Skip to content

GitHub Tokens

GitHub tokens are required for API access and private repository operations. Two tokens are used to keep access scoped and auditable.

MISE_GITHUB_TOKEN

Used by mise for:

  • Installing tools from private GitHub repositories
  • Avoiding GitHub API rate limits during tool installation
  • Accessing mise-specific GitHub integrations

Required permissions:

  • repo (if accessing private repositories)
  • read:packages

GITHUB_TOKEN

Used by project tools for:

  • GitHub Actions workflows (if running locally)
  • Git operations requiring authentication
  • GitHub CLI (gh) commands
  • Repository management scripts

Required permissions:

  • repo
  • workflow (if triggering GitHub Actions)

Why Two Tokens

  • Principle of least privilege
  • Security isolation
  • Clear audit trail
  • Independent rotation

You can use the same token value for both, but separate tokens are recommended for production environments.

Generating Tokens

  1. Go to GitHub Settings > Developer settings > Personal access tokens > Tokens (classic)
  2. Click "Generate new token (classic)"
  3. Choose a descriptive name
  4. Select the required permissions
  5. Set an expiration date
  6. Generate and copy the token
  7. Add it to your .env file