Starring a repository allows you to keep track of projects that you find interesting, even if you aren't associated with the project.

When you star a repository, you're actually performing two distinct actions:

  • Creating a bookmark for easier access
  • Showing appreciation to the repository maintainer for their work

Many of GitHub's repository rankings depend on the number of stars a repository has. For example, repositories can be sorted and searched based on their star count. In addition, the Explore page shows you popular repositories based on the number of stars they have.

Viewing your starred repositories

You can see all the repositories that you have starred by going to your stars page (https://[hostname]/stars). For more information on interacting with your starred repositories, see "Managing your stars."

Notifications

Notifications are not affected when a repository is starred. You won't receive any information about a repository you've starred, unless you're also watching the repository. Activity from starred repositories don't show up in your dashboard feed, so you don't have to worry about missing important notifications for things you are working on.