---
title: "GitHub Copilot CLI for Beginners"
description: "A source-faithful mirror of the companion GitHub Copilot CLI for Beginners course."
authors:
  - GitHub Copilot Learning Hub Team
lastUpdated: 2026-03-20
---

![GitHub Copilot CLI for Beginners](/images/learning-hub/copilot-cli-for-beginners/overview/copilot-banner.png)

# GitHub Copilot CLI for Beginners

> **✨ Learn to supercharge your development workflow with AI-powered command-line assistance.**

GitHub Copilot CLI brings AI assistance directly to your terminal. Instead of switching to a browser or code editor, you can ask questions, generate full-featured applications, review code, generate tests, and debug issues without leaving your command line.

Think of it as having a knowledgeable colleague available 24/7 who can read your code, explain confusing patterns, and help you work faster!

This course is designed for:

- **Software Developers** who want to use AI from the command line
- **Terminal users** who prefer keyboard-driven workflows over IDE integrations
- **Teams looking to standardize** AI-assisted code review and development practices

<a href="https://aka.ms/githubcopilotdevdays" target="_blank">
  <picture>
    <img src="/images/learning-hub/copilot-cli-for-beginners/overview/copilot-dev-days.png" alt="GitHub Copilot Dev Days - Find or host an event" width="100%" />
  </picture>
</a>

## 🎯 What You'll Learn

This hands-on course takes you from zero to productive with GitHub Copilot CLI. You'll work with a single Python book collection app throughout all chapters, progressively improving it using AI-assisted workflows. By the end, you'll confidently use AI to review code, generate tests, debug issues, and automate workflows: all from your terminal.

**No AI experience required.** If you can use a terminal, you can learn this.

**Perfect for:** Developers, students, and anyone who has experience with software development.

## ✅ Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

- **GitHub account**: [Create one free](https://github.com/signup)<br>
- **GitHub Copilot access**: [Free offering](https://github.com/features/copilot/plans), [Monthly subscription](https://github.com/features/copilot/plans), or [Free for students/teachers](https://education.github.com/pack)<br>
- **Terminal basics**: Comfortable with `cd`, `ls`, running commands

## 🤖 Understanding the GitHub Copilot Family

GitHub Copilot has evolved into a family of AI-powered tools. Here's where each one lives:

| Product                                                                                                                             | Where It Runs                           | Description                                              |
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| [**GitHub Copilot CLI**](https://docs.github.com/copilot/how-tos/copilot-cli/cli-getting-started)<br>(this course)                  | Your terminal                           | Terminal-native AI coding assistant                      |
| [**GitHub Copilot**](https://docs.github.com/copilot)                                                                               | VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, etc. | Agent mode, chat, inline suggestions                     |
| [**Copilot on GitHub.com**](https://github.com/copilot)                                                                             | GitHub                                  | Immersive chat about your repos, create agents, and more |
| [**GitHub Copilot coding agent**](https://docs.github.com/copilot/using-github-copilot/using-copilot-coding-agent-to-work-on-tasks) | GitHub                                  | Assign issues to agents, get PRs back                    |

This course focuses on **GitHub Copilot CLI**, bringing AI assistance directly to your terminal.

## 📚 Course Structure

![GitHub Copilot CLI Learning Path](/images/learning-hub/copilot-cli-for-beginners/overview/learning-path.png)

| Chapter | Title                                                                       | What You'll Build                    |
| :-----: | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------ |
|   00    | 🚀 [Quick Start](./00-quick-start/)                                         | Installation and verification        |
|   01    | 👋 [First Steps](./01-setup-and-first-steps/)                               | Live demos + three interaction modes |
|   02    | 🔍 [Context and Conversations](./02-context-and-conversations/)             | Multi-file project analysis          |
|   03    | ⚡ [Development Workflows](./03-development-workflows/)                     | Code review, debug, test generation  |
|   04    | 🤖 [Create Specialized AI Assistants](./04-agents-and-custom-instructions/) | Custom agents for your workflow      |
|   05    | 🛠️ [Automate Repetitive Tasks](./05-skills/)                                | Skills that load automatically       |
|   06    | 🔌 [Connect to GitHub, Databases & APIs](./06-mcp-servers/)                 | MCP server integration               |
|   07    | 🎯 [Putting It All Together](./07-putting-it-all-together/)                 | Complete feature workflows           |

## 📖 How This Course Works

Each chapter follows the same pattern:

1. **Real-World Analogy**: Understand the concept through familiar comparisons
2. **Core Concepts**: Learn the essential knowledge
3. **Hands-On Examples**: Run actual commands and see results
4. **Assignment**: Practice what you learned
5. **What's Next**: Preview of the following chapter

**Code examples are runnable.** Every copilot text block in this course can be copied and run in your terminal.

## 📋 GitHub Copilot CLI Command Reference

The **[GitHub Copilot CLI command reference](https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/reference/cli-command-reference)** helps you find commands and keyboard shortcuts to help you use Copilot CLI effectively.

## 🙋 Getting Help

- 🐛 **Found a bug?** [Open an Issue](https://github.com/github/copilot-cli-for-beginners/issues)
- 🤝 **Want to contribute?** PRs welcome!
- 📚 **Official Docs:** [GitHub Copilot CLI Documentation](https://docs.github.com/copilot/concepts/agents/about-copilot-cli)

## License

This project is licensed under the terms of the MIT open source license. Please refer to the [LICENSE](https://github.com/github/copilot-cli-for-beginners/blob/main/LICENSE) file for the full terms.
