Git Fetch vs Git Pull: What is the Difference?

Quick Answer: git fetch downloads new commits, branches, and files from a remote repository into your local Git database without modifying your current workspace files. git pull does a git fetch AND immediately merges the downloaded changes into your active branch (git pull = git fetch + git merge).

Verdict: not sure which to run? git fetch first — it’s 100% safe and lets you review incoming changes with git log HEAD..origin/main. Use git pull only when you trust the remote and want the merge to happen immediately.

Quick Comparison Table

What git fetch Does Under the Hood

When you run git fetch origin:

1. Git connects to the remote server URL configured in .git/config.
2. It downloads all missing Git objects (commits, trees, blobs) and stores them in .git/objects/.
3. It updates remote-tracking references like .git/refs/remotes/origin/main.

Key Takeaway: git fetch is completely non-destructive. It never alters your local working files or your active branch pointers.

After fetching, you can safely review what team members pushed without altering your code:

$ git fetch origin
$ git log HEAD..origin/main --oneline

Learn more in our full /git-fetch tutorial.

What git pull Does Under the Hood

Running git pull executes two distinct commands sequentially:

# Step 1: Download new history
$ git fetch origin

# Step 2: Merge remote tracking branch into current branch
$ git merge origin/main

Because git pull automatically runs git merge, it can trigger merge conflicts if your local uncommitted edits overlap with what was pushed to the remote.

Best Practice: Rebase Pull vs Default Pull

By default, git pull creates a merge commit whenever branches diverge. Many engineering teams prefer a linear history using rebase:

# Fetch and rebase local commits on top of remote changes
$ git pull --rebase

You can make rebase the default for all pulls:

$ git config --global pull.rebase true

Read more in our /git-pull and /git-rebase tutorials.