{"meta":{"title":"About GitHub Desktop","intro":"GitHub Desktop helps you work with projects hosted on GitHub.","product":"GitHub Desktop","breadcrumbs":[{"href":"/en/desktop","title":"GitHub Desktop"},{"href":"/en/desktop/overview","title":"Overview"},{"href":"/en/desktop/overview/about-github-desktop","title":"About"}],"documentType":"article"},"body":"# About GitHub Desktop\n\nGitHub Desktop helps you work with projects hosted on GitHub.\n\n<a href=\"https://desktop.github.com?ref_product=desktop&ref_type=engagement&ref_style=button\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"btn btn-primary mt-3 mr-3 no-underline\"><span>Download GitHub Desktop</span> <svg version=\"1.1\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" class=\"octicon octicon-link-external\" aria-label=\"link external icon\" role=\"img\"><path d=\"M3.75 2h3.5a.75.75 0 0 1 0 1.5h-3.5a.25.25 0 0 0-.25.25v8.5c0 .138.112.25.25.25h8.5a.25.25 0 0 0 .25-.25v-3.5a.75.75 0 0 1 1.5 0v3.5A1.75 1.75 0 0 1 12.25 14h-8.5A1.75 1.75 0 0 1 2 12.25v-8.5C2 2.784 2.784 2 3.75 2Zm6.854-1h4.146a.25.25 0 0 1 .25.25v4.146a.25.25 0 0 1-.427.177L13.03 4.03 9.28 7.78a.751.751 0 0 1-1.042-.018.751.751 0 0 1-.018-1.042l3.75-3.75-1.543-1.543A.25.25 0 0 1 10.604 1Z\"></path></svg></a>\n\n## About GitHub Desktop\n\nGitHub Desktop is a free, open source application that helps you to work with files hosted on GitHub or other Git hosting services.\n\n## Benefits of GitHub Desktop\n\nGitHub Desktop is useful for beginning and advanced users. Benefits include:\n\n* **Get started easily.** If you're new to Git and GitHub, you may find it easier to use GitHub Desktop than to use Git on the command line. GitHub Desktop has a graphical user interface that simplifies commands and helps you visualize changes.\n* **Find commands.** Because GitHub Desktop has a visual interface, you can easily access less-common Git commands, such as choosing which changed lines to include in a commit or adding a co-author to a commit, without needing to memorize or look up syntax.\n* **Follow best practices.** GitHub Desktop encourages best practices. For example, it helps you to create an accurate and easy-to-follow commit history so other collaborators on a project can easily review your work.\n* **Integrate with GitHub.** GitHub Desktop is specifically designed for use with GitHub. For example, you can authenticate to GitHub or GitHub Enterprise quickly, without needing to use a separate credential manager. You can also check out a pull request to run checks without needing to open your browser.\n\n## GitHub Desktop workflow\n\nYou can use GitHub Desktop alongside any tools you need to contribute to a project. For example, a typical workflow is:\n\n* Use GitHub Desktop to download a GitHub repository to your computer and create a new branch\n* Use an editor such as Visual Studio Code to make changes to the code\n* Return to GitHub Desktop to commit and push the changes to GitHub\n\n## Getting started\n\nGitHub Desktop is available for Windows and macOS. For information about installing and getting started with GitHub Desktop, see [Getting started with GitHub Desktop](/en/desktop/overview/getting-started-with-github-desktop).\n\nIf you're interested in the open source GitHub Desktop project, you can see the roadmap, contribute to the project, or open an issue to provide feedback in the [`desktop/desktop`](https://github.com/desktop/desktop) repository.\n\n## Further reading\n\n* [About Git](/en/get-started/using-git/about-git)"}