What is the difference between public and private repositories?
What is the difference between public and private repositories?
Ask by Rana Sunny
Updated 28 Jan 2026
Public repository:
Anyone on the internet can view the code, clone it, and sometimes contribute (via pull requests). It’s commonly used for open-source projects, learning, or sharing work publicly. Visibility is open, but only approved contributors can make changes.
Private repository:
Access is restricted to you and the people you explicitly invite. The code is hidden from the public, making it ideal for proprietary projects, internal company work, or anything confidential.
Key difference: visibility and access control.