Setting up GitHub Copilot for your development workflow

2/25/2026

Contents

Practice files
Set up your GitHub account and select a Copilot plan
Install Copilot in your development environment
Configure permissions and personal settings
Test Copilot with sample prompts across languages
Troubleshoot installation issues and common errors
Apply best practices for using Copilot effectively
Explore Copilot's functionality in online and offline modes
Skills review
Practice tasks

Set up your GitHub account and select a Copilot plan

Before you begin using GitHub Copilot, you need to set up a GitHub account and choose an appropriate subscription plan that fits your development needs. Whether you're a student trying Copilot for the first time or a professional exploring AI-powered development, this section guides you through the account creation process, explores available pricing tiers, and explains eligibility for free access to premium features. With your account and plan in place, you’ll be ready to integrate Copilot into your development environment.

Prerequisites and account setup

Before you can start coding with GitHub Copilot, there are a few key steps to complete. This section guides you through setting up your GitHub account, choosing the right plan for your needs, and understanding the differences between free trials and paid subscriptions.

Creating a GitHub account

GitHub Copilot requires a GitHub account. If you don’t have one already, follow these steps:

Visit https://github.com.
Click on Sign Up.
Enter your email address, password, and username.

The GitHub free account sign-up page

Choose whether to receive updates and offers and solve the CAPTCHA.
Verify your email address by clicking the link GitHub sends to your inbox.
Complete your profile and preferences. (This is optional but recommended for new developers.)

Once you’re registered, you’ll have access to all of GitHub’s features, including repositories, issue tracking, project management tools, and, of course, GitHub Copilot.

GitHub Copilot plans: Free vs. paid

GitHub Copilot now offers three distinct subscription tiers to suit individual learners, developers, and power users.

The following table details the key differences between GitHub Copilot's Free, Pro, and Pro+ plans, including pricing, feature access, and AI model availability. Please note that features and availability may change over time. For the most up-to-date plan comparison, visit the official GitHub Copilot plans page: https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/get-started/plans-for-github-copilot.

Feature	Free	Pro (Most Popular)	Pro+
Cost	$0 USD	$10/month or $100/year	$39/month or $390/year
Best for	Beginners, casual users	Most developers, students, individual pros	Advanced users, power coders, AI tinkerers
Agent/chat access	50 requests/month	Unlimited agent mode and chats with GPT-4o	Access to all models, including GPT-4.5
Completions	2,000/month	Unlimited code completions	30 times more premium requests than the Free plan
Models available	Claude 3.5, Sonnet, GPT-4o	All in the Free plan plus Claude 3.7 Sonnet, o1, and more	All in the Pro plan plus and GPT-4.5
Premium model usage	Limited	6 times more requests for latest models than with the Free plan	30 times more requests than with the Free plan; upgradable
Free trial	Always free	30-day free trial available	No free trial

Which plan should you choose?

Which GitHub Copilot plan is right for you depends on your development goals and frequency of use, as well as the level of AI capabilities you need. Here's a quick guide to help you decide:

Choose the Free plan if you're just exploring Copilot, experimenting, or coding occasionally.
Upgrade to Pro if you're coding frequently and need more completions, advanced model access, and unlimited usage.
Go for Pro+ if you want full model access, including GPT-4.5, and you work with large-scale or high-performance AI tasks.

Getting free access to GitHub Copilot Pro as a student, teacher, or open-source maintainer

GitHub Copilot Pro is a premium AI coding assistant that brings additional features like enhanced suggestions, chat support (in some editors), and priority access to infrastructure. While it’s generally available via paid subscription, GitHub offers free access to Copilot Pro for a select group of eligible users, including verified students, teachers, and open-source maintainers, in recognition of their contribution to the tech community.

How to qualify for free access to GitHub Copilot Pro

The following table outlines the eligibility criteria for students, educators, and open-source maintainers to access GitHub Copilot Pro for free.

User category	How to qualify
Verified student	Students can apply at https://education.github.com/students. Proof of academic enrollment (such as a student email address or documents) is required.
Verified teacher	Educators can apply at https://education.github.com/teachers. Verification of teaching status is required.
Open-source maintainer	Maintainers of widely used public repositories may qualify. GitHub automatically evaluates repository popularity and contribution metrics. You can check your eligibility at https://github.com/settings/copilot.

What if you’re not eligible?

If you don’t meet the free access criteria, you still have two solid options:

Try GitHub Copilot Pro free for 30 days: Anyone can sign up for a one-time 30-day free trial. After the trial ends, you'll need to subscribe to a paid plan to continue using Pro features.
Use the GitHub Copilot Free plan: While more limited in functionality, the free Copilot experience still offers AI coding suggestions within select IDEs. It’s a good starting point if you're exploring.

How to access Copilot Pro for free (if eligible)

Follow these steps to activate your free Copilot Pro access:

Sign in to GitHub by going to github.com and logging in with your GitHub credentials.
Go to your Copilot settings. In the upper-right corner, click your profile picture and select Your Copilot from the dropdown.
Check for eligibility. If you qualify for free access, you’ll see the message “GitHub Copilot Pro” informing you of your eligibility.
Activate access by clicking the Get Access to GitHub Copilot button and then configure your usage preferences (e.g., telemetry settings, suggestion behavior), and click Save and Complete.