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On this page there are 8 sections

Working with GitHub in VS Code

GitHub is a cloud-based service for storing and sharing source code. Using GitHub with Visual Studio Code lets you share your source code and collaborate with others right within your editor. There are many ways to interact with GitHub, for example, via their website at https://github.com or the Git command-line interface (CLI), but in VS Code, the rich GitHub integration is provided by the GitHub Pull Requests and Issues extension.

In this topic, we'll demonstrate how you can use some of your favorite parts of GitHub without leaving VS Code.

Tip

If you're new to source control or want to learn more about VS Code's basic Git support, you can start with the Source Control topic.

Prerequisites

To get started with GitHub in VS Code, you need:

  • Git is installed on your computer. Install Git version 2.0.0 or later on your machine.

  • A GitHub account.

  • The GitHub Pull Requests and Issues extension installed in VS Code.

  • When you commit changes, Git uses your configured username and email. You can set these values with:

    // Languages that the '#' character should not be used to trigger issue completion suggestions. "githubIssues.ignoreCompletionTrigger": [ "python" ]

    Pull requests

    From the Pull Requests view you can view, manage, and create pull requests.

    The queries used to display pull requests can be configured with the GitHub Pull Requests: Queries ( githubPullRequests.queries Open in VS Code Open in VS Code Insiders ) setting and use the GitHub search syntax.

    "githubIssues.createIssueTriggers": [ "TODO", "todo", "BUG", "FIXME", "ISSUE", "HACK" ]

    Working on issues

    From the Issues view, you can see your issues and work on them.

    By default, when you start working on an issue (Start Working on Issue context menu item), a branch will be created for you, as shown in the Status Bar in the image below.

    The Status Bar also shows the active issue and if you select that item, a list of issue actions are available such as opening the issue on the GitHub website or creating a pull request.

    You can configure the name of the branch using the GitHub Issues: Issue Branch Title ( githubIssues.issueBranchTitle Open in VS Code Open in VS Code Insiders ) setting. If your workflow doesn't involve creating a branch, or if you want to be prompted to enter a branch name every time, you can skip that step by turning off the GitHub Issues: Use Branch For Issues ( githubIssues.useBranchForIssues Open in VS Code Open in VS Code Insiders ) setting.

    Tip

    Learn more about working with branches to understand branch management, switching between branches, and organizing your development work.

    Once you are done working on the issue and want to commit a change, the commit message input box in the Source Control view will be populated with a message, which can be configured with GitHub Issues: Working Issue Format SCM ( githubIssues.workingIssueFormatScm Open in VS Code Open in VS Code Insiders ).

    GitHub Repositories extension

    The GitHub Repositories extension lets you quickly browse, search, edit, and commit to any remote GitHub repository directly from within Visual Studio Code, without needing to clone the repository locally. This can be fast and convenient for many scenarios, where you just need to review source code or make a small change to a file or asset.

    Opening a repository

    Once you have installed the GitHub Repositories extension, you can open a repository with the GitHub Repositories: Open Repository... command from the Command Palette (⇧⌘P (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+P)) or by clicking the Remote indicator in the lower left of the Status Bar.

    When you run the Open Repository command, you then choose whether to open a repository from GitHub, open a Pull Request from GitHub, or reopen a repository that you had previously connected to.

    If you haven't logged into GitHub from VS Code before, you'll be prompted to authenticate with your GitHub account.

    You can provide the repository URL directly or search GitHub for the repository you want by typing in the text box.

    Once you have selected a repository or Pull Request, the VS Code window will reload and you will see the repository contents in the File Explorer. You can then open files (with full syntax highlighting and bracket matching), make edits, and commit changes, just like you would working on a local clone of a repository.

    One difference from working with a local repository is that when you commit a change with the GitHub Repository extension, the changes are pushed directly to the remote repository, similar to if you were working in the GitHub web interface.

    Another feature of the GitHub Repositories extension is that every time you open a repository or branch, you get the up-to-date sources available from GitHub. You don't need to remember to pull to refresh as you would with a local repository.

    The GitHub Repositories extension supports viewing and even committing LFS-tracked files without needing to install Git LFS (Large File System) locally. Add the file types you want tracked with LFS to a .gitattributes file, then commit your changes directly to GitHub using the Source Control view.

    Switching branches

    You can easily switch between branches by clicking on the branch indicator in the Status Bar. One great feature of the GitHub Repositories extension is that you can switch branches without needing to stash uncommitted changes. The extension remembers your changes and reapplies them when you switch branches.

    Remote Explorer

    You can quickly reopen remote repositories with the Remote Explorer available on the Activity bar. This view shows you the previously opened repositories and branches.

    Create pull requests

    If your workflow uses Pull Requests, rather than direct commits to a repository, you can create a new PR from the Source Control view. You'll be prompted to provide a title and create a new branch.

    Once you have created a Pull Request, you can use the GitHub Pull Request and Issues extension to review, edit, and merge your PR as described earlier in this topic.

    Virtual file system

    Without a repository's files on your local machine, the GitHub Repositories extension creates a virtual file system in memory so you can view file contents and make edits. Using a virtual file system means that some operations and extensions which assume local files are not enabled or have limited functionality. Features such as tasks, debugging, and integrated terminals are not enabled and you can learn about the level of support for the virtual file system via the features are not available link in the Remote indicator hover.

    Extension authors can learn more about running in a virtual file system and workspace in the Virtual Workspaces extension author's guide.

    Continue working on

    Sometimes you'll want to switch to working on a repository in a development environment with support for a local file system and full language and development tooling. The GitHub Repositories extension makes it easy for you to:

    To switch development environments, use the Continue Working On command, available from the Command Palette (⇧⌘P (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+P)) or by clicking on the Remote indicator in the Status Bar.

    If you are using the browser-based editor, the "Continue Working On" command has the options to open the repository locally or within a cloud-hosted environment in GitHub Codespaces.

    The first time that you use Continue Working On with uncommitted changes, you will have the option to bring your edits to your selected development environment using Cloud Changes, which stores your pending changes on the same VS Code service used for Settings Sync.

    These changes are deleted from our service once they are applied to your target development environment. If you choose to continue without your uncommitted changes, you can always change this preference later by configuring the setting "workbench.cloudChanges.continueOn": "prompt".

    In the event that your pending changes are not automatically applied to your target development environment, you can view, manage, and delete your stored changes using the Cloud Changes: Show Cloud Changes command.

    Next steps

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    5/13/2026