GitHub stores repository and profile metadata from your personal account's activity. You can export your personal account's data through your account settings on GitHub or with the User Migration API.
For more information about the data GitHub stores that is available for exporting, see "REST API endpoints for migrations."
When you request an export of your personal data through your account settings on GitHub, GitHub packages your personal data in a tar.gz file and sends you an email to your primary email address with a download link.
By default, the download link expires after seven days. At any time before the download link expires, you can disable the link from your user settings. For more information, see "Requesting an archive of your personal account’s data."
If your operating system cannot natively unpack the tar.gz file, you can use a third-party tool to extract the archived files. For more information, see "How to unzip a tar.gz file" on Opensource.com.
The generated tar.gz file reflects the data stored at the time you started the data export.
Downloading an archive of your personal account's data
- In the upper-right corner of any page on GitHub, click your profile photo, then click Settings.
- In the left sidebar, click Account.
- Under "Export account data", click Start export or New export.
- Once the export is ready to download, GitHub will send you a download link to your primary email address.
- Click the download link in your email and re-enter your password if prompted.
- You'll be redirected to a
tar.gzfile that you can download.
Deleting access to an archive of your personal account's data
You can disable the download link sent to your email before an export expires by deleting the export.
- In the upper-right corner of any page on GitHub, click your profile photo, then click Settings.
- In the left sidebar, click Account.
- In the "Export account data" section, next to the data export download you want to disable, click Delete.