Best 6 Tools for Seamless Migration From GitHub to Self‑Hosted Alternatives That Teams Use to Keep History, Issues, and PRs Intact

Planning to migrate from GitHub to a self-hosted alternative? You’re not alone! Many dev teams are making this switch to gain more control, privacy, and freedom. But the move isn’t always painless — especially if you care about keeping your issues, pull requests, and history nice and tidy.

TLDR: If you’re moving off GitHub, you’ll want to avoid data loss and broken workflows. Six tools can help you migrate with everything intact — from code history to issues and PRs. Some automate almost everything; others give you precise control. Stick around to find out which one can power your next migration!

The Why Behind GitHub Migration

Maybe your team wants to avoid vendor lock-in. Maybe privacy is the biggest priority. Or maybe it’s all about cost and customizability. Whatever the reason, self-hosted Git platforms like Gitea, GitLab CE, and Forgejo are gaining popularity.

But moving is tricky. GitHub holds not just your code but also:

• Commit history
• Pull requests (PRs)
• Issues and comments
• Labels and milestones
• Wiki and discussions

You probably don’t want to lose any of that. Luckily, some smart tools can help!

Here are the 6 best tools for seamless GitHub migration:

1. git clone & push — DIY for the Hardcore

This one’s for the purists. If you’re just migrating repo files and commit history, you can simply use the built-in git clone and git push commands. That’s it!

git clone --mirror https://github.com/your-org/your-repo.git  
cd your-repo.git  
git push --mirror ssh://git@example.com/your-new-repo.git

Pros:

• Simple and fast for code & commit history
• No dependencies

Cons:

• Doesn’t migrate issues, PRs, or metadata
• You’ll need more tools for a complete move

Verdict? Great for small, simple projects or as a first step in larger migrations.

2. GitHub API + Scripts — Build Your Own Tool

If you’re a fan of scripting, you can use GitHub’s REST or GraphQL API to fetch issues, labels, milestones, and even PRs — then recreate them on your destination platform using its API.

Use if: You’re good with Python, Bash, or Node, and want full control.

Pros:

• Perfect for customized migrations
• Script once, use forever

Cons:

• Time-consuming
• Requires API knowledge and maintenance

This approach works nicely if your target is GitLab, Gitea, or Forgejo since most of them have compatible APIs.

3. gitlab-mirror — Best for Moving to GitLab

If your new home is GitLab (especially self-hosted GitLab CE), this tool is awesome. It handles repo mirroring and can replicate issues, merge requests, and labels via import APIs.

Bonus: GitLab even offers a GitHub import feature built into its UI.

Pros:

• Automated and well-documented
• Built-in to GitLab in many cases

Cons:

• Only works if GitLab is the destination
• Customization is somewhat limited

It’s an excellent set-it-and-go method for teams shifting entire projects, especially if you’re replicating an entire org.

4. Gitea/Gogs Migrate Feature — Easy One-Click Imports

If you’re moving to Gitea or Gogs, good news — they come with a built-in migration feature. Just throw in your GitHub token and the repo URL, and you’re halfway there.

This migration grabs:

• Repositories & commit history
• Issues and pull requests
• Labels and milestones

Pros:

• Super easy
• No scripting required

Cons:

• Limited to what Gitea supports
• May skip some metadata (like reactions or assignees)

Perfect for small teams or side projects with lots of history to keep.

5. ghorg — Fast Mass Cloner for Git Repos

Want to grab a bunch of GitHub repos all at once? ghorg is here to help. It’s a Go-based tool that can clone every repo under your organization (or user) into your local disk.

You can then push them to your self-hosted system of choice — Gitea, GitLab, etc.

Pros:

• Batch migrates dozens of repos quickly
• Supports GitHub, GitLab, Gitea, and more

Cons:

• Only handles repositories, not issues or PRs
• Needs a follow-up tool for full migration

This tool is lightning-fast and script-ready. Pair it with another tool like GitHub Issue Importer to complete the picture.

6. ghe-migrator — For Enterprise Migrations

If you have GitHub Enterprise and want to move off of it completely, ghe-migrator (provided by GitHub) lets you export full repositories, issues, attachments, wikis, and more.

It packages everything into a bundle that can later be imported into another system — given you find one that supports it, or can parse it.

Great for:

• Enterprise migration planning
• Backup and audit scenarios

Pros:

• Captures everything, including private artifacts
• Secure and complete

Cons:

• Enterprise-only tool
• Requires manual steps to import into other platforms

If you’re planning a mass move off GitHub Enterprise onto a private GitLab or Gitea instance, this may be your best first step.

Bonus Tip: Don’t Forget Webhooks and CI/CD!

Most migrations forget one crucial thing: your automation!

So after migrating the code and issues, double-check your:

• Webhooks and integrations (Slack bots, Jenkins, etc.)
• Deployment keys and secrets
• CI/CD pipelines

Many of your workflows are worth rethinking — or at least replicating — in the new platform. Most tools like GitLab and Gitea make this easy.

Final Thoughts

Migrating away from GitHub is a big move, but it doesn’t have to be painful. Between easy scripts and power tools, you can bring everything — from commits to issues and pull requests — right along with you.

Here’s a quick comparison table to help pick the right tool: