Git vs GitHub

What

It is extremely common for beginner developers to confuse Git and GitHub. However, they are completely different technologies:

• Git: An open-source, local command-line Version Control System (VCS) tool used by developers to track history, manage branches, and commit file states locally.
• GitHub: A commercial web hosting platform that stores copies of Git repositories on the cloud, providing web interfaces, team management tools, and project features.

How

You use Git locally on your machine to manage files, but configure connection links to GitHub when you are ready to upload or share your code:

# Local command line operations (Git)
git init
git add .
git commit -m "Local commit"

# Cloud storage interaction (GitHub)
git remote add origin https://github.com/username/project.git
git push origin main

Why

Git runs completely locally on your computer; you do not need internet access or a hosting account to track your project’s version history. However, your local hard drive is a single point of failure. Using GitHub acts as a secure cloud backup, provides a centralized interface for team collaboration, and serves as a public portfolio to share your coding accomplishments with the engineering community.

Summary

Git is the local version control software tool running on your machine, while GitHub is a web platform that hosts Git repositories in the cloud to enable backup and collaboration.