diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 6bac2ccc1ea..58cd70f8830 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -1526,6 +1526,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "git-diff 0.13.0",
  "git-features 0.19.0",
  "git-hash 0.9.0",
+ "git-index",
  "git-lock 1.0.1",
  "git-object 0.17.0",
  "git-odb 0.26.0",
diff --git a/git-bitmap/src/ewah.rs b/git-bitmap/src/ewah.rs
index e504050da2c..7575a59e2d6 100644
--- a/git-bitmap/src/ewah.rs
+++ b/git-bitmap/src/ewah.rs
@@ -119,6 +119,6 @@ mod access {
 pub struct Vec {
     num_bits: u32,
     bits: std::vec::Vec<u64>,
-    /// RLW is an offset into the `bits` buffer, so `1` translates into &bits[1] essentially.
+    /// RLW is an offset into the `bits` buffer, so `1` translates into &bits\[1] essentially.
     rlw: usize,
 }
diff --git a/git-repository/Cargo.toml b/git-repository/Cargo.toml
index 8cd8801819b..5777f6e22da 100644
--- a/git-repository/Cargo.toml
+++ b/git-repository/Cargo.toml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ test = true
 
 [features]
 default = ["max-performance", "one-stop-shop"]
-unstable = []
+unstable = ["git-index"]
 serde1 = ["git-pack/serde1", "git-object/serde1", "git-protocol/serde1", "git-transport/serde1", "git-ref/serde1", "git-odb/serde1"]
 # enable when https://github.com/RustCrypto/asm-hashes/issues/17 is fixed
 # max-performance = ["git-features/parallel", "git-features/zlib-ng-compat", "git-features/fast-sha1"]
@@ -54,6 +54,9 @@ git-transport = { version = "^0.15.0", path = "../git-transport", optional = tru
 git-diff = { version = "^0.13.0", path = "../git-diff", optional = true }
 git-features = { version = "^0.19.0", path = "../git-features", features = ["progress"] }
 
+# unstable only
+git-index = { version ="^0.1.0", path = "../git-index", optional = true }
+
 signal-hook = { version = "0.3.9", default-features = false }
 thiserror = "1.0.26"
 clru = "0.5.0"
diff --git a/git-repository/src/lib.rs b/git-repository/src/lib.rs
index 8f47c687b0c..fca7e00eb02 100644
--- a/git-repository/src/lib.rs
+++ b/git-repository/src/lib.rs
@@ -86,6 +86,7 @@
 //! * [`url`]
 //! * [`actor`]
 //! * [`bstr`][bstr]
+//! * [`index`]
 //! * [`objs`]
 //! * [`odb`]
 //!   * [`pack`][odb::pack]
@@ -118,6 +119,8 @@ pub use git_features::{parallel, progress, progress::Progress, threading};
 pub use git_hash as hash;
 #[doc(inline)]
 pub use git_hash::{oid, ObjectId};
+#[cfg(all(feature = "unstable", feature = "git-index"))]
+pub use git_index as index;
 pub use git_lock as lock;
 pub use git_object as objs;
 pub use git_object::bstr;
@@ -151,9 +154,10 @@ pub mod prelude {
 pub mod path;
 
 mod repository;
-use git_features::threading::OwnShared;
 pub use repository::{discover, init, open};
 
+use git_features::threading::OwnShared;
+
 /// The standard type for a store to handle git references.
 pub type RefStore = git_ref::file::Store;
 /// A handle for finding objects in an object database, abstracting away caches for thread-local use.
diff --git a/gitoxide-core/src/index.rs b/gitoxide-core/src/index.rs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..c565d5eb77e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gitoxide-core/src/index.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+use git_repository as git;
+use std::path::Path;
+
+#[allow(unused)]
+pub fn entries(
+    index_path: impl AsRef<Path>,
+    out: impl std::io::Write,
+    object_hash: git::hash::Kind,
+) -> anyhow::Result<()> {
+    let file = git::index::File::at(
+        index_path.as_ref(),
+        git::index::decode::Options {
+            object_hash,
+            ..Default::default()
+        },
+    )?;
+    todo!("print entries")
+}
diff --git a/gitoxide-core/src/lib.rs b/gitoxide-core/src/lib.rs
index 6977191ee70..0f89d1d0f19 100644
--- a/gitoxide-core/src/lib.rs
+++ b/gitoxide-core/src/lib.rs
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ pub mod net;
 pub mod commitgraph;
 #[cfg(feature = "estimate-hours")]
 pub mod hours;
+pub mod index;
 #[cfg(feature = "organize")]
 pub mod organize;
 pub mod pack;
diff --git a/src/plumbing/main.rs b/src/plumbing/main.rs
index 6824f0abdbf..b26f62ca537 100644
--- a/src/plumbing/main.rs
+++ b/src/plumbing/main.rs
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ use clap::Parser;
 use gitoxide_core as core;
 use gitoxide_core::pack::verify;
 
+use crate::plumbing::options::index;
 #[cfg(any(feature = "gitoxide-core-async-client", feature = "gitoxide-core-blocking-client"))]
 use crate::plumbing::options::remote;
 use crate::{
@@ -73,6 +74,19 @@ pub fn main() -> Result<()> {
     })?;
 
     match cmd {
+        Subcommands::Index(subcommands) => match subcommands {
+            index::Subcommands::Entries {
+                object_hash,
+                index_path,
+            } => prepare_and_run(
+                "index-entries",
+                verbose,
+                progress,
+                progress_keep_open,
+                None,
+                move |_progress, out, _err| core::index::entries(index_path, out, object_hash),
+            ),
+        },
         Subcommands::Repository(subcommands) => match subcommands {
             repo::Subcommands::Verify {
                 args:
diff --git a/src/plumbing/options.rs b/src/plumbing/options.rs
index e241c5b99d2..23c018554da 100644
--- a/src/plumbing/options.rs
+++ b/src/plumbing/options.rs
@@ -56,6 +56,9 @@ pub enum Subcommands {
     /// Subcommands for interacting with commit-graphs
     #[clap(subcommand)]
     CommitGraph(commitgraph::Subcommands),
+    /// Subcommands for interacting with a worktree index, typically at .git/index
+    #[clap(subcommand)]
+    Index(index::Subcommands),
     /// Subcommands for interacting with entire git repositories
     #[clap(subcommand)]
     Repository(repo::Subcommands),
@@ -344,6 +347,28 @@ pub mod repo {
     }
 }
 
+///
+pub mod index {
+    use std::path::PathBuf;
+
+    use clap::AppSettings;
+
+    #[derive(Debug, clap::Parser)]
+    #[clap(alias = "repo")]
+    pub enum Subcommands {
+        /// Print all entries to standard output
+        #[clap(setting = AppSettings::DisableVersionFlag)]
+        Entries {
+            /// The object format to assume when reading files that don't inherently know about it, or when writing files.
+            #[clap(long, default_value = "sha1", possible_values(&["sha1"]))]
+            object_hash: git_repository::hash::Kind,
+
+            /// The path too the index file.
+            index_path: PathBuf,
+        },
+    }
+}
+
 ///
 pub mod commitgraph {
     use std::path::PathBuf;