Stop Git asking for your username and password every time

Does this match your situation?

• Every push and pull prompts for a username and password.
• You keep re-pasting the same personal access token.
• Credentials are forgotten each time you restart.

Step-by-step fix

1. Best option — use SSH keys instead

   SSH keys don't expire and never prompt once the agent has them loaded. This removes the credential question entirely rather than caching an answer to it.

   step 1Copy

   ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "you@example.com"
   cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub    # add this at github.com/settings/keys
   ssh -T git@github.com
   git remote set-url origin git@github.com:USER/REPO.git
   

2. Or configure a keychain-backed credential helper

   If you're staying on HTTPS, pick the helper for your platform. All three store the credential encrypted in the OS keychain rather than on disk in the clear.

   step 2Copy

   # Windows / cross-platform
   git config --global credential.helper manager
   
   # macOS
   git config --global credential.helper osxkeychain
   
   # Linux (GNOME)
   git config --global credential.helper libsecret
   

3. Cache in memory only

   A middle ground when you'd rather nothing was persisted: Git holds the credential in memory for a set period and then forgets it.

   step 3Copy

   git config --global credential.helper 'cache --timeout=3600'
   

4. Avoid the plaintext store helper

   It works, but it writes your token unencrypted to ~/.git-credentials, readable by anything running as you. Use it only in a throwaway container.

   step 4Copy

   # NOT recommended:
   # git config --global credential.helper store
   
   cat ~/.git-credentials    # your token, in plain text
   

5. Clear a stale credential

   If Git is silently reusing an old, revoked token, no amount of retyping helps until the stored one is removed.

   step 5Copy

   git credential-manager erase
   
   # or inspect what is configured:
   git config --get-all credential.helper
   

Why this works

Git itself is stateless about authentication — it asks a credential helper, and if none is configured it falls back to prompting you every time. A helper is just a small program implementing get/store/erase, which is why the same mechanism can be backed by a keychain, an in-memory cache or a plaintext file. SSH sidesteps the whole protocol: the key exchange happens in the transport layer, so Git never has a credential to store in the first place.

How to stop it happening again

• Set up a credential helper (or SSH) as part of configuring any new machine.
• Prefer SSH on machines you own and tokens for CI, where scoping and revocation matter.
• Note token expiry dates so a silent failure doesn't surprise you months later.

Commands used in this guide

Frequently asked questions