (private repo indexing, code intelligence) but it's a heavier, often paid tool for teams, not a quick public-repo lookup. Codemod Grep is the right choice specifically when you need structural pattern matching across open-source code and don't need Sourcegraph's private-repo enterprise features.
💰 Pricing
📊 Global score
🤖 AI-enriched data
Gratuit, aucun plan payant mentionné.
Pros
Recherche structurelle (AST-grep) au lieu du simple matching de texte
Couvre les dépôts publics GitHub sans cloner localement
Mode recherche IA en plus des règles de pattern et regex
Gratuit, adossé à l'écosystème Codemod
Cons
Limité aux dépôts publics, pas d'indexation de code privé
Syntaxe AST-grep a une courbe d'apprentissage vs simple grep
Moins de fonctionnalités enterprise que Sourcegraph
Outil de niche, utile surtout pour refactoring/audit ponctuel