Commit vs contribution

[willgangsta23]

What is the difference between a commit and a contribution on github?

[mbahomaid]

In GitHub, a commit and a contribution are related but distinct concepts:

Commit:

• Definition: A Git action that records a snapshot of changes to a repository.  

• Scope: 

  - Created when you save changes to your local or remote repository.  

  - Includes a unique hash, author, timestamp, and message describing the change.  

  - Part of Git’s version control system (not exclusive to GitHub).  

Contribution:

• Definition: A GitHub-specific metric tracking user activity in repositories.  

• Scope:  

  - Includes commits, but also other collaborative actions:  

    - Opening or resolving issues.  

    - Creating, reviewing, or merging pull requests.  

    - Participating in discussions (if enabled).  

    - Contributing to documentation (e.g., wikis).  

  - Must meet GitHub’s criteria to appear in your contribution graph:  

    - Commits must be to the default branch (e.g., main) or a gh-pages branch.  

    - Activity must occur in a repository you own, have write access to, or via a merged pull request.  

    - Email used in commits must match your GitHub account.  

In short: All valid commits can be contributions, but contributions include more than just commits.