README Template Generator
Fill in your project details, choose the sections you need, and download a GitHub-ready README.md. The preview updates as you type, and nothing leaves your browser.
What a good README includes
GitHub’s own guidance says a README should answer five questions. The generator’s default sections cover all of them.
- 1
What the project does
A name and a one-line description a stranger understands in five seconds.
- 2
Why it is useful
The problem it solves and the main features — a short list beats a long paragraph.
- 3
How to get started
Installation and a minimal working example someone can copy and run.
- 4
Where to get help
Issues, discussions, docs, or a chat link — so questions land in the right place.
- 5
Who maintains it
Maintainers and how to contribute, plus the license so people know how they may use it.
README examples by project type
Five complete READMEs you can copy and adapt. The projects are fictional, so replace every name, command, and URL with your own. Try it opens an example in the GitHub Markdown preview so you can see how it renders and edit it.
Python library
A package published to PyPI: install, quick start, API summary, and development setup.
# tidyframes


Clean messy CSV and Excel exports into tidy, typed data frames with one function call.
## Installation
```bash
pip install tidyframes
```
## Quick start
```python
from tidyframes import tidy
df = tidy("sales_export.xlsx", date_columns=["order_date"])
print(df.dtypes)
```
## Features
- Detects headers, delimiters, and encodings automatically
- Parses dates and currencies into real types
- Reports every change it makes, so nothing is silent
## API
| Function | Description |
| --- | --- |
| `tidy(path, **options)` | Read and clean a file, returning a DataFrame |
| `report(df)` | Summarize the cleaning steps applied |
## Development
```bash
git clone https://github.com/your-name/tidyframes.git
cd tidyframes
pip install -e ".[dev]"
pytest
```
## Contributing
Issues and pull requests are welcome. Please open an issue first for larger changes.
## License
[MIT](LICENSE)
Data science project
An analysis or model repository: problem, data, results, and how to reproduce them.
# Customer Churn Prediction Predicting which subscribers will cancel in the next 30 days, using usage and billing history. ## Results | Model | ROC-AUC | Precision@10% | | --- | --- | --- | | Logistic regression (baseline) | 0.78 | 0.41 | | Gradient boosting | **0.86** | **0.58** |  ## Data The dataset is a synthetic sample of 50,000 subscribers, generated by `scripts/make_data.py`. See [data/README.md](data/README.md) for the column dictionary. ## Reproduce the results ```bash conda env create -f environment.yml conda activate churn python scripts/make_data.py jupyter nbconvert --execute notebooks/01-model.ipynb ``` ## Project structure ```text ├── data/ raw and processed data ├── notebooks/ exploration and modeling ├── scripts/ data generation and training └── docs/ figures used in this README ``` ## Limitations The model was trained on synthetic data and is meant as a template, not as a production churn model.
Web application
A deployable app: screenshot, tech stack, local setup, environment variables, and deploy notes.
# TaskBoard A small kanban board for personal projects, built with React and Node.  **Live demo:** https://taskboard.example.com ## Tech stack - React 19 and Vite - Node.js with Express - PostgreSQL ## Getting started ### Prerequisites - Node.js 20 or later - A running PostgreSQL instance ### Run locally ```bash git clone https://github.com/your-name/taskboard.git cd taskboard npm install cp .env.example .env npm run dev ``` Open http://localhost:5173. ## Environment variables | Variable | Description | Example | | --- | --- | --- | | `DATABASE_URL` | PostgreSQL connection string | `postgres://user:pass@localhost/taskboard` | | `SESSION_SECRET` | Random string used to sign cookies | `change-me` | ## Deployment The app deploys as a single Node service. Set the variables above, run `npm run build`, then `npm start`. ## License [MIT](LICENSE)
Command-line tool
A terminal utility: install options, the commands people actually run, and a flags table.
# fastpack Bundle a folder into a single compressed archive, skipping everything in your `.gitignore`. ## Install ```bash # macOS and Linux curl -fsSL https://example.com/fastpack/install.sh | sh # or with Cargo cargo install fastpack ``` ## Usage ```bash fastpack ./my-project # creates my-project.fpk fastpack ./my-project -o out.fpk # choose the output name fastpack --list out.fpk # show the archive contents ``` ## Options | Flag | Description | Default | | --- | --- | --- | | `-o, --output` | Output file | `<folder>.fpk` | | `-l, --level` | Compression level, 1–9 | `6` | | `--list` | List an archive instead of creating one | off | | `-q, --quiet` | Suppress progress output | off | ## Exit codes - `0` success - `1` invalid arguments - `2` I/O error ## Contributing See [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md). ## License [Apache-2.0](LICENSE)
API service
A REST or GraphQL backend: authentication, example requests, endpoint table, and errors.
# Shelf API
A REST API for managing a personal reading list.
**Base URL:** `https://api.example.com/v1`
## Authentication
Send your API key in the `Authorization` header:
```http
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
```
## Endpoints
| Method | Path | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `GET` | `/books` | List books |
| `POST` | `/books` | Add a book |
| `PATCH` | `/books/{id}` | Update a book |
| `DELETE` | `/books/{id}` | Remove a book |
## Example
```bash
curl https://api.example.com/v1/books \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"title": "Dune", "status": "reading"}'
```
```json
{ "id": "bk_123", "title": "Dune", "status": "reading" }
```
## Errors
| Status | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| `400` | The request body is invalid |
| `401` | Missing or invalid API key |
| `404` | The book does not exist |
| `429` | Too many requests — retry after the `Retry-After` header |
## Rate limits
100 requests per minute per API key.
README rules GitHub applies
These behaviors are easy to miss and explain most “my README doesn’t show up” problems.
- GitHub shows a README from .github/ first, then the repository root, then docs/ — only one is displayed.
- Content beyond the first 500 KiB of a README is truncated on GitHub.
- Only recognized extensions render as Markdown: .md, .markdown, .mdown, and .mkdn.
- Use relative links and image paths (docs/setup.md, ./images/logo.png) so they work on every branch and in clones.
- GitHub builds a table of contents from your headings automatically (the Outline button) — a manual TOC still helps on long READMEs.
Formatting looks wrong on GitHub? See 16 reasons GitHub Markdown doesn’t render.
After you generate it
Polish the formatting
Add alerts, collapsible sections, diagrams, or a comparison table.
GitHub Markdown referenceCheck it before you push
Load the README in the GitHub previewer, or fetch your repo's current README to compare.
Open the GitHub previewerAdd a diagram
Explain your architecture with a Mermaid flowchart that renders on GitHub.
Mermaid live editorFrequently asked questions
What is a README.md file?
Where should I put my README?
How do I add images or a screenshot to a README?
How do I add badges?
How do I add a table of contents?
How do I create a GitHub profile README?
Is anything I type uploaded?
Sources
- GitHub Docs — About READMEs — what to include, location order, 500 KiB limit, relative links
- github/markup — file extensions GitHub renders as Markdown
- GitHub Docs — Basic writing and formatting syntax — section links and anchors
- Shields.io — badge images
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