How to put GitHub projects on a developer CV
Which repositories to choose, how to write each project entry, and how to make the repository itself convince a recruiter who clicks the link.
By the Repofolio team · Published
Do GitHub projects belong on a developer CV?
Yes, when they show work the job needs. For students and early-career developers, projects are often the strongest evidence on the page: they show what you can build, not only what you studied. For experienced developers, one or two projects are useful when they show a technology or depth that your jobs do not.
A project earns its place by being relevant (it uses what the job ad asks for), yours (you wrote most of it), working (it runs, or its README shows it running) and explained (a reader understands it in a few seconds).
Which repositories should you choose?
Pick two to four. For each one, ask:
- Does it use the job’s technologies? A React and TypeScript project matters more for a frontend role than a larger project in another stack.
- Is the code yours? Forks and tutorial copies add little; your own changes to them can still count if you say what you changed.
- Is it finished enough? A small app that works beats a big one that does not start.
- Can someone see it? A public repository with a clear README, a live demo or screenshots lets a recruiter check it in a minute.
How do you write a project entry?
Use one line for the name and technologies, one sentence for what it is, then two or three bullets about what you built. Name only technologies the code really uses.
| Weak | Strong |
|---|---|
| Shop app — a website for shopping made with many technologies. | shop-api · TypeScript, Node.js, PostgreSQL, Docker REST API for a small online store. • Designed the order and stock tables and their migrations • Added login with hashed passwords and session expiry • Wrote integration tests that run in GitHub Actions on every push |
| Lists every language GitHub shows for the repository. | Lists the technologies you used yourself; generated or vendored code does not count. |
| “Improved performance by 80%” with nothing to back it. | A number only if you measured it and can explain how; otherwise describe what you changed. |
What does a recruiter look for in the repository?
Many recruiters and engineers open the link. Make the first screen of the repository answer their questions:
- A README that says what the project does, why, how to run it, and shows a screenshot or demo link. GitHub explains how READMEs are shown in About READMEs.
- Readable structure: clear folders, no secrets or large generated files committed, a dependency file that installs.
- Signs of care: a few tests, a working build, sensible commit messages.
- A profile that points to your best work: pin these repositories, and consider a profile README.
What about Flutter or React Native apps?
Cross-platform projects contain generated android/ and ios/ folders, so GitHub’s language bar may show Kotlin, Java or Swift. List the technologies you worked in (Dart and Flutter, or TypeScript and React Native), not the generated platform code.
How Repofolio helps
Repofolio scans the repositories you choose (read-only), lists the skills the files and dependencies prove, ranks your projects against a job ad and drafts each entry from the repository itself. Every line is checked against your code: invented numbers or tools are rejected. See how it works or the sample CV.