Bitbucket to GitHub Repository Migration Guide

This guide explains how to migrate a Git repository from Bitbucket to GitHub using the command line. It preserves all branches, tags, and full commit history.

1) Prerequisites

Git installed locally
SSH Key setup locally for both BitBucket and Github
Access to the Bitbucket repository
A GitHub account with permission to create or push to a repository

2) Clone the Bitbucket repository

In a local directory (outside of your local environment like Local by Flywheel) you will clone the BitBucket repository.

NOTE: this isn’t meant to run a local running environment of the site you will use to develop with, its just meant for migrating from BitBucket to Github, we will delete this from your computer at the end of the process.

Use --mirror to copy all refs, including branches and tags, commit history.

# First command
git clone --mirror git@bitbucket.org:zeitguys/YOUR_REPO.git
# Second command
cd YOUR_REPO.git

NOTE: --mirror is more complete than --bare because it includes all refs and the remote config.

NOTE: This won’t clone like usual where you’ll have working source files, its basically just the .git folder so we can migrate the repo over to bitbucket as explained in the beginning of step 2

3) Create a new empty GitHub repository

Open https://github.com/new
Create a new repository with the same or a different name
Leave it empty

Do not add a README
Do not add a .gitignore
Do not add a license

4) Push the mirror to GitHub

Point origin at your new GitHub repo and push all refs.

Copy the SSH git repo SSH location from GitHub
Ex: git@github.com:Kobayashi-Zeitguys/YOUR_REPO.git

# First Command
git remote set-url origin git@github.com:Kobayashi-Zeitguys/YOUR_REPO.git
# Second Command
git push --mirror

This pushes all branches, all tags, and the full history in a single operation.

5) Verify the migration

Check your remotes and refs locally.

git remote -v
git branch -a
git tag

Then confirm on GitHub that branches, tags, and commit history look correct.

NOTE: Sometimes when migrating the repo to Github, the default branch is incorrectly chosen, use this guide to change the default branch.

6) Optional cleanup

If you no longer need the local mirror clone:

cd ..
rm -rf YOUR_REPO.git

7) What is not migrated by default

This process moves Git data only. It does not migrate:

Issues
Pull requests
Wikis
Pipelines or CI settings
Repo permissions and branch protection rules

If you need to migrate issues and pull requests, consider export scripts or GitHub supported migration tools for Bitbucket Cloud to GitHub.

8) Troubleshooting

If git push --mirror fails with a permissions error, make sure you have access to the GitHub repo and that you are using the correct URL or a personal access token.
If the GitHub repo was initialized with files, delete them first or create a brand new empty repo before mirroring.
If tags or branches appear missing, run git show-ref --heads --tags locally to confirm they exist in the mirror, then re-run git push --mirror.
For very large repositories, consider using SSH to avoid credential prompts or configure Git LFS if you use large file storage.

9) References

GitHub Docs Create a repo: https://docs.github.com/repositories/creating-and-managing-repositories/creating-a-new-repository
Git reference for mirroring: https://git-scm.com/docs/git-clone
GitHub Docs on Wikis: https://docs.github.com/communities/documenting-your-project-with-wikis/about-wikis

10) Done

Your repository is now hosted on GitHub.