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Watching
Use the REST API to subscribe to notifications for activity in a repository.
About watching
You can use the REST API to subscribe to notifications for activity in a repository. To bookmark a repository instead, see "Starring."
Watching versus starring
In August 2012, we changed the way watching works on GitHub. Some API client applications may still be using the original "watcher" endpoints for accessing this data. You should now use the "star" endpoints instead. For more information, see the REST API "Starring" documentation and the Watcher API Change post.
In responses from the REST API, subscribers_count
corresponds to the number of watchers, whereas watchers
, watchers_count
, and stargazers_count
correspond to the number of users that have starred a repository.
List watchers
Lists the people watching the specified repository.
Parameters for "List watchers"
Headers |
---|
Name, Type, Description |
accept string Setting to |
Path parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
owner string RequiredThe account owner of the repository. The name is not case sensitive. |
repo string RequiredThe name of the repository without the |
Query parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
per_page integer The number of results per page (max 100). Default: |
page integer Page number of the results to fetch. Default: |
HTTP response status codes for "List watchers"
Status code | Description |
---|---|
200 | OK |
Code samples for "List watchers"
curl -L \
-H "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR-TOKEN>" \
http(s)://HOSTNAME/api/v3/repos/OWNER/REPO/subscribers
Response
Status: 200
[
{
"login": "octocat",
"id": 1,
"node_id": "MDQ6VXNlcjE=",
"avatar_url": "https://github.com/images/error/octocat_happy.gif",
"gravatar_id": "",
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat",
"html_url": "https://github.com/octocat",
"followers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/followers",
"following_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/following{/other_user}",
"gists_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/gists{/gist_id}",
"starred_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/starred{/owner}{/repo}",
"subscriptions_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/subscriptions",
"organizations_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/orgs",
"repos_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/repos",
"events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/events{/privacy}",
"received_events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/received_events",
"type": "User",
"site_admin": false
}
]
Get a repository subscription
Gets information about whether the authenticated user is subscribed to the repository.
Parameters for "Get a repository subscription"
Headers |
---|
Name, Type, Description |
accept string Setting to |
Path parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
owner string RequiredThe account owner of the repository. The name is not case sensitive. |
repo string RequiredThe name of the repository without the |
HTTP response status codes for "Get a repository subscription"
Status code | Description |
---|---|
200 | if you subscribe to the repository |
403 | Forbidden |
404 | Not Found if you don't subscribe to the repository |
Code samples for "Get a repository subscription"
curl -L \
-H "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR-TOKEN>" \
http(s)://HOSTNAME/api/v3/repos/OWNER/REPO/subscription
if you subscribe to the repository
Status: 200
{
"subscribed": true,
"ignored": false,
"reason": null,
"created_at": "2012-10-06T21:34:12Z",
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/example/subscription",
"repository_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/example"
}
Set a repository subscription
If you would like to watch a repository, set subscribed
to true
. If you would like to ignore notifications made within a repository, set ignored
to true
. If you would like to stop watching a repository, delete the repository's subscription completely.
Parameters for "Set a repository subscription"
Headers |
---|
Name, Type, Description |
accept string Setting to |
Path parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
owner string RequiredThe account owner of the repository. The name is not case sensitive. |
repo string RequiredThe name of the repository without the |
Body parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
subscribed boolean Determines if notifications should be received from this repository. |
ignored boolean Determines if all notifications should be blocked from this repository. |
HTTP response status codes for "Set a repository subscription"
Status code | Description |
---|---|
200 | OK |
Code samples for "Set a repository subscription"
curl -L \
-X PUT \
-H "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR-TOKEN>" \
http(s)://HOSTNAME/api/v3/repos/OWNER/REPO/subscription \
-d '{"subscribed":true,"ignored":false}'
Response
Status: 200
{
"subscribed": true,
"ignored": false,
"reason": null,
"created_at": "2012-10-06T21:34:12Z",
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/example/subscription",
"repository_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/example"
}
Delete a repository subscription
This endpoint should only be used to stop watching a repository. To control whether or not you wish to receive notifications from a repository, set the repository's subscription manually.
