Git Cheat Sheet
Letโs skip the Git theory lecture.
This cheat sheet is for people who already know Git is a version control system and just want the damn commands. Youโve got code to write, bugs to fix, and a production deploy in 6 minutes.
So here it is: everything you need, nothing you donโt.
Setup
Set your name and email (commit author identity)
git config --global user.name "Ada Lovelace"Creating Repos
Start a new repo
git initClone an existing repo
git clone <repo-url>Making Changes
Check whatโs changed
git statusStage changes (individual or all)
git add <file> # just one# orgit add . # all changesCommit with a message
git commit -m "fix: patch infinite loop in login"Unstage a file
git reset HEAD <file>History & Diffs
See commit history
git logSee unstaged changes
git diffSee staged changes
git diff --stagedRemotes
Link to a remote repo
git remote add origin <url>Push/pull to/from remote
git push origin <branch>git pull origin <branch>Branching
See, create, switch, and delete branches
git branch # list branchesgit branch <name> # create
# switch to a branchgit checkout <name>
# delete a branchgit branch -d <name>Merging
Merge a branch into current one
git merge <branch>Stashing
Save, list, apply, and drop stashes
git stash # stash current changesgit stash list # see all stashesgit stash apply # reapply latest stashgit stash drop # delete latest stashTagging
Add, delete, and push tags
git tag <tag>git tag -a <tag> -m "msg"git tag -d <tag>git push --tagsReverting & Resetting
Revert a commit (safe)
git revert HEAD # undo last commitgit revert <commit> # revert specific commitReset to a clean state (dangerous)
git reset HEAD # unstage
git reset --hard HEAD # discard all local changes
git reset --hard <commit> # nuke back to old commitAliases
Save yourself some keystrokes
git config --global alias.co checkoutgit config --global alias.st statusgit config --global alias.ci commitgit config --global alias.br branchThatโs It
Git can get deep, but you donโt need to memorize plumbing commands to be dangerous.
Pin this cheat sheet, use it daily, and add aliases for whatever slows you down.
Now go commit something before someone force-pushes to main again.
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Tools I Personally Trust
If youโre building, breaking, and trying to keep your digital life sane (like every good DevOps engineer), these are tools I actually use every day:
๐ธ Proton VPN (60% off link) - my shield on the internet. Keeps my Wi-Fi secure, hides my IP, and blocks trackers. Even on sketchy cafรฉ Wi-Fi, Iโm safe.
๐ Proton Pass (50% off link) - my password vault. End-to-end encrypted logins, 2FA, and notes - all mine and only mine.
๐ฆ GitKraken Pro (50% off link) - my visual Git sidekick. Beautiful commit graph, easy merges, and fewer โWTF just happened?โ moments.
๐ These links give you discounts - and help support the channel at no extra cost.
Gear & Books I Trust
๐ Essential DevOps books
๐ฅ๏ธ Studio streaming & recording kit
๐ก Streaming starter kit
Social Channels
๐ฌ YouTube
๐ฆ X (Twitter)
๐จ Instagram
๐ Mastodon
๐งต Threads
๐ธ Facebook
๐ฆ Bluesky
๐ฅ TikTok
๐ป LinkedIn
๐ฃ daily.dev Squad
โ๏ธ Telegram
๐ GitHub
Community of IT Experts
๐พ Discord
Is this content AI-generated?
No. Every article on this blog is written by me personally, drawing on decades of hands-on IT experience and a genuine passion for technology.
I use AI tools exclusively to help polish grammar and ensure my technical guidance is as clear as possible. However, the core ideas, strategic insights, and step-by-step solutions are entirely my own, born from real-world work.
Because of this human-and-AI partnership, some detection tools might flag this content. You can be confident, though, that the expertise is authentic. My goal is to share road-tested knowledge you can trust.