After creating your project locally, add them to Git repo.

Note: A pre-requisite GitHub account is required. If you haven’t set up Git identity or SSH keys yet, check out Setting Up Git (and MCP?) on a New Laptop first.

1. Initialize Git in Your Project

Navigate to your project folder and turn it into a Git repository:

Initialize a new Git repo

git init

2. Stage and Commit Your Files

Check what will be added

git status

Stage all files

git add .

Create your first commit

git commit -m "Initial commit"

3. Create a Repository on GitHub

Go to github.com/new and create a new, empty repository. Don’t initialize it with a README, .gitignore, or license if you’re pushing an existing local project — that avoids conflicting histories.

GitHub will show you a remote URL after creating the repo. Use the SSH version if you’ve already set up an SSH key, or HTTPS otherwise.

Add the GitHub repo as a remote (SSH)

git remote add origin git@github.com:username/repo-name.git

Add the GitHub repo as a remote (HTTPS)

git remote add origin https://github.com/username/repo-name.git

Verify the remote was added

git remote -v

5. Push Your Code

Rename your branch to main (if needed)

git branch -M main

Push and set upstream tracking

git push -u origin main

6. Verify

Refresh the repo page on GitHub — your files should now be there. Future pushes only need:

Push subsequent commits

git push

That’s it — your local project is now backed by a GitHub repo, and every commit you make can be pushed up with a single command.