The Complete Git and GitHub Course — Free, Hands-On, Terminal-Based
Branch, Merge, Ship — A Practical Git & GitHub Course with a real terminal, real commits, and a portfolio repo you keep forever. Free forever.
Learn Git by Actually Using Git — In a Real Terminal
Most developers learn Git by memorizing commands. It works until something goes wrong — a merge conflict, a bad rebase, a force push to the wrong branch. Then the commands are not enough because you never built the mental model. Branch, Merge, Ship is a free Git and GitHub course built around a real terminal. You do not watch someone else type commands. You type them yourself — git init, git branch, git merge, git push — in a live Ubuntu environment running in your browser. Every lesson gives you a clear explanation, a hands-on terminal demo, and a lab exercise that forces you to use what you just learned.
By the end of this course, you will have a real GitHub repository with 10+ commits, 3+ merged pull requests, branch protection, CI validation, conventional commits, and a tagged release. That is not a certificate — it is proof. Employers can click one link and see your Git workflow, your commit history, and your ability to collaborate on a real project.
What you'll actually learn
- Git Fundamentals from ScratchInstall Git, configure your identity, create your first repository, understand the staging area, make commits, track changes, and undo mistakes — all in a real terminal.
- Branching, Merging, and RebasingCreate branches, merge them with fast-forward and three-way merges, resolve merge conflicts by hand, and use interactive rebase to clean up commit history.
- GitHub Collaboration — Push, Pull, Fork, PRConnect local repos to GitHub, push and pull changes, fork and clone repositories, open pull requests, and run through the code review workflow used by real teams.
- Real-World Professional WorkflowFollow the feature branch workflow, write conventional commits, set up branch protection rules, create tags and GitHub Releases — the same practices used at companies from startups to FAANG.
- Advanced Git — Cherry-Pick, Reflog, BisectCopy specific commits with cherry-pick, recover lost work with reflog, and binary-search for bugs with git bisect. Power tools that separate confident developers from nervous ones.
- A Portfolio Repo You Keep ForeverFork a real project, fix real bugs, open real PRs with CI checks, and tag a versioned release. Your GitHub profile shows the work — commits, branches, pull requests, and green CI badges.
Who should take this course
- ✓ 20 complete lessons
- ✓ Real Ubuntu terminal
- ✓ Portfolio repo on GitHub
- ✓ Beginner to advanced
- ✓ No setup required
What students say
"Every free Git tutorial I tried was either too basic or assumed I already knew everything. This course actually builds up from zero and by Module 3 I was pushing real PRs on GitHub. The live terminal made it click."
"I searched Reddit for a free Git course that goes beyond just git add and git commit. This one covers rebasing, cherry-pick, reflog, bisect — things my university course never touched. And I have a real GitHub repo to show for it."
"The terminal-based approach is what sold me. No slides, no videos of someone else typing. I ran every Git command myself in a real terminal. By the end I had a tagged release on GitHub with real PRs and CI checks. That landed in my portfolio immediately."
"My team uses feature branches, conventional commits, and branch protection. I knew the theory but kept messing up the workflow. This hands-on Git course gave me the muscle memory. The merge conflict lesson alone was worth it."
"My CS program never taught Git and GitHub properly. I was terrified of merge conflicts before my internship. This course walked me through branching, merging, and pull requests step by step in a real terminal. Now I use Git confidently at work every day."
"I wanted to contribute to open source but did not understand the fork and pull request workflow. This free Git and GitHub course taught me exactly that — I forked a repo, fixed bugs, opened PRs, and now my GitHub profile actually shows real contributions."
Course Curriculum
Install Git, configure your identity, create your first repository, make commits, track changes, and learn to undo mistakes — all in a live terminal.
| Unit | Lesson | What You'll Learn |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Installing and Configuring Git | Install Git, set your name and email with git config, generate SSH keys for GitHub authentication, and understand global vs local configuration |
| 2 | Your First Repository | Initialize a repo with git init, understand the staging area, make your first commit, and create a .gitignore file to exclude secrets and build artifacts |
| 3 | Tracking Changes | Check status with git status, view line-by-line diffs, read the commit log, and inspect individual commits with git show |
| 4 | Undoing Mistakes | Discard changes with git restore, unstage files, reset commits with soft/mixed/hard, revert safely, and stash work in progress |
Frequently Asked Questions
Start Learning Git and GitHub by Actually Coding
Join thousands of developers learning Git with a real terminal, real branches, and a real GitHub portfolio.