how to switch branches in git bash

June 28, 2026

Use:

bash

git switch branch-name

That’s the simplest way to change branches in Git Bash. This command switches you to an existing branch, and the older alternative is git checkout branch- name.

Common cases

Switch to an existing branch:
```
bash

git switch feature-branch
```
Create and switch to a new branch:
```
bash

git switch -c new-branch
```
Go back to the previous branch:
```
bash

git switch -
```

If the branch is remote

If the branch exists on the remote but not locally yet, run:

bash

git fetch
git switch branch-name

Git can then create a local tracking branch in many cases.

Example

If your branch is called login-page, you would type:

bash

git switch login-page

Note

git switch is the cleaner modern command for branch changes, while git checkout is the older, more overloaded command that also handles files and commits.