What is the difference between git merge and git rebase in a typical workflow?

[aiotronic-pe]

Body

I'm trying to better understand the difference between git merge and git rebase when integrating changes from another branch. Both seem to combine changes from branches, but I often see different recommendations depending on the team workflow.

In practice, when should you use merge and when should you use rebase in a typical development workflow?

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[CTZDev]

Great question — this is one of the most common points of confusion when learning Git workflows.

Both git merge and git rebase are used to integrate changes from one branch into another, but they differ significantly in how they handle commit history.

The main difference is how the project history is preserved.

When using git merge, Git creates a new merge commit that combines the histories of the two branches. This keeps the full chronological history intact and clearly shows when branches were merged. Because it does not rewrite history, merge is considered the safest option when working with shared branches.

Example:

git checkout main
git merge feature-branch

This results in a merge commit that connects both histories.

In contrast, git rebase rewrites commit history by replaying the commits of one branch on top of another. Instead of creating a merge commit, Git moves the base of the feature branch so it appears as if the work started from the latest commit of the target branch.

Example:

git checkout feature-branch
git rebase main

This produces a cleaner and more linear commit history.

Typical workflow in many teams:

• Developers periodically rebase their feature branch onto main to stay up to date.
• Once the feature is complete, the branch is merged into main.

Advantages of merge:

• Preserves the true history of the repository
• Safe for shared branches
• Easy to understand when reviewing project history

Advantages of rebase:

• Creates a clean and linear commit history
• Avoids unnecessary merge commits
• Makes the history easier to read in some workflows

Important rule:

Never rebase commits that have already been pushed to a shared branch, because rebasing rewrites history and can break other developers' work.

In summary:
Use merge when collaborating on shared branches and preserving history is important.
Use rebase locally to keep your feature branch clean and up to date before merging.