About Native Git
The Git-connected experience is available on the Postman desktop app only. If you don’t see the option to connect to a Git repository, you’re in the web app. Switch to the Postman desktop app to access this feature.
With Postman’s file system support (Native Git), API iterations are authored and iterated locally in Git, alongside code, and intentionally not synced to Postman Cloud until the API reaches a stable, deployable state.
In Postman, you can open the local instance of your remote Git repository where your API is implemented. Your work on Postman API elements - including collections, environments, documents, API specifications, SDKs, mocks, and flows - are saved as a folder inside the source code folder. You keep your collection and project files in sync, then commit your local changes to Postman Cloud.
Local View and Cloud View
- Local View represents the Postman elements stored in your local Git repository. This is your editable workspace, where all API changes are made.
- Cloud View represents the Postman elements stored on Postman Cloud. It is recommended to be used as the read-only source that other teams rely on. Cloud View should mirror the state of the API that’s deployed.
In Local View, you can edit the collection file directly in your IDE or in Postman. You can also make changes to your local files using Agent Mode or the LLM in your IDE. All development changes flow through the Local View → Git → automated CI sync → Cloud View pipeline.
If you need to share in-progress local changes before publishing to Postman Cloud, see Share changes from your local branch.
As a developer, you can work in a branch on a feature, like adding a new endpoint or changing the implementation, while the rest of your team works on something else. When your feature is ready, the PRs can contain code and collection changes and be version controlled together.
You can use the Postman CLI to run tests as part of the CI/CD pipeline before merging changes. Collections stored in a branch can have tests specific to the branch code.
Get started with Native Git
- Set up Native Git for a single-service or mono-repo project, and connect your workspace to your Git project.
- Develop locally with Native Git to work on a feature branch and sync changes back to Postman Cloud.
- Collaborate with your team by keeping Cloud View up to date for teammates who don’t work in the local repository.
- Share changes from your local branch before you publish to Postman Cloud.
- Automate Native Git with CI/CD to sync your local and cloud elements automatically on merge or release.