GitHub Desktop vs GitKraken in 2026

Q: How much does GitKraken cost?

GitKraken advertises 40% off GitKraken Pro and offers a free trial of Pro . Pro is limited to 2 seats , Advanced allows up to 10 and Business up to 100 . Dollar prices are not published here.

Q: How much does RepoYeti cost for commercial use?

RepoYeti is free for noncommercial use . Commercial use costs US$79 per installation, meaning per machine running the daemon, as a perpetual licence with 12 months of updates . No features are locked or time-limited under either licence .

GitHub Desktop, GitKraken and RepoYeti compared on what each does, what each costs, how each is installed and what to check before you pick a Git app.

By SayDeploy · 2026-10-21

SayDeploy is published by LunarWerx, which makes some of the tools compared here.

GitHub Desktop covers drag and drop commit editing ^[1], stashing ^[1] and version comparison ^[1]. GitKraken covers a view of pull requests, issues and tasks ^[2] and an AI assistant link ^[2]. RepoYeti, a third option, shows every repo under your folders in one grid ^[3] and is free for noncommercial use ^[3].

Option	Free to use	Seats	Price	Install
GitHub Desktop	not published	not published	not published	not published
GitKraken	Free trial of GitKraken Pro ^[2]	Pro: up to 2 seats ^[4]; Advanced: up to 10 seats ^[4]; Business: up to 100 seats ^[4]	price not published	CLI with winget install gitkraken.cli ^[2]
RepoYeti	Free for noncommercial use ^[3]	not published	US$79 per installation for commercial use, perpetual licence with 12 months of updates ^[3]	Single binary from GitHub Releases, or Bun 1.1 or newer ^[3]

The short answer

GitHub Desktop lets a developer drag and drop to cherry-pick, squash or reorder commits ^[1]. GitKraken offers a view of all pull requests, issues and tasks in one place ^[2]. RepoYeti shows the branch, changed file count and ahead/behind count for every repo under the folders you add ^[3].

On needs, GitHub Desktop's page covers stashing changes without committing them to a branch ^[1] and comparing versions to review code changes ^[1]. GitKraken's pages cover an AI assistant link to the context behind your work ^[2] and SSO with access management for teams ^[2]. RepoYeti's claims cover a many-repo dashboard ^[3] and bulk actions across repos ^[3].

What GitHub Desktop and GitKraken do

GitHub Desktop's page says you can drag and drop to cherry-pick, squash or reorder commits ^[1]. It says you can stash your changes without committing them to a branch ^[1]. It also says you can compare versions to review code changes ^[1]. Its page offers the latest features and bug fixes before they are released ^[1].

GitKraken's page says its MCP Server connects your AI assistant to the real context behind your work ^[2]. Launchpad puts all your pull requests, issues and tasks in one spot ^[2]. GitKraken's page says you can set up SSO and manage access ^[2]. GitKraken also offers a Kepler ADE download that is free on Windows, Mac or Linux ^[2].

What RepoYeti is built for

RepoYeti is made by the team that publishes this site.

It shows the branch, number of changed files and ahead/behind count for every repo under the folders you add, and updates when files change on disk ^[3]. It draws a commit graph with lanes, merges and tags, and loads it in pages so large repos open quickly ^[3]. Diffs between HEAD and the working tree appear side by side or inline in the Monaco editor, and you can edit and save files there ^[3].

Before you pull, it shows the incoming commits, the files they touch and any conflicts they would cause ^[3]. You can select many repos and pin, star, hide, remove, pull or push them at once ^[3]. It can apply a different commit name and email to each repo using path rules ^[3]. With your own API key for Groq, OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, OpenRouter or DeepSeek, it splits changes into scoped commits with messages that you approve, edit or discard ^[3]. The command repoyeti undo or redo reverses the last git action, such as a commit, pull or branch switch, and refuses a rebasing pull or a cherry-pick ^[3].

Pricing and fees

GitHub Desktop's facts here state no price, so its price is not published here.

GitKraken advertises 40% off GitKraken Pro ^[2] and offers a free trial of GitKraken Pro ^[2]. The Pro plan is limited to a maximum of 2 seats ^[4]. The Advanced plan allows up to 10 seats ^[4], and the Business plan allows up to 100 seats ^[4]. No dollar price for any plan is given in its facts, so it is not published here.

