Getting Started
git help
Display help and documentation for Git commands
Practical Example
git help commit # Opens the full manual page for git-commit # Try 'git help -g' for guides # Try 'git commit -h' for quick help
Command Overview & How It Works
Opens the manual page for any Git command, providing detailed documentation including all flags, options, and usage examples. Run without arguments to see a list of common Git commands grouped by category. Use git help -a to list every available Git command (including plumbing commands), and git help -g to list guides about specific topics like gitignore, workflows, or revisions. Each man page includes the command synopsis, description, options, configuration, and often examples. For a quick reference in the terminal, use git <command> -h instead — this prints a concise usage summary without opening the pager.
Practical Tips
- •Run git <command> -h for a concise, pager-free usage summary instead of the full manual page.
- •Use git help -g to browse topic guides such as gitignore, revisions, and workflows.
- •Within a man page you can press / to search — for example /--amend jumps to the amend option.