How to Manage Multiple GitHub Accounts on the Same Machine

Managing multiple GitHub accounts on the same machine is a common challenge for developers. Whether you’re juggling personal projects and work repositories, managing client accounts as a freelancer, or contributing to open-source while maintaining private work, GitHub’s single-account limitation can be frustrating.

The good news? There are several proven methods to manage multiple GitHub accounts seamlessly. From SSH key configuration and Git credential management to browser-based solutions using antidetect technology, this comprehensive guide covers every approach.

This article answers all your questions: Does GitHub allow multiple accounts? Can you be logged into multiple accounts simultaneously? How do you configure GitHub Desktop, VS Code, and command-line Git for multiple accounts? Let’s dive in.

Does GitHub Allow You to Be Logged Into Multiple Accounts?

Short answer: Yes, but with limitations.

GitHub’s official stance is that you can have multiple accounts, but their tools and web interface are designed around single-account usage. Here’s what this means:

GitHub.com (Web Browser):

• You can only be logged into one GitHub.com account at a time in a standard browser
• Switching accounts requires logging out and logging back in
• Solution: Use multiple browsers, browser profiles, or antidetect browsers (more on this later)

GitHub Desktop:

• Supports one GitHub.com account + one GitHub Enterprise Server account simultaneously
• Cannot add multiple GitHub.com accounts natively
• Solution: Use command-line Git with SSH keys or browser-based workflows

VS Code:

• Now supports multiple GitHub accounts (as of 2023)
• Can switch between accounts for different repositories
• Solution: Configure multiple accounts in VS Code settings

Command-Line Git:

• Fully supports multiple accounts through SSH keys and Git configuration
• Most flexible approach for developers
• Solution: Configure SSH keys and conditional Git includes

Can I Have Multiple GitHub Accounts?

Yes, GitHub allows users to have multiple accounts. Common scenarios include:

• Personal + Work accounts: Separate professional and personal projects
• Multiple clients: Freelancers managing different client repositories
• Open-source + Private: Contributing to public projects while maintaining private work
• Testing/Development: Separate accounts for testing and production
• Organization management: Personal account + organization admin accounts

GitHub’s Terms of Service permit multiple accounts as long as you’re not using them to abuse the platform, circumvent restrictions, or violate policies.

Method 1: SSH Keys for Multiple GitHub Accounts (Command-Line)

The most reliable method for developers. This approach uses different SSH keys for each GitHub account, allowing seamless switching without logging in and out.

Step 1: Generate SSH Keys for Each Account

Open your terminal and generate separate SSH keys:

# Generate SSH key for personal account

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C “[email protected]” -f ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal

# Generate SSH key for work account

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C “[email protected]” -f ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work

Note: Press Enter when prompted for a passphrase (or set one for extra security).

Step 2: Add SSH Keys to SSH Agent

Start the SSH agent and add your keys:

# Start SSH agent

eval “$(ssh-agent -s)”

# Add personal key

ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal

# Add work key

ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work

Step 3: Add Public Keys to GitHub Accounts

Copy each public key and add it to the corresponding GitHub account:

# Copy personal public key

cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal.pub

# Copy work public key

cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work.pub

Then:

1. Log into each GitHub account
2. Go to Settings → SSH and GPG keys → New SSH key
3. Paste the corresponding public key
4. Give it a descriptive title (e.g., “Personal Laptop” or “Work MacBook”)

Step 4: Create SSH Config File

Create or edit ~/.ssh/config:

# Personal GitHub account

Host github.com-personal

    HostName github.com

    User git

    IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal

# Work GitHub account

Host github.com-work

    HostName github.com

    User git

    IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work

Step 5: Clone Repositories with Custom Hosts

When cloning repositories, use your custom host names:

# Clone personal repository

git clone [email protected]:username/personal-repo.git

# Clone work repository

git clone [email protected]:company/work-repo.git

Step 6: Configure Git User Per Repository

Set the correct Git user for each repository:

# In personal repository

cd personal-repo

git config user.name “Personal Name”

git config user.email “[email protected]”

# In work repository

cd work-repo

git config user.name “Work Name”

git config user.email “[email protected]”

Pro tip: Use conditional includes in your global Git config to automatically set user info based on directory:

# Edit ~/.gitconfig

[includeIf “gitdir:~/personal/”]

    path = ~/.gitconfig-personal

[includeIf “gitdir:~/work/”]

    path = ~/.gitconfig-work

Then create ~/.gitconfig-personal and ~/.gitconfig-work with respective user information.

Method 2: GitHub Desktop Multiple Accounts

The limitation: GitHub Desktop officially supports one GitHub.com account + one GitHub Enterprise Server account simultaneously. You cannot add multiple GitHub.com accounts natively.

Workaround 1: Use Command-Line Git with GitHub Desktop

1. Configure SSH keys as described in Method 1
2. Clone repositories using command-line with custom SSH hosts
3. Open cloned repositories in GitHub Desktop
4. GitHub Desktop will work with repositories regardless of which account they’re associated with

Workaround 2: Switch Accounts Manually

1. Go to File → Options → Accounts (Windows) or GitHub Desktop → Preferences → Accounts (Mac)
2. Sign out of current account
3. Sign in with different account
4. Repeat when you need to switch

Downside: This is tedious and time-consuming for frequent switching.

Workaround 3: Use Multiple Browsers for Authentication

When GitHub Desktop prompts for authentication:

1. Use different browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Edge) for different accounts
2. Or use browser profiles (Chrome profiles, Firefox containers)
3. Authenticate in the appropriate browser when prompted

Method 3: VS Code Multiple GitHub Accounts

Good news: VS Code now supports multiple GitHub accounts natively (as of 2023).

