# GitHub Projects client: Gitsu vs GitHub's own UI > **TL;DR** Gitsu is a client for GitHub Projects, as a web app and a native macOS app, that adds a keyboard model, nested filters, bulk edit and a controlled path for coding agents to GitHub's own Projects UI. It covers far less than github.com: our August 2026 audit found 209 of 817 github.com operations at parity and 131 partial. It has no Roadmap layout, and it loads at most 2,000 items per project. Gitsu is a client for GitHub Projects: a native macOS app and a web app that read and write your GitHub projects through the GitHub API, with nothing copied out of GitHub. GitHub's own web UI is the reference every client is measured against. This page sets Gitsu against GitHub's own Projects UI. It is built on an audit we ran in August 2026, which listed every operation github.com offers on a project, an issue, or anything attached to them, and checked each one against Gitsu's code. ## What did the parity audit find? GitHub's UI does far more than Gitsu. The audit counted **817 operations** that github.com offers. Gitsu covered **209 at parity (26%)**, **131 partly (16%)**, and was **missing 475 (58%)**. Two could not be determined. The [parity page](/parity) lists every operation behind these counts. Those numbers are from mid-August 2026, and Gitsu has shipped since, so they understate it today. They are still the honest baseline: an audit that lists every operation GitHub offers, with a file and line for each thing Gitsu does and the search that proved each absence. Most comparison tables leave out what the product is missing. This one starts from it. The gaps cluster. Project views and per-view configuration had nothing at full parity. Issue lifecycle operations were mostly missing. Setting and clearing field values, milestones and custom fields were the strongest areas. ## What does GitHub's own Projects UI do better than Gitsu? GitHub's own UI does almost everything, and Gitsu does a fraction of it. It has a Roadmap layout, so you can see items on a timeline by date or iteration; Gitsu has no timeline view at all. Its per-view configuration is complete, where Gitsu keeps its own saved views instead of editing GitHub's. Gitsu also loads at most 2,000 items per project and stops there, a limit of its own that matters for busy open-source repositories. It covers project settings, the README, workflows, pull request review and GitHub Actions, none of which Gitsu tries to do. It is free with every GitHub account, where Gitsu's desktop app is paid. And it is already open in your browser. If your project is past 2,000 items, or you plan on a roadmap, GitHub's UI is the better tool today. ## What does Gitsu add over GitHub's UI? Gitsu adds speed, density and a keyboard model to the parts of the job you repeat all day. - **A native desktop app.** Gitsu runs as a macOS app as well as in the browser. GitHub has no desktop app for Projects. The [Gitsu desktop app page](/features/desktop-app) covers installing it, updates and what it keeps on your Mac. - **One keymap for everything.** `⌘K` opens a command palette that covers navigation, filtering and every write. `C` creates an issue, `/` searches the current view, `G L` and `G B` switch between list and board, and `?` lists every shortcut. - **Nested filters.** One filter can combine AND and OR groups across native issue fields, Projects built-in fields and custom fields, such as "no milestone OR no estimate". GitHub's Projects filter bar does not take GitHub's full issue search grammar, which is one of the requests users make most in GitHub's community discussions. - **Bulk edit and writes that land at once.** Select many items and change status, priority, assignees or labels together. Every write updates the screen straight away and rolls back with a message if GitHub refuses it. - **A controlled path for coding agents.** The desktop app bundles an MCP server. Agents can read the board, and their eight write tools plus a budget request go through the running app, never straight to GitHub. ![A Gitsu kanban board with Backlog and Ready columns of GitHub issue cards, each showing priority, labels and issue number](/kanban.webp) ## What does Gitsu not do yet? Gitsu does not have a Roadmap or timeline, cycles with rollover, or a triage inbox; the Gitsu home page lists all three as coming soon. It shows one project at a time, and cross-project views, notifications and a mobile app are non-goals in its product requirements. It does not do pull request review or GitHub Actions. The agent surface runs only in the desktop app, not on the web. The cap is the one to check first. Gitsu loads up to **2,000 items** per project. Past that it stops and says so, with a message such as "Showing 2000 of 2100 items", and the rest are not on the board. This is a deliberate limit in Gitsu's requirements (`FR-024`), and it is a real problem for large open-source projects. ## Who should use Gitsu, and who should stay on GitHub's UI? Stay on **GitHub's UI** if you plan on the Roadmap layout, your project holds more than 2,000 items, or you only open the board a few times a week. It is free and it does everything in the audit. Use **Gitsu** if you work the board for hours a day and the slow, low-density pages are what costs you time: triaging a backlog, editing many items at once, or moving between list and board from the keyboard. It also fits if you run coding agents against your issues and want their writes to pass through one place you control. ## Can I use both? Yes, and you are meant to. Gitsu stores nothing outside GitHub, so an edit in Gitsu is the same edit your team sees on github.com. Every item has an Open on GitHub control, so when you reach one of the 475 things Gitsu does not do, one click takes you to the page that does it. That also means only you need Gitsu. The subscription belongs to one person's account, and nobody else on the team has to change anything. The web app is free with no card, and the paid subscription adds the [Gitsu desktop app for macOS](/download) and the agent features. For how Gitsu compares with the paid planning tools, read [Gitsu compared with Zenhub](/compare/zenhub) or the [roundup of GitHub Projects tools](/compare/github-projects-tools). To set it up, follow [getting started with the Gitsu Web App](/docs/getting-started). ## Frequently asked questions ### Is there a GitHub Projects client other than github.com? Gitsu is one. It is a web app and a native macOS app that read and write your GitHub Projects boards through the GitHub API. The web app is free; the desktop app is part of the paid subscription. ### Does Gitsu replace github.com? No. Our audit counted 817 operations github.com offers around projects and issues, and Gitsu covered 209 fully and 131 partly. Every item in Gitsu has an Open on GitHub control so you can finish anything else there. ### How many items can Gitsu load from one project? Up to 2,000. Past that, Gitsu stops loading and tells you, for example "Showing 2000 of 2100 items". ### Does Gitsu have GitHub's Roadmap view? No. GitHub Projects ships a Roadmap layout and Gitsu has no timeline view. A roadmap timeline is listed as coming soon on the Gitsu home page.