GitHub Gist (gh gist) Cheat Sheet

📋 What is a Gist?

💡 Tip: Gists are great for sharing configuration files, scripts, and code examples!

Install GitHub CLI: Required for gh gistbrew install gh # macOS winget install GitHub.cli # Windows sudo apt install gh # Linux
Authenticate: Login firstgh auth login
Verify access: Check gist scopegh auth status

⚠️ Note: Ensure your token has the gist scope enabled for gist operations.

From file: Create from existing filegh gist create script.py
Multiple files: Create with multiple filesgh gist create file1.py file2.js file3.md
From stdin: Pipe content directlyecho "Hello World" | gh gist create
Public gist: Visible in searchgh gist create script.py --public
With description: Add a descriptiongh gist create script.py -d "My awesome script"
Custom filename: Rename from stdincat data.txt | gh gist create -f "output.txt"
Open in browser: View after creationgh gist create script.py --web

Edit in editor: Open in $EDITORgh gist edit GIST_ID
Edit specific file: Target one filegh gist edit GIST_ID -f script.py
Add new file: Append to gistgh gist edit GIST_ID --add newfile.py
Remove file: Delete from gistgh gist edit GIST_ID --remove oldfile.py
Update description: Change descriptiongh gist edit GIST_ID -d "New description"

💡 Tip: Set your preferred editor with gh config set editor "code --wait"

⚠️ Warning: Deleted gists cannot be recovered!

Full URL: Complete gist URLhttps://gist.github.com/USER/GIST_ID
Short URL: Shortened formathttps://gist.github.com/GIST_ID
Raw file URL: Direct file accesshttps://gist.githubusercontent.com/USER/GIST_ID/raw/FILE
Find ID from URL: The hash after username
Use URL or ID: Both work with ghgh gist view https://gist.github.com/user/abc123 gh gist view abc123

Share config: Quick config sharinggh gist create .bashrc -d "My bash config"
Code review snippet: Share for reviewgh gist create problem.py --public -d "Need help!"
Backup dotfiles: Store configurationsgh gist create .vimrc .zshrc .gitconfig
Share script output: Capture and sharepython script.py | gh gist create -f output.txt
Quick notes: Store notesecho "TODO: Fix bug" | gh gist create -f notes.md
Error logs: Share for debuggingcat error.log | gh gist create -d "Error log"

Command	Description	Key Flags
`gh gist create`	Create a new gist	`-d, --desc`, `-f, --filename`, `-p, --public`, `-w, --web`
`gh gist list`	List your gists	`--public`, `--secret`, `-L, --limit`
`gh gist view`	View gist contents	`-f, --filename`, `-r, --raw`, `-w, --web`
`gh gist edit`	Edit a gist	`-a, --add`, `-d, --desc`, `-f, --filename`, `-r, --remove`
`gh gist clone`	Clone gist locally	`[directory]`
`gh gist delete`	Delete a gist	`--yes`
`gh gist rename`	Rename file in gist	`[old] [new]`

JSON output: For scriptinggh gist list --json id,description,public
JQ filtering: Process outputgh gist list --json id --jq '.[].id'
Template output: Custom formatgh gist list --template '{{.ID}}: {{.Description}}'
Pipe to clipboard: Copy gist contentgh gist view GIST_ID -r | pbcopy
Update from file: Replace contentgh gist edit GIST_ID < updated.py

HTML embed: Add to webpage<script src="https://gist.github.com/USER/ID.js"></script>
Specific file: Embed one file<script src="https://gist.github.com/USER/ID.js?file=name.py"></script>
Markdown: Reference in docs{% gist USER/GIST_ID %}

💡 Tip: Embedded gists auto-update when you edit them on GitHub!

Public gists:
- Visible in search and on your profile
- Indexed by search engines
- Use --public flag to create
Secret gists (default):
- Not in search or profile
- Accessible only via direct URL
- NOT encrypted - anyone with URL can see

⚠️ Security: Never store sensitive data like passwords or API keys in gists!