How to Add Multiple GitHub Accounts in VS Code

1. Open VS Code
2. Click the Account icon (bottom-left corner)
3. Click “Sign in with GitHub”
4. Authenticate with your first account
5. Click the Account icon again
6. Select “Sign in with another account”
7. Authenticate with your second account

Switching Between Accounts in VS Code

1. Click the Account icon (bottom-left)
2. Select the account you want to use
3. VS Code will use that account for Git operations, GitHub Copilot, etc.

Per-Repository Account Configuration

VS Code respects your Git configuration, so if you’ve set up per-repository user info (Method 1, Step 6), VS Code will use the correct account automatically.

Troubleshooting VS Code Account Issues

If VS Code “sticks” to one account:

1. Sign out of all accounts: Click Account icon → Sign out
2. Clear VS Code credentials:
   • Windows: Delete credentials from Windows Credential Manager
   • Mac: Delete credentials from Keychain Access
   • Linux: Delete ~/.config/Code/User/globalStorage/github.auth
3. Restart VS Code
4. Sign in again with the correct account

Method 4: Browser-Based Multiple GitHub Accounts

The simplest approach for web-based GitHub usage.

Option 1: Multiple Browsers

Use different browsers for different accounts:

• Chrome: Personal account
• Firefox: Work account
• Edge: Client account

Pros: Simple, no configuration needed

Cons: Requires multiple browsers, can be confusing

Option 2: Browser Profiles

Most browsers support multiple profiles:

Chrome:

1. Click your profile icon (top-right)
2. Select “Add” to create a new profile
3. Sign into different GitHub accounts in each profile

Firefox:

1. Type about:profiles in the address bar
2. Create new profiles
3. Launch Firefox with different profiles for different accounts

Pros: Single browser, separate sessions
Cons: Requires switching profiles, limited to one active profile at a time

Option 3: Multilogin (Best Solution for Professional Use)

The professional approach: Multilogin is an antidetect browser designed for managing multiple online accounts simultaneously.

Why Multilogin is superior for GitHub multiple accounts:

1. Simultaneous sessions: Work with multiple GitHub accounts at the same time in separate browser profiles
2. Complete isolation: Each profile has unique fingerprints, cookies, and sessions
3. Team collaboration: Share GitHub access with team members without sharing passwords
4. No account linking: GitHub can’t detect that profiles are from the same machine
5. Professional workflow: Designed for developers, agencies, and businesses managing multiple accounts

How to use Multilogin for GitHub accounts:

1. Create separate browser profiles for each GitHub account
2. Log into different GitHub accounts in each profile
3. Work simultaneously without logging in and out
4. Maintain separate sessions indefinitely

Pricing:

• Trial: €1.99 for 3 days
• Pro 10: €5.85/month when billed annually (10 profiles)
• Perfect for developers managing multiple GitHub accounts

Use case: A freelance developer manages 5 client GitHub accounts + personal account. Instead of constantly logging in and out, they use 6 Multilogin profiles, each logged into a different GitHub account. They can view all accounts simultaneously, switch instantly, and never mix up commits.

Try Multilogin now and streamline your GitHub multi-account workflow.

Method 5: Git Credential Manager

For HTTPS authentication (alternative to SSH keys).

Configure Multiple Credentials

Git Credential Manager can store multiple GitHub credentials:

Install Git Credential Manager:

# Windows: Included with Git for Windows

# Mac: brew install git-credential-manager

# Linux: Download from GitHub releases

1. Configure credential helper: git config –global credential.helper manager
2. Clone with HTTPS: git clone https://github.com/username/repo.git
3. Authenticate when prompted: Git Credential Manager will save credentials
4. For different accounts: Use per-repository configuration: cd repo git config credential.https://github.com.username “work-username”

Using Multiple GitHub Accounts on Same Machine: Best Practices

1. Use Descriptive SSH Key Names

Name your SSH keys clearly: id_ed25519_personal, id_ed25519_work, id_ed25519_client1

2. Organize Repositories by Directory

Structure your projects:

~/personal/

~/work/

~/clients/client1/

~/clients/client2/

Use Git conditional includes to automatically set user info based on directory.

3. Use Git Aliases

Create aliases for common operations:

git config –global alias.personal “config user.email ‘[email protected]'”

git config –global alias.work “config user.email ‘[email protected]'”

Then run git personal or git work in repositories to quickly set the correct user.

4. Verify Before Committing

Always check your Git configuration before committing:

git config user.name

git config user.email

5. Use Separate SSH Keys for Security

Never reuse SSH keys across accounts. Each account should have its own unique key pair.

6. Document Your Setup

Keep a README in your home directory documenting which accounts use which SSH keys and hosts.

Can You Have Multiple GitHub Accounts? (Legal and Policy Considerations)

Yes, GitHub explicitly allows multiple accounts. From GitHub’s Terms of Service:

• You may create multiple accounts for legitimate purposes
• You must not use multiple accounts to abuse the platform
• You must not circumvent restrictions or bans
• Each account must have a unique email address

Legitimate use cases:

• Personal and professional separation
• Managing client projects
• Testing and development environments
• Open-source and private work separation

Prohibited use cases:

• Creating accounts to evade bans
• Manipulating voting or starring systems
• Circumventing rate limits
• Harassing other users

As long as you’re using multiple accounts for legitimate purposes, GitHub fully supports this practice.