Git, GitHub, and GitLab: What's the Difference?

Modification. Collaboration. Making changes. Continuous improvement. All of these are foundational aspects of the software development lifecycle (SDLC). You're constantly looking for ways to make the SDLC simpler, more efficient, and more accessible to all team members involved in the project. You also want changes to always improve the process—introducing additional conflicts is, of course, problematic.
You may have heard terms like version control system, Git, GitHub, and GitLab. These are important concepts to understand when trying to create a better and more collaborative development process.
What are Git, GitHub, and GitLab? What is the difference between GitHub and GitLab? And why are these concepts so important for businesses and developers? Let's take a look.

Git vs. GitHub vs. GitLab

The names are quite similar, so how do you understand the difference between Git, GitHub, and GitLab? Below is a description of what each term and concept means and why it matters.

Git

Companies of all shapes and sizes—from startups to large, established corporations—use Git as a software development tool. It is an open-source version control system (VCS) that allows you to save your work and track changes.
Essentially, you can save so-called 'snapshots' of your work. If you need to revert to previous versions or the project's history, Git makes it easy to do so. Unlike many other version control systems, you can simultaneously work with different branch versions and merge them.
This is, of course, very important whether you are part of a large team or a small group of developers—even working alone. All your data is saved in case something goes wrong and you need access to a previous version. Moreover, Git ensures seamless collaboration by allowing developers to work on a project simultaneously without worrying about integrating changes.

GitHub and GitLab

GitHub and GitLab are separate web repositories for Git. Although they are often confused—largely due to their names—they are owned and operated by different companies: GitHub is owned by Microsoft, and GitLab is owned by the organization of the same name. Each provides a space for developers to work on Git projects, collaborate, share their work, and test it. Both repositories are constantly evolving and have millions of users.
There are several common features between GitLab and GitHub. Here are some of their shared qualities.

• They offer cloud data storage.
• They include issue trackers for handling multiple issues simultaneously.
• They run on Linux servers.
• There are free and paid plans.
• They offer extensive third-party integration capabilities.
• They support open source code and projects.
• There are many project management and other developer tools.
• They use mixed programming models.

GitHub vs. GitLab

GitHub and GitLab are Git repositories that allow developers to collaborate, test, and improve their projects. So how are they different from each other? In fact, despite some overlap, they differ in several key points, including their underlying philosophy.
GitHub is slightly older than GitLab and takes a different approach, focusing on building a strong community and emphasizing collaboration. Despite having many integrations and add-ons, the platform itself is more DIY than its counterpart—GitLab offers many DevOps and continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) features that are built into the repository. Thus, GitLab provides a more comprehensive all-in-one platform that does not require additional integration.
GitLab started as an alternative to GitHub, but since then it has expanded, offering more and more new plans and features. It aims to be reliable and comprehensive, while the older repository emphasizes performance and teamwork.

What is the difference between GitHub and GitLab? - Comparison

Let's take a closer look at the differences between GitHub and GitLab.

Pros and cons of GitHub and GitLab

When considering the differences between GitHub and GitLab, you should also look at the advantages and disadvantages of each Git repository.

GitHub

Pros

• Simple setup
• Strong user interface (UI)
• Encourages ease of sharing
• Makes remote collaboration and teamwork easy
• Huge community

Cons

• GitHub itself is not open source
• No built-in CI/CD system
• Less advanced API development
• Limited features in free versions
• Only public repositories are free

GitLab

Pros

• GitLab Community Edition is free and open source
• Provides extensive documentation for data import/export
• Built-in CI/CD
• New features are added constantly
• Easy to maintain code
• Tends to be more secure

Cons

• Smaller community than GitHub
• Updates can be complex
• Users sometimes complain about bugs
• Less mature than GitHub

While GitHub is perhaps the more well-known of the two version control systems, each repository has its place in the development process. Ultimately, when choosing between GitHub and GitLab, it's important to weigh the pros and cons of the platforms and consider your priorities as a developer or development team before making a final decision.