Git and GitHub Commands for Beginners: Complete Command Line Guide

Git and GitHub Commands for Beginners: Complete Command Line Guide

by Mcs June 30, 2025

Mastering GitHub from the Command Line: Essential Git Commands for Beginners

If you’re just starting out with Git and GitHub, the command line might feel a little intimidating. But once you get the hang of a few basic commands, you'll be collaborating like a pro. In this post, we’ll walk through some of the most essential Git and GitHub commands every developer should know.

What You’ll Learn:

How to set up Git
How to create a local repository
How to connect your repo to GitHub
How to push, pull, and manage changes

Setting Up Git

Before using Git, make sure it’s installed(How to install Git). Then configure your identity:

git config --global user.name

git config --global user.email

You can also check your setup with:

git config --list

Creating a New Git Repository

Navigate to your project folder and initialize Git:

git init

Tracking Files

Add your project files to the staging area:

git add .

Then commit your changes with a message:

git commit -m "Initial commit"

Connecting to GitHub

Create a new repository on GitHub. Then link your local repo to GitHub:

git remote add origin https://github.com/your-username/your-repo.git

Push your local changes to GitHub:

git push -u origin main

Replace main with master if your default branch is named that.

Keeping Your Repo in Sync

To get changes from GitHub:

git pull origin main

To push local commits:

git push origin main

Common Git Commands Cheat Sheet

Command	Description
git status	Check the current status of your repo
View commit history	View commit history
git branch	List branches
git checkout -b feature-name	Create and switch to a new branch
git merge branch-name	Merge a branch into the current one
git clone	Clone a repo from GitHub