Parameters for "Delete a repository subscription"
Headers |
---|
Name, Type, Description |
accept string Setting to |
Path parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
owner string RequiredThe account owner of the repository. The name is not case sensitive. |
repo string RequiredThe name of the repository without the |
HTTP response status codes for "Delete a repository subscription"
Status code | Description |
---|---|
204 | No Content |
Code samples for "Delete a repository subscription"
curl -L \
-X DELETE \
-H "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR-TOKEN>" \
http(s)://HOSTNAME/api/v3/repos/OWNER/REPO/subscription
Response
Status: 204
List repositories watched by the authenticated user
Lists repositories the authenticated user is watching.
Parameters for "List repositories watched by the authenticated user"
Headers |
---|
Name, Type, Description |
accept string Setting to |
Query parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
per_page integer The number of results per page (max 100). Default: |
page integer Page number of the results to fetch. Default: |
HTTP response status codes for "List repositories watched by the authenticated user"
Status code | Description |
---|---|
200 | OK |
304 | Not modified |
401 | Requires authentication |
403 | Forbidden |
Code samples for "List repositories watched by the authenticated user"
curl -L \
-H "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR-TOKEN>" \
http(s)://HOSTNAME/api/v3/user/subscriptions
Response
Status: 200
[
{
"id": 1296269,
"node_id": "MDEwOlJlcG9zaXRvcnkxMjk2MjY5",
"name": "Hello-World",
"full_name": "octocat/Hello-World",
"owner": {
"login": "octocat",
"id": 1,
"node_id": "MDQ6VXNlcjE=",
"avatar_url": "https://github.com/images/error/octocat_happy.gif",
"gravatar_id": "",
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat",
"html_url": "https://github.com/octocat",
"followers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/followers",
"following_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/following{/other_user}",
"gists_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/gists{/gist_id}",
"starred_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/starred{/owner}{/repo}",
"subscriptions_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/subscriptions",
"organizations_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/orgs",
"repos_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/repos",
"events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/events{/privacy}",
"received_events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/received_events",
"type": "User",
"site_admin": false
},
"private": false,
"html_url": "https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World",
"description": "This your first repo!",
"fork": false,
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World",
"archive_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/{archive_format}{/ref}",
"assignees_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/assignees{/user}",
"blobs_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/blobs{/sha}",
"branches_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/branches{/branch}",
"collaborators_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/collaborators{/collaborator}",
"comments_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/comments{/number}",
"commits_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/commits{/sha}",
"compare_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/compare/{base}...{head}",
"contents_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/contents/{+path}",
"contributors_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/contributors",
"deployments_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/deployments",
"downloads_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/downloads",
"events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/events",
"forks_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/forks",
"git_commits_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/commits{/sha}",
"git_refs_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/refs{/sha}",
"git_tags_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/tags{/sha}",
"git_url": "git:github.com/octocat/Hello-World.git",
"issue_comment_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/issues/comments{/number}",
"issue_events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/issues/events{/number}",
"issues_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/issues{/number}",
"keys_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/keys{/key_id}",
"labels_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/labels{/name}",
"languages_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/languages",
"merges_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/merges",
"milestones_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/milestones{/number}",
"notifications_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/notifications{?since,all,participating}",
"pulls_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/pulls{/number}",
"releases_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/releases{/id}",
"ssh_url": "git@github.com:octocat/Hello-World.git",
"stargazers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/stargazers",
"statuses_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/statuses/{sha}",
"subscribers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/subscribers",
"subscription_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/subscription",
"tags_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/tags",
"teams_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/teams",
"trees_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/trees{/sha}",
"clone_url": "https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World.git",
"mirror_url": "git:git.example.com/octocat/Hello-World",
"hooks_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/hooks",
"svn_url": "https://svn.github.com/octocat/Hello-World",
"homepage": "https://github.com",
"language": null,
"forks_count": 9,
"stargazers_count": 80,
"watchers_count": 80,
"size": 108,
"default_branch": "master",
"open_issues_count": 0,
"is_template": false,
"topics": [
"octocat",
"atom",
"electron",
"api"
],
"has_issues": true,
"has_projects": true,
"has_wiki": true,
"has_pages": false,
"has_downloads": true,
"has_discussions": false,
"archived": false,
"disabled": false,
"visibility": "public",
"pushed_at": "2011-01-26T19:06:43Z",
"created_at": "2011-01-26T19:01:12Z",
"updated_at": "2011-01-26T19:14:43Z",
"permissions": {
"admin": false,
"push": false,
"pull": true
}
}
]
List repositories watched by a user
Lists repositories a user is watching.
