GitHub Search

Quick Commands

| Goal | Command | |------|---------| | Search repos | gh search repos "<query>" --limit 30 | | Search code | gh search code "<query>" --limit 30 | | Search issues | gh search issues "<query>" --limit 30 | | Search PRs | gh search prs "<query>" --limit 30 |

Patterns

Finding Repositories

When you see: User wants to find projects/repos by criteria Use: gh search repos

# Basic search with stars
gh search repos "stars:>500 language:rust" --sort=stars --limit=50

# Multiple languages (OR logic)
gh search repos "language:rust language:go language:typescript"

# Exclude topics
gh search repos "stars:>1000 -topic:cryptocurrency -topic:blockchain"

# By topic
gh search repos "topic:cli topic:terminal stars:>100"

# Recently updated
gh search repos "language:python pushed:>2024-01-01"

Output formats:

--json name,url,description,stargazersCount  # JSON output
--web                                         # Open in browser

Finding Code Examples

When you see: User wants to know how to use a library Use: gh search code

# Find usage patterns
gh search code "from zod import" --limit=20
gh search code "import { z } from 'zod'" --limit=20

# In specific file types
gh search code "useQuery" extension:tsx --limit=30

# In specific paths
gh search code "tanstack/query" path:src/ extension:ts

# Exact phrase
gh search code '"createTRPCRouter"' extension:ts

Pro tip: Combine with repo filter for focused results:

gh search code "pattern" repo:owner/repo

Finding Issues/Discussions

When you see: User looking for bug reports, feature requests, or discussions Use: gh search issues or gh search prs

# Open issues with label
gh search issues "is:open label:bug repo:facebook/react"

# PRs by author
gh search prs "author:username is:merged"

# Issues mentioning error
gh search issues '"connection refused" language:go'

Query Qualifiers Reference

Repo Search

| Qualifier | Example | Description | |-----------|---------|-------------| | stars: | stars:>1000, stars:100..500 | Star count | | forks: | forks:>100 | Fork count | | language: | language:rust | Primary language | | topic: | topic:cli | Repository topic | | -topic: | -topic:blockchain | Exclude topic | | pushed: | pushed:>2024-01-01 | Last push date | | created: | created:>2023-01-01 | Creation date | | license: | license:mit | License type | | archived: | archived:false | Archive status | | is: | is:public, is:private | Visibility |

Code Search

| Qualifier | Example | Description | |-----------|---------|-------------| | extension: | extension:ts | File extension | | path: | path:src/ | File path | | repo: | repo:owner/name | Specific repo | | language: | language:javascript | Code language | | filename: | filename:package.json | File name |

Common Flags

| Flag | Description | |------|-------------| | --limit N | Number of results (max 1000) | | --sort X | Sort by: stars, forks, updated, best-match | | --order X | asc or desc | | --json FIELDS | JSON output with specific fields | | --web | Open results in browser |

Common Use Cases

"Find popular X repos"

gh search repos "language:X stars:>500" --sort=stars --limit=50

"How do people use library Y"

gh search code "import Y" extension:ts --limit=30
gh search code "from Y import" extension:py --limit=30

"Find repos like Z but exclude crypto"

gh search repos "topic:Z -topic:cryptocurrency -topic:blockchain -topic:web3"

"Find recent active projects"

gh search repos "language:go pushed:>2024-06-01 stars:>100" --sort=updated

Tips

Quote the query when it contains special chars: gh search repos "stars:>500"
Multiple languages = OR: language:rust language:go matches either
Use --json for scripting: --json name,url,stargazersCount
Date ranges: pushed:2024-01-01..2024-06-01
Numeric ranges: stars:100..500