Anmol Baranwal

Posted on Nov 30, 2023 • Updated on Dec 3, 2023

🎁 Shortcut to Find Open Source Projects 100x faster

#opensource #beginners #productivity #github

Today, I've got 8 ways that can help you find your dream open-source project.

Before delving into the nitty gritty on how to find open-source projects, let's first understand what open-source means.

Open Source is more than merging a PR

In a world where we are more connected than ever, being a part of an open-source community can be the key to unlocking new opportunities and achieving personal growth.

For me, it's an opportunity to make a difference without needing a job, leaving an impact on millions of users.

You Code. Collaborate. Network.

But most important of all, you're welcome, and you interact with experienced people all the time.

Tip: Pick good organizations rather than individual repositories for long-term benefit.

I have made 200+ Pull Requests and participated in over 400 discussions, so I am familiar with what is required and the standards of good open-source projects.

Most people struggle with how to find good open-source projects. This article provides numerous options tailored to be a perfect fit for you.

1. GitHub Trending

You can find trending repositories based on Spoken Language, Programming Language and Date.

These are all the elite repositories that can boost your credibility and reputation in open-source community.

https://github.com/trending - trending repositories

2. GitHub Advanced Filters

If you want complete control over the search, then this option is a perfect fit for you.

You can filter using more than 60+ options, including Language, Number of Stars, Number of forks, License, Issues, and even Commits.

3. Good First Issues

If you're starting with open source, don't make it more complex than it is.

Remember, issues suitable for new contributors are often labeled as good first issue or help wanted, helping you make your first contribution to open-source.

You can find several good first issues with the option to choose your preferred language through a friendly user interface.

https://goodfirstissue.dev - Good First Issues

4. Up For Grabs

This option is one of the most popular websites to find good open-source projects.

You can filter by name and label, such as good first issues, and explore popular tags like opencv and android. Additionally, you can check when the repository was last updated.

https://up-for-grabs.net/ - up for grabs

5. First Contributions

A website where you can search projects from a pre-defined list using your preferred language as a filter.

https://firstcontributions.github.io/ - first contributions

6. Quine

Quine helps you monetize your reputation by contributing to open source. They have their leaderboard, quests, and so many innovative features.

You can search for projects without signing up, but I highly recommend you sign up and explore.

The standout feature is that it displays PR merge time in hours, shows how many new contributors there are for the current month, and details the types of issues. It provides a clear idea about the project.

https://quine.sh/contribute - Quine

You can even add widgets to your profile. So, go ahead and explore.

7. OpenSauced

There are numerous stats that add credibility, offering relevant filter options such as Top 100 Repos, Minimum 5 Contributors, Recent, and Most Active.

You can review PR Velocity and PR Overview, and filter using language or tags.

https://app.opensauced.pizza/ - OpenSauced

Among all the features that set Open Sauced apart, it recommends a few excellent repositories tailored to your open-source journey.

There are many more features, such as creating highlights to track activities in your chosen repositories.

8. GSOC Organizations

From my experience, I can say that the benefits of contributing to organizations are much more than individual repositories.

You must have heard about Google Summer of Code, in which reputable organizations participate.

Here, you can explore the list of all accepted organizations in Google Summer of Code with their tech-stack and the option to filter by topics and categories.

https://www.gsocorganizations.dev/ - GSOC Organizations

If you're keen on sponsoring this post, shoot me a message at anmolbaranwal119@gmail.com or hit me up on Twitter! 🚀

If you've got some fantastic suggestions up your sleeve, drop a comment, and I'll happily add them to the post.

Who knows? You might discover new passions, make lifelong friends, and achieve personal growth beyond your wildest dreams. So take the first step and contribute to the open-source community. The world is waiting for you.

If you enjoy my content, show your support by following me on my GitHub & Twitter:

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Top comments (40)

Anmol Baranwal • Nov 30 '23

As the author of this post, I want to share with you incredible ways to find good open-source projects. While there may be more options out there, I've handpicked 8 that I believe are the best ones.

Contributing to the open-source community can be especially beneficial in today's world where connectivity is at an all-time high.

Take the leap and explore open source—you never know what amazing experiences and opportunities may be waiting for you.

Vladimir Ignatev • Nov 30 '23

I think the post would be much better if you show us few examples of fun open-source projects!

Anmol Baranwal • Nov 30 '23

@vladignatyev

There are hundreds of tech stacks and countless variations. So, it is very hard for me to please everyone.

Still, you can contribute to Exercism, which is my personal favorite, or you can contribute to LinksHub, which I maintain. Feel free to get in touch with me if you want to know more.

You can check out some organizations here.

I hope you understand :)

uliyahoo • Nov 30 '23

Awesome article, thank you for sharing.

Also, if anyone looking to contribute to a good open-source library, consider CopilotKit - making AI product integrations easy.

github.com/RecursivelyAI/CopilotKit

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 1 '23

Hi @uliyahoo,

Thanks for mentioning the project. It's a great one, and it will eventually grow even better.

I would even suggest launching it on Product Hunt, as it will give you better reach into your target audience.

Best of luck on your open source journey.

Bap • Dec 4 '23

Thanks for mentioning Quine. 😄🙏 We hope you enjoyed using the platform and I'm here if you ever have any feedback.

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 4 '23

@fernandezbaptiste

Thanks! Congratulations to the Quine team for introducing exciting features like Creator Quests and Quine quests.

I would recommend Quine to anyone, any day :)

Bap • Dec 4 '23

🙏💃💗

Mohit Bansal • Dec 8 '23

Thank you for sharing but I wasn't able to solve after good first issues
can you provide some context on that

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 8 '23

Hi @mohitbansal321,

So, if I understood the question correctly, you're saying that the good first issues were slightly difficult for you, right? I will answer accordingly.

Good first issues are labeled to attract people new to open source. They can range from simple tasks like documentation to formatting. However, many repository owners don't understand this concept and may attach good first issue labels to even difficult tasks in an attempt to attract more contributors.

That's why I mentioned that organizational repositories would always have sensible labels, ensuring that their good first issues align with the principles.

For example, this is a good first issue that you can easily complete by reading the contributing guidelines, i.e., contributing.md.

Mohit Bansal • Dec 9 '23

Thanks for it
my bad if you misunderstood
I mean that I can solve good first issues but can't above that like normal issues which is not Good first issues

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 9 '23

You can certainly find issues labeled as good first issue. You can try several options, including GitHub's advanced filter, GitHub trending, and Quine.

There will always be issues for people comfortable with open source and looking to contribute to a significant project.

Hossein Yazdi • Dec 2 '23

Great share. You can also find open-source projects here: Intools.co.

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 3 '23

Hi @hosseinyazdi ,

Thank you for sharing your recommendations. It's an extensive list of impressive projects.

The only drawback is the absence of an option to filter the projects based on the tech stack or other helpful parameters.

Nonetheless, I appreciate you sharing this :)

YolenSong • Dec 20 '23

Thanks for your article, it helped me find some good repositories to make some contributions to.

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 20 '23

Hehe.

I'm glad it was helpful :)

Prayson Wilfred Daniel • Dec 5 '23

I have been advocating coding as a community activity. When we co-innovation, magic is remade.

Thank you for digging these gems

Anmol Baranwal • Dec 6 '23 • Edited

Yes, indeed!

Being a part of a community that recognizes and appreciates what you do is such an awesome feeling. The open-source community is massive, and the vibes in here are just ridiculously good.