RepoYeti is free for noncommercial use, and commercial use costs US$79 per installation, meaning per machine running the daemon, as a perpetual licence with 12 months of updates ^[3]. No features are locked or time-limited under the free or a paid licence ^[3]. It is licensed under the PolyForm Noncommercial License 1.0.0, a source-available license with a noncommercial restriction ^[3].

Setting it up and daily use

The facts here say nothing about how GitHub Desktop is installed. For daily use, its page describes drag and drop commit editing ^[1], stashing ^[1] and comparing versions ^[1].

GitKraken's command-line tool can be installed with winget install gitkraken.cli ^[2]. Its Kepler ADE download is available on Windows, Mac or Linux ^[2]. Day to day, Launchpad gathers pull requests, issues and tasks in one spot ^[2]. The sources say nothing more about its setup.

RepoYeti installs by downloading a single binary from GitHub Releases, or by cloning the repo and running it with Bun 1.1 or newer ^[3]. Prebuilt binaries exist for Windows x64, Linux x64 and macOS on Apple Silicon, and you open the dashboard in any browser, including on Android or iPhone ^[3]. The dashboard can be added to a phone's home screen like an app ^[3]. The command repoyeti start --tunnel opens a Cloudflare tunnel and prints a QR code, and it requires cloudflared to be installed separately ^[3].

Things to check before you choose

Ask whether you work in one repo or many. RepoYeti's claims describe a grid across every repo under your folders ^[3]. Check what each other tool's pages say on that point, since the facts here do not cover it.

Check the price for your use. GitKraken Pro is limited to 2 seats ^[4], and RepoYeti commercial use costs US$79 per installation ^[3]. Check GitHub Desktop's own pages for its terms.

Check your operating system. RepoYeti has prebuilt binaries for Windows x64, Linux x64 and macOS on Apple Silicon ^[3]. Check the supported systems for GitHub Desktop and the main GitKraken app.

Check how AI assistants get access. GitKraken's MCP Server connects an AI assistant to the context behind your work ^[2]. With RepoYeti, any action that changes a repo must be approved first, by you or by a webhook you run ^[3].

How to choose

If you want to drag and drop to cherry-pick, squash or reorder commits, GitHub Desktop's page says that ^[1].

If you want to stash changes without committing them to a branch, GitHub Desktop's page says that ^[1].

If you want one view of pull requests, issues and tasks, GitKraken's page describes Launchpad ^[2].

If your team needs SSO and access management, GitKraken's page describes that ^[2].

If you want to see status for many repos and act on them together, RepoYeti's claims describe that ^[3] ^[3].

RepoYeti's claims say it is free for noncommercial use and has no locked or time-limited features under the free or paid licence ^[3] ^[3].

Frequently asked questions

Is GitHub Desktop free?

The facts gathered here do not state a price for GitHub Desktop, so its price is not published here. Its page describes drag and drop commit editing ^[1], stashing ^[1] and version comparison ^[1]. Check its own pages for terms before you rely on it for work.

How much does GitKraken cost?

GitKraken advertises 40% off GitKraken Pro ^[2] and offers a free trial of Pro ^[2]. Pro is limited to 2 seats ^[4], Advanced allows up to 10 ^[4] and Business up to 100 ^[4]. Dollar prices are not published here.

How much does RepoYeti cost for commercial use?

RepoYeti is free for noncommercial use ^[3]. Commercial use costs US$79 per installation, meaning per machine running the daemon, as a perpetual licence with 12 months of updates ^[3]. No features are locked or time-limited under either licence ^[3].

Can GitKraken or RepoYeti work with AI assistants?

GitKraken's MCP Server connects an AI assistant to the context behind your work ^[2]. The command repoyeti mcp gives AI agents access to your repos, and any action that changes a repo must be approved first, by you or by a webhook you run ^[3].

How do you install GitKraken CLI and RepoYeti?

GitKraken CLI can be installed with winget install gitkraken.cli ^[2]. RepoYeti installs by downloading a single binary from GitHub Releases, or by cloning the repo and running it with Bun 1.1 or newer ^[3]. The facts here do not cover GitHub Desktop's install.

Free for noncommercial use; commercial use costs US$79 per installation (per machine running the daemon), a perpetual licence with 12 months of updates. ^[3]

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