Like a commit, a dropped or cleared stash is stored in a Git database until you run git gc. The lost stash is treated like a commit and you can use git fsck to find it. Let's create and drop a stash with a message. % echo "I'm going to stash this" >> INSTALL % git add INSTALL % git stash save Changes INSTALL % git stash list stash@{0}: On master: Changed INSTALL % git stash clear % git stash list