GitHub's "Cite this Repository"

GitHub will show a "Cite this repository" link on your repository's homepage when you add a properly-formatted CITATION.cff file to your repository's default branch.

Steps

  1. Create a CITATION.cff file using the cff-initializer tool.

    Tip

    You can add or update this file at any time, before a release (if you know the version number in advance) or after a release. Learn more.

    Important

    If you have a build pipeline with a programmatically defined version, consider adjusting it to ensure the CITATION.cff file version has correct version number when a new software version is built.

  2. Add the CITATION.cff file to the root directory of your repository's default branch.

  3. Verify the "Cite this repository" dropdown appears on your repository homepage.

Reference

GitHub Documentation

For details about how GitHub reads the file, see GitHub's documentation on CITATION files.

Updating Version in Citation File

You do not need to create a new release version just to add or update a CITATION.cff file; GitHub references the file from your default branch. Examples: