The GitHub Issues Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about GitHub Issues in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
GitHub Issues
The Insider’s Guide
Issue tracking and project planning built into GitHub
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among project management tools, read from GitHub Issues’s own pages.
Made by GitHub, Inc. · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from GitHub Issues’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on GitHub Issues’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
3.4
GPA, above 79 of the 79 other project management tools we grade
GitHub Issues is the issue tracker built into every GitHub repository, used to plan, discuss and track bugs, features and other work next to the code. Issues can be broken into sub-issues, linked through dependencies and organized with labels, milestones and issue types. GitHub Projects adds table, board and roadmap views with custom fields, charts and built-in automations. Issues and Projects are included in every GitHub plan, including Free.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about GitHub Issues, taken from its own pages and our grades.
Every mouse action has a keyboard shortcut or a CLI command too.
- 1
Best for teams whose code already lives on GitHub
If your work isn't code, look elsewhere.
- 2
Paid plans start at $4 a month for each person
As its pricing page puts it: $4 per user / month (GitHub Team).
- 3
There is a free plan
GitHub Free includes Issues and Projects for individuals and organizations, with unlimited public and private repositories and community support.
- 4
It runs on 3 platforms
Web, iOS and Android.
- 5
Issues and sub-issues
Issues track bugs, features and ideas. Sub-issues break larger work into a hierarchy with progress indicators, and dependencies mark which issues block others.
- 6
Tables, boards and roadmaps
GitHub Projects shows issues and pull requests as a table, a kanban board or a timeline-style roadmap, with saved views that filter, sort, slice and group.
- 7
Custom fields and iterations
A project takes up to 50 fields, including date, number, single-select and text fields and an iteration field for planning work week by week.
- 8
A 3.4 GPA, above 79 of 79
That is against the other project management tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
To replace GitHub Issues you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
GitHub Issues at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $4 per user / month (GitHub Team)
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- 30-day free trial of GitHub Enterprise
- Runs on
- Web, iOS, Android
- Made by
- GitHub, Inc.
- Category
- Project Management
- Our grade
- 3.4 GPA, very good
The report card
Best for teams whose code already lives on GitHub
GitHub Issues is the issue tracker built into every GitHub plan, the free one included, with sub-issues, dependencies, boards, roadmaps and charts through Projects. It's built for software: every issue has to live in a repository, a project stops at 50 fields, there's no time logging, and paid plans are priced per user for all of GitHub. If your work isn't code, look elsewhere.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | A | Issues isn't sold on its own: it comes with every GitHub plan, the free one included, and Team is $4 a user a month for the whole platform, under the $5.10 where this category's cheapest quarter starts. Enterprise at $21 is only for single sign-on and the self-hosted server. |
| Free plan and trial | A | GitHub Free includes Issues and Projects with unlimited public and private repositories, so there's no cap a normal team runs into. Support on Free is community only, which is the one thing you're giving up. |
| Features | B | Issues with sub-issues, dependencies, labels and milestones, and Projects on top with table, board and roadmap views, custom fields, week-by-week iterations, built-in automations and a burn-up chart. The whole tracking job, then. Projects stops at 50 fields, and there's no time logging. |
| Ease of use | B | No store rating on record, but there's genuinely nothing to set up: if your code is on GitHub, the tracker is already in the account you use every day. Every mouse action has a keyboard shortcut or a CLI command too. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web, iPhone and Android, plus the GitHub CLI if you'd rather stay in the terminal, and a GraphQL API with Actions behind it. No desktop app for issues, which is what keeps it off the top mark. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who GitHub Issues is for
- Fits if you're a software team that already hosts its code on GitHub
- Works for open source projects taking bug reports and feature requests in public
Who it is not for
- Not for you if your work isn't code, because every issue has to live in a repository
- Skip it if you want to buy just an issue tracker, as paid plans are priced per user for all of GitHub
- Pricey if you need single sign-on, SCIM or a self-hosted server, which start with Enterprise at $21 a user a month
- Tight if you track a lot per issue, as a project is limited to 50 fields, built-in ones included
- Watch out: there's no time logging, no desktop app for issues, and Free gets community support only
Good to know
Good for
- Software teams that already host their code on GitHub
- Open source projects taking bug reports and feature requests in public
- Developers who like to plan from the terminal or the keyboard
Worth knowing
- Issues is not sold on its own: it is part of every GitHub plan, and paid plans are priced per user for the whole platform.
- Every issue lives in a repository, so planning across repositories and teams runs through GitHub Projects.
- A project is limited to 50 fields, counting built-in metadata and custom fields.
- SAML single sign-on, SCIM provisioning and self-hosted Enterprise Server need the Enterprise plan, from $21 per user / month.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$4
A month to start, for each person. There is a free plan too
GitHub Issues has a free plan. Paid plans start at $4 per user / month (GitHub Team).
GitHub Free includes Issues and Projects with unlimited public and private repositories, so there's no cap a normal team runs into.
Free
$0
GitHub plan for individuals and organizations. Includes Issues and Projects, unlimited public and private repositories and community support.
Team
$4
per user / month
GitHub plan that adds repository rules, required reviewers, code owners, 3,000 CI/CD minutes a month and web-based support. Includes Issues and Projects.
Enterprise
$21
per user / month, starting price
Adds SAML single sign-on, SCIM provisioning, enterprise accounts, data residency and the self-hosted Enterprise Server option.
The free plan
GitHub Free includes Issues and Projects for individuals and organizations, with unlimited public and private repositories and community support.
Trying it first
30-day free trial of GitHub Enterprise
Read from github.com on Oct 5, 2026.
Ways to pay less
Nonprofit
Free Team plan for verified nonprofits
GitHub for Nonprofits gives verified 501(c)(3) or equivalent organizations a free GitHub Team plan with unlimited users, or 25% off GitHub Enterprise Cloud.
Stated on github.comStartups
$10,000 in credits for eligible startups
GitHub for Startups gives partner-affiliated startups with outside funding up to Series B, and new to GitHub Enterprise, $10,000 in credits valid for up to 12 months.
Stated on github.comEducation
Free developer tools for students and teachers
GitHub's pricing page says students and teachers get free access to developer tools through GitHub Education, for the school year and beyond.
Stated on github.com
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
3
Places it runs: Web, iOS and Android
Issue tracking and project planning built into GitHub. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, keyboard-first, Markdown, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines, issue tracking, workflow automation.
Web, iPhone and Android, plus the GitHub CLI if you'd rather stay in the terminal, and a GraphQL API with Actions behind it.
- Issues and sub-issues
- Issues track bugs, features and ideas. Sub-issues break larger work into a hierarchy with progress indicators, and dependencies mark which issues block others.
- Tables, boards and roadmaps
- GitHub Projects shows issues and pull requests as a table, a kanban board or a timeline-style roadmap, with saved views that filter, sort, slice and group.
- Custom fields and iterations
- A project takes up to 50 fields, including date, number, single-select and text fields and an iteration field for planning work week by week.
- Built-in automations
- Built-in workflows set fields, archive items and add issues from a repository automatically. The GraphQL API and GitHub Actions allow further automation.
- Insights and charts
- Current and historical charts are built from the items in a project, including a default burn-up chart that shows completed work against what is left.
- Mobile, CLI and keyboard access
- Issues can be created and managed in the iOS and Android apps and from the GitHub CLI, and every mouse action has a keyboard shortcut or command.
Where it runs
- Web
- iOS
- Android
What it works with
- GitHub Projects
- GitHub Actions
- GitHub Copilot
- GitHub CLI
- GitHub Discussions
Who makes GitHub Issues
GitHub, Inc. runs the GitHub code-hosting platform, of which Issues and Projects are a built-in part. It has been owned by Microsoft since October 2018 and earns its money from paid GitHub plans, Copilot and enterprise add-ons; Issues itself is included in the free plan.
- Founded
- 2008github.com
- Based
- San Franciscogithub.com
- Ownership
- Part of a larger company. Microsoft said on 26 October 2018 that it had completed its acquisition of GitHub, and that GitHub would operate independently and remain an open platform.blogs.microsoft.com
- Team
- GitHub publishes no headcount of its own. Its owner Microsoft reports 223,000 employees worldwide as of 30 September 2026, across the whole company.news.microsoft.com
- Founders and leaders
- Jay Parikh, Executive Vice President, CoreAI, Microsoftgithub.com
- Kyle Daigle, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officergithub.com
- Vladimir Fedorov, Chief Technology Officergithub.com
- Mario Rodriguez, Chief Product Officergithub.com
- Partner program
- The GitHub Partner Program runs four tracks: Technology, Services and Channel, Startup and Education. It offers co-branding, training and certification, help from GitHub staff and co-selling. No commission or fee is stated.github.com
- Lately
- Private saved views for repository issues and “Relates to” issue relationship is generally available · Sep 25, 2026
- Better label management on issues is generally available · Aug 27, 2026
- Pinning saved views to the repository issues sidebar is generally available and more · Aug 20, 2026
- Agent automation controls in GitHub Issues in public preview · Jul 23, 2026
Read on Oct 18, 2026 from the company’s own pages and from news reports. What is not stated there is left out.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
79/79
Other project management tools it is graded above
GitHub Issues's GPA of 3.4 is higher than 79 of the 79 other project management tools we grade.
It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 71 of 79) and worst on platforms and integrations (B, above 6).
Its paid plans start at $4 a month for each person, against a middle price of $8 for the category: 7 of the 74 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 3.0 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 80 project management tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. GitHub Issues’s own letter is outlined.
- AValue for moneyAbove 68 of 79
- AFree plan and trialAbove 71 of 79
- BFeaturesAbove 27 of 79
- BEase of useAbove 65 of 79
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 6 of 79
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 78 project management tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. GitHub Issues is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace GitHub Issues you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 3.4 is higher than 79 of the 79 other project management tools we grade. It costs $48 a year.
What you could make
- Issue tracking, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and Markdown: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. GitHub Issues’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Jira, Linear, Shortcut, YouTrack and Zenhub
The 5 tools GitHub Issues is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 3.2GPA
Jira
Free plan · from $9.70/mo
Issue and project tracking for software and business teams.
- GitHub Issues also covers Markdown.
- Jira also covers tasks.
- 3.0GPA
Linear
Free plan · from $10/mo
Issue tracking and product planning for software teams.
- Only Linear lists macOS and Windows apps.
- GitHub Issues also covers Markdown, Gantt & timelines and workflow automation.
- Linear also covers tasks.
- 2.6GPA
Shortcut
Free plan · from $8.50/mo
Issue tracking, sprints and roadmaps for software teams.
- Only GitHub Issues lists iOS and Android apps.
- GitHub Issues also covers Markdown and workflow automation.
- Shortcut also covers goals, AI agents and reports.
- 3.2GPA
YouTrack
Free plan · from $4.50/mo
Issue tracker and project management tool from JetBrains.
- YouTrack is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- GitHub Issues also covers Markdown.
- YouTrack also covers wiki and time tracking.
- 2.4GPA
Zenhub
Free plan · from $4.99/mo
Agile project management built on top of GitHub issues.
- Only GitHub Issues lists iOS and Android apps.
- Only Zenhub lists a browser extension.
- Zenhub is self-hostable, according to its own site.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
16
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is GitHub Issues free?
GitHub Issues has a free plan. GitHub Free includes Issues and Projects for individuals and organizations, with unlimited public and private repositories and community support.
How much does GitHub Issues cost?
GitHub Issues lists 3 plans. Free: $0.
What platforms does GitHub Issues work on?
GitHub Issues is available on Web, iOS and Android.
Does GitHub Issues offer any discounts?
GitHub Issues publicly lists the following: Free Team plan for verified nonprofits; $10,000 in credits for eligible startups; Free developer tools for students and teachers.
Does GitHub Issues have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. GitHub Issues is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does GitHub Issues have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. GitHub Issues is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is GitHub Issues open source?
GitHub Issues is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 5, 2026.
Does GitHub Issues have an API?
Yes. GitHub Issues offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does GitHub Issues integrate with?
GitHub Issues's listing names GitHub Projects, GitHub Actions, GitHub Copilot, GitHub CLI and GitHub Discussions.
Does GitHub Issues have a student discount?
Free developer tools for students and teachers. GitHub's pricing page says students and teachers get free access to developer tools through GitHub Education, for the school year and beyond.
Does GitHub Issues have a free trial?
Yes. 30-day free trial of GitHub Enterprise.
Who makes GitHub Issues?
GitHub Issues is made by GitHub. Microsoft said on 26 October 2018 that it had completed its acquisition of GitHub, and that GitHub would operate independently and remain an open platform.
What are the alternatives to GitHub Issues?
The closest alternatives to GitHub Issues in our directory are Jira, Linear, Shortcut, YouTrack and Zenhub.
How does GitHub Issues compare with other project management tools?
GitHub Issues's GPA of 3.4 is higher than 79 of the 79 other project management tools we grade.
Is GitHub Issues good value for money?
ToolGPA grades GitHub Issues A for value for money. Its paid plans start at $4 a month for each person, against a middle price of $8 for the category: 7 of the 74 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of GitHub Issues?
To replace GitHub Issues you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from GitHub Issues’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from GitHub's own pages on 5 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-05-21.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by GitHub, Inc. Prices change, so check github.com before you buy.
- github.com/pricing
- github.com/features/issues
- docs.github.com/en/issues/tracking-your-work-with-issues/learning-about-issues/about-issues
- docs.github.com/en/issues/planning-and-tracking-with-projects/learning-about-projects/about-projects
- docs.github.com/en/issues/planning-and-tracking-with-projects/viewing-insights-from-your-project/about-insights-for-projects
- github.com/solutions/industry/nonprofits
- github.com/enterprise/startups
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- GitHub Issues, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/github-issues
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "GitHub Issues: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/github-issues
Know someone choosing between project management tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/github-issues/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded project management tools after GitHub Issues, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Project Management Insider's GuideEvery one of the 80 project management tools we grade, compared
- Freedcamp Insider's GuideProject management suite with a free plan for unlimited users3.2 GPA
- Huly Insider's GuideOpen-source project management with chat, docs and video calls3.2 GPA
- Jira Insider's GuideIssue and project tracking for software and business teams3.2 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what GitHub Issues’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. GitHub Issues is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by GitHub, Inc. Prices and plans change: check github.com before you buy.