Git Annotated Tags Explained — Marking Releases in Git

In the previous blog, we learned how to create lightweight tags.
Now let’s look at their big brother — annotated tags.

You’ll understand:

What annotated tags are
How they differ from lightweight tags
How to create them
How they’re used for releases on GitHub

What Are Annotated Tags?

Lightweight tags are simple pointers to a commit.
Annotated tags, on the other hand, store extra metadata, including:

Tagger name
Date of creation
Tag message

👉 In real life, annotated tags are most often used for version releases.

Think of them like this:

Lightweight tag = A sticky note on a page.
Annotated tag = A sticky note with details written on it (who added it, when, why).

Creating an Annotated Tag

To create an annotated tag, use -a with a message:

git tag -a v10.0 -m "MVP release"

Viewing Tags

List all tags:

git tag

View details of a tag:

git show v0.1

👉 For lightweight tags, you’ll only see the commit details.

git show v10.0

👉 For annotated tags, you’ll see extra details:

tag v10.0
Tagger: Gaurav Sharma <email@example.com>
Date:   Sat Sep 6 10:00 2025 +0530

MVP release
commit a1b2c3d
Author: Gaurav Sharma <email@example.com>
Date:   Sat Sep 6 09:30 2025 +0530
    Added product.txt

✅ Annotated tags preserve who, when, and why the tag was created.

Pushing Tags to GitHub

By default, tags don’t get pushed. To push a specific tag:

git push origin v10.0

Push all tags:

git push origin --tags

👉 After pushing, you can see them under Releases → Tags in GitHub.

Using Tags for Releases on GitHub

Once tags are pushed, you can create a release in GitHub:

Go to the Releases tab.
Select the tag (lightweight or annotated).
Add release notes, such as features added and bug fixes.
Publish the release.

Now users can:

See what’s included in the release.
Directly download the source code at that tagged point.

Real-World Example

Projects use tags for every release:

Tags: v1.0.9, v1.1.0, etc.
Each release includes features, bug fixes, and downloadable source code.

This is the same practice you can follow for your own projects.

Visual Representation

Summary

Lightweight tags → simple pointers to commits.
Annotated tags → include metadata like author, date, and message.
Use annotated tags for releases and versioning.
Push tags with git push origin <tag> or all with git push origin --tags.
GitHub releases are usually tied to annotated tags.

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