GitHub Pages Tutorial 2026: Host Your Portfolio for Free

GitHub Pages lets you host a professional website for free — forever, with a custom domain, with no hosting bill. Here’s the complete tutorial from zero to live site, written for students who have never used Git before.

What You’ll Need

• A GitHub account (free at github.com)
• Git installed on your computer (git-scm.com)
• A text editor (VS Code is free and recommended)
• Basic HTML file (or a template — covered below)

Step 1: Create Your GitHub Account and Repository

1. Go to github.com → Sign up
2. Verify your email address
3. Click «New repository» (the green button on your dashboard)
4. Critical step: Name the repository exactly yourusername.github.io — replace «yourusername» with your actual GitHub username
5. Set it to Public
6. Check «Add a README file»
7. Click «Create repository»

Step 2: Get a Free Portfolio Template

Instead of building from scratch, use a free template. The best free GitHub Pages portfolio templates:

• minimal-mistakes — Clean, professional Jekyll theme. Popular for academic/developer portfolios.
• al-folio — Designed for academics. Includes publications, CV, and projects sections.
• Cayman theme — Built into GitHub Pages. Activate in Settings → Pages → Theme Chooser (zero setup required).
• Start Bootstrap Resume template — Search GitHub for «startbootstrap-resume» — one-page resume site.

Fastest path: In your repository Settings → Pages → Theme Chooser → select Cayman. Your site is live in under 5 minutes with no code.

Step 3: Edit Your Content

The main file to edit is index.html (or index.md for Markdown-based themes). Open it in VS Code and replace the placeholder content: your name, title, About section, links to projects (GitHub repos, Figma files, live sites), contact email, and LinkedIn URL.

Step 4: Push Your Changes to GitHub

Open Terminal (Mac) or Command Prompt (Windows) in your project folder and run:

git init
git add .
git commit -m "Initial portfolio"
git branch -M main
git remote add origin https://github.com/yourusername/yourusername.github.io.git
git push -u origin main

Your site is now live at https://yourusername.github.io — usually within 60 seconds.

Step 5: Add a Custom Domain (Optional, Also Free)

1. Register a domain name (Namecheap, Porkbun — roughly $10–$15/year)
2. In your domain registrar’s DNS settings, add a CNAME record pointing to yourusername.github.io
3. In your GitHub repository: Settings → Pages → Custom domain → enter your domain
4. Check «Enforce HTTPS»

GitHub Pages provides free HTTPS for custom domains automatically via Let’s Encrypt.

How to Update Your Portfolio

Every time you add a new project or update your resume:

git add .
git commit -m "Added [project name]"
git push

Changes are live within 30–60 seconds. No FTP, no file manager, no hosting dashboard. This is also excellent practice for the Git workflow used by every software team.

👉 See also: How to Make a Portfolio Website for Free — comparison of all no-code options.