The 3 Git Commands Senior Devs Use That Juniors Don't Know

Level up your Git workflow

Most developers know git add, commit, push. But three lesser-known commands can save you hours per week.

1. git bisect

Finds the exact commit that introduced a bug using binary search. Start with git bisect start, mark the current commit as bad, mark a known-good commit, and Git will checkout the middle point automatically. You just say "good" or "bad" until it pinpoints the culprit.

2. git stash --keep-index

Stashes only your unstaged changes while keeping staged files intact — perfect for testing your staged changes before committing.

3. git reflog

Your safety net. Even after a hard reset, reflog keeps a log of every HEAD position. You can recover "deleted" branches, lost commits, and reverted merges.

Mastering these three commands separates "I use Git" from "I understand Git."