Parameters for "List repositories watched by a user"
Headers |
---|
Name, Type, Description |
accept string Setting to |
Path parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
username string RequiredThe handle for the GitHub user account. |
Query parameters |
Name, Type, Description |
per_page integer The number of results per page (max 100). Default: |
page integer Page number of the results to fetch. Default: |
HTTP response status codes for "List repositories watched by a user"
Status code | Description |
---|---|
200 | OK |
Code samples for "List repositories watched by a user"
curl -L \
-H "Accept: application/vnd.github+json" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR-TOKEN>" \
http(s)://HOSTNAME/api/v3/users/USERNAME/subscriptions
Response
Status: 200
[
{
"id": 1296269,
"node_id": "MDEwOlJlcG9zaXRvcnkxMjk2MjY5",
"name": "Hello-World",
"full_name": "octocat/Hello-World",
"owner": {
"login": "octocat",
"id": 1,
"node_id": "MDQ6VXNlcjE=",
"avatar_url": "https://github.com/images/error/octocat_happy.gif",
"gravatar_id": "",
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat",
"html_url": "https://github.com/octocat",
"followers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/followers",
"following_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/following{/other_user}",
"gists_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/gists{/gist_id}",
"starred_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/starred{/owner}{/repo}",
"subscriptions_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/subscriptions",
"organizations_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/orgs",
"repos_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/repos",
"events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/events{/privacy}",
"received_events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/users/octocat/received_events",
"type": "User",
"site_admin": false
},
"private": false,
"html_url": "https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World",
"description": "This your first repo!",
"fork": false,
"url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World",
"archive_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/{archive_format}{/ref}",
"assignees_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/assignees{/user}",
"blobs_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/blobs{/sha}",
"branches_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/branches{/branch}",
"collaborators_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/collaborators{/collaborator}",
"comments_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/comments{/number}",
"commits_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/commits{/sha}",
"compare_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/compare/{base}...{head}",
"contents_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/contents/{+path}",
"contributors_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/contributors",
"deployments_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/deployments",
"downloads_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/downloads",
"events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/events",
"forks_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/forks",
"git_commits_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/commits{/sha}",
"git_refs_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/refs{/sha}",
"git_tags_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/tags{/sha}",
"git_url": "git:github.com/octocat/Hello-World.git",
"issue_comment_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/issues/comments{/number}",
"issue_events_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/issues/events{/number}",
"issues_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/issues{/number}",
"keys_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/keys{/key_id}",
"labels_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/labels{/name}",
"languages_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/languages",
"merges_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/merges",
"milestones_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/milestones{/number}",
"notifications_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/notifications{?since,all,participating}",
"pulls_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/pulls{/number}",
"releases_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/releases{/id}",
"ssh_url": "git@github.com:octocat/Hello-World.git",
"stargazers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/stargazers",
"statuses_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/statuses/{sha}",
"subscribers_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/subscribers",
"subscription_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/subscription",
"tags_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/tags",
"teams_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/teams",
"trees_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/git/trees{/sha}",
"clone_url": "https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World.git",
"mirror_url": "git:git.example.com/octocat/Hello-World",
"hooks_url": "https://HOSTNAME/repos/octocat/Hello-World/hooks",
"svn_url": "https://svn.github.com/octocat/Hello-World",
"homepage": "https://github.com",
"language": null,
"forks_count": 9,
"stargazers_count": 80,
"watchers_count": 80,
"size": 108,
"default_branch": "master",
"open_issues_count": 0,
"is_template": false,
"topics": [
"octocat",
"atom",
"electron",
"api"
],
"has_issues": true,
"has_projects": true,
"has_wiki": true,
"has_pages": false,
"has_downloads": true,
"has_discussions": false,
"archived": false,
"disabled": false,
"visibility": "public",
"pushed_at": "2011-01-26T19:06:43Z",
"created_at": "2011-01-26T19:01:12Z",
"updated_at": "2011-01-26T19:14:43Z",
"permissions": {
"admin": false,
"push": false,
"pull": true
}
}
]