the asdf CLI has really sharp edges and feels kind of aggressively unhelpful.

Even if you just use mise as an asdf alternative, it has a nicer CLI and interacts with the same plugin ecosystem more smoothly.

(I've found it to be an improvement on direnv, but I still use make)

the comparison to asdf page has more: https://mise.jdx.dev/dev-tools/comparison-to-asdf.html