git tag: Usage, Options & Common CI Errors

By Daniel Zoghalchali·Latchkey

git tag marks a specific commit, usually a release, with a permanent name.

Tags are how release pipelines pin versions. Remember that tags are not pushed by default.

What it does

git tag creates a lightweight or annotated tag pointing at a commit. Annotated tags (-a) store a tagger, date, and message; lightweight tags are just a name.

Common usage

Terminal

git tag                       # list tags
git tag v1.2.0                # lightweight tag on HEAD
git tag -a v1.2.0 -m "Release 1.2.0"
git push origin v1.2.0        # tags are NOT pushed by default
git tag -d v1.2.0             # delete locally

Options

Flag	What it does
-a / --annotate	Create an annotated tag
-m <msg>	Tag message (implies annotated)
-d / --delete	Delete a tag locally
-l / --list <pattern>	List tags matching a pattern
-f / --force	Move an existing tag

Common errors in CI

fatal: tag 'vX' already exists - re-tagging needs -f, and the remote tag also needs git push --force origin vX (or delete-then-push). Tags missing on the runner usually means a shallow clone or that git fetch --tags was not run; set fetch-depth: 0.

Using this in CI

CI checkouts are shallow and detached by default, which changes the answer this command gives you. Commands that read history, branch names, or tags need the checkout configured for it.

.github/workflows/ci.yml

- uses: actions/checkout@v4
  with:
    fetch-depth: 0   # history, tags, and git describe all need this

- run: |
    git rev-parse --is-shallow-repository   # expect false
    git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD          # prints HEAD when detached

Frequently asked questions

git tag: Usage, Options & Common CI Errors?