Make your repositories and profile easier to find on GitHub

GitHub describes stars as a way to bookmark projects and to show appreciation to maintainers. It also says many repository rankings depend on star counts and that its discovery page shows popular repositories by stars. So a star works as a bookmark for the person who gives it and as a visible score for everyone else.

A count gives a repository the visible start it needs, and Upvote.club is built to supply that properly. Your README, examples and activity keep visitors on the page. Support helps the project get noticed, and quality turns that attention into users and contributors.

Growth, using the right tool, and Upvote.club is built for it. Stars lift single projects, and followers build a standing audience for your public activity. Each has its own page: stars and followers. Stars suit a launch, and followers suit a long run of small projects, so many maintainers use both at different moments. Pick the one that matches what you ship next.

Start with stars if you have one project you want people to notice, such as a library, a tool or a template. Start with followers if you ship many small things and want a standing audience. Many maintainers begin with stars for the launch and add followers later.

Write a README that states the problem, add a clear example, post the project where developers talk, and ask colleagues to look at it. Friends and teammates give the first stars at a cost of your time. Tools with an active community help once your own contacts run out.

Visitors respond to a one-line description, a screenshot or short demo, working install steps, a license and recent commits. A repository that looks maintained gets starred more than one that looks abandoned, even when the code is the same. Spend an hour on these items before you ask anyone to react, and ask a colleague to try the install steps cold, then pin the repository so it appears first on your profile.

It is one signal among several, and a readable one. Recruiters and clients usually look at pinned repositories, contribution activity and the README quality. A solid follower count supports that picture and makes a profile look established, but it works best with visible, maintained work behind it.

The count stays on the page as long as the repository and profile exist, and it keeps working for every later visitor. Activity gives it meaning, so keep committing, answer issues and release updates. A project that goes silent loses the benefit of a high count over time.

A new repository with no activity looks risky to visitors. Add a README, a few commits and a first release before asking for support. Then add stars to give the launch a visible base, and share the link in the places your target users already read.

Be careful with auto-generated content and automated posting around your project. Networks have grown cautious about it, and hand-written updates tend to hold attention better. Write your README, changelog and announcements yourself, from your own machine or phone, and use Upvote.club for the reactions. Developers can tell when a README was produced in bulk, and a human voice is what turns a visit into a star.

Pick one channel where your users already read, such as a developer forum, a newsletter or a community chat. Write a short post that names the problem, shows a screenshot and links the repository. Reply to every comment, including the blunt ones, and fix what people report. Visitors who see a responsive maintainer are the ones who star. A steady trickle of visitors matters more than a single spike.

They see it at the top of the repository page next to the name, in search results and on any list that shows the repository. A developer comparing two similar libraries often glances at it first, which is why a low count can cost you a click even when the code is better.

Yes. The API and MCP connectors allow a script, a release workflow or an AI assistant send the same requests as the site. GitHub notes and setup are on the API page, so support can sit on your launch checklist next to tagging a release and posting the announcement.

Starting is free, and login is through Apple or Google. Whatever you paste has to be public, since members reach it from that address. A private repository cannot be starred by outsiders, because nobody beyond your team can open it. If the project is not ready to show, wait until it is.

Up to six repositories and gists, combined. Open your profile, choose Customize your pins, tick the items and drag them into order. A pinned item shows its star count and description, and a public repository qualifies when you own it or have contributed to it in the past year. Pinned items replace the Popular repositories section, so they decide what a visitor sees first. Choose the projects that show your range, keep the README of each one clear, and pin the repository you are pushing now. Stars and followers added through upvote.club then appear on the page a new visitor reads first.

It shows the repositories and topics you have starred, and you can sort them by recently starred, recently active or most stars, or filter by language. GitHub also lets you group stars into lists, currently in public preview, and public lists appear on your Stars tab for anyone to read. A tidy set of lists tells a visitor what you follow and care about, which is part of how a profile reads to a possible client or employer. Name each list for a subject, add a short description and keep the collection to repositories you would recommend.