Where does the GitHub stars badge get its count from?

Directly from GitHub's public `/repos/{owner}/{repo}` REST endpoint. FeedPulse caches the response server-side for 6 hours per repo so thousands of embeds share a single upstream call — well within GitHub's free 60 requests/hour/IP unauthenticated tier.

Does the GitHub stars badge widget need a GitHub API token?

No. The widget runs on GitHub's free unauthenticated tier (60 req/hr per IP) and we share that quota across all embeds via the 6-hour cache. You can optionally configure a token on the server for higher limits, but no end-user setup is needed.

How often does the GitHub stars badge refresh?

The badge polls the FeedPulse endpoint hourly on the client (configurable via `data-poll`). Our backend cache refreshes every 6 hours, so star counts are at most 6-7 hours behind GitHub's live number — perfectly fresh for a vanity badge.

Can I use the GitHub stars badge in a README or on docs.example.com?

Yes. The widget is a vanilla ` ` tag and renders as a flex-inline pill, so it embeds anywhere HTML is allowed — landing pages, docs sites, blog posts, and any CMS that lets you paste custom HTML. (READMEs themselves only support markdown + images — for that use Shields.io.)

Does the GitHub stars badge work on WordPress, Shopify, Wix and Webflow?

Yes. It's a single async tag, so it works on every platform that lets you paste HTML — WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Webflow, Squarespace, Ghost, Blogger, plain HTML.

Can I display the GitHub stars badge in my own language?

Yes — the widget UI supports 12 languages out of the box (English, Spanish, French, German, Hindi, Portuguese, Italian, Russian, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, Dutch). Pick yours from the 'Widget language' dropdown in the customizer.

Free GitHub stars badge — embed on any site

Why use a free embeddable GitHub stars badge on your website?

The free GitHub stars badge that doesn't slow your page or eat your repo's API quota. Shields.io renders a flat SVG via 3rd-party requests on every page load. Star-history.com is heavyweight. This GitHub stars badge is a 4 KB script tag — pulls the live stargazer count from GitHub's public API, caches it server-side for 6 hours, and shows '★ 42.3k stars' as a crisp pill in 6 themes. Free, no signup, no API key.

GitHub stars badge for WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Webflow & plain HTML

The FeedPulse GitHub stars badge is a single async <script> tag — paste it into any HTML pane and you're done. WordPress widgets/HTML blocks, Shopify theme-customizer Custom HTML, Wix HTML element, Webflow Embed component, Squarespace Code block, Ghost HTML card, Blogger HTML/JavaScript gadget — every platform that lets you paste HTML supports it. No plugins, no app store, no admin permissions needed.

How to add the GitHub stars badge to your site in 60 seconds

Open the Free GitHub stars badge customizer.
Pick your colors, size, and any options that apply.
Click "Copy" on the generated embed snippet.
Paste the line wherever you'd put any HTML — anywhere on any page, on any platform.
That's it. No signup, no account creation, no email required.

Why the FeedPulse GitHub stars badge is 100% free, forever

Every widget we offer is free forever. We absorb the API costs because our growth model is widget distribution: the small "via FeedPulse" attribution on each widget brings new site owners to us. Install the widget → we earn the impression. That's the entire business model. No paywall, no premium tier, no ads, no email harvesting, no signup wall.

GitHub stars widget vs static SVG badge — when to use each

A GitHub stars widget is the live, script-tag version of the same idea Shields.io ships as a flat SVG. The trade-off: an SVG badge renders without JS and works in markdown files (READMEs, npm package pages, Hacker News submissions), while a GitHub stars widget renders only on web pages but updates instantly without re-fetching an image. Use the SVG for GitHub README and npm package descriptions. Use the GitHub stars widget for your project landing page, docs site, or open-source portfolio — anywhere a richer presentation is worth the extra 4 KB of script.

How to embed GitHub stars in a README or website

To embed GitHub stars in a README you use the classic Shields.io SVG (img.shields.io/github/stars/{owner}/{repo}.svg) — GitHub strips inline scripts, so this is the only way. To embed GitHub stars on a website (Webflow, Notion-published site, WordPress, Shopify, plain HTML), paste the FeedPulse script tag instead. The widget pulls api.github.com/repos/{owner}/{repo} once and caches the result server-side for 6 hours, so star spikes from a Hacker News front-page hit don't blow through your repo's API rate limit.

Shields.io alternative — when a script tag beats an SVG

Shields.io is the gold standard for markdown badges. As a Shields.io alternative for live web pages, the FeedPulse GitHub stars badge has 3 advantages: (1) star counts update without refetching an image on every page load — the count is rendered once server-side and cached, so visitors don't wait on shields.io's CDN. (2) 6 visual themes (flat, pill, monochrome, retro, gradient, glass) instead of the 4 Shields.io presets. (3) Click-through opens your repo, so the badge doubles as a discoverability CTA. Keep Shields.io for READMEs; use this Shields.io alternative for your project's web home.

GitHub stars badge — frequently asked questions

Does this widget slow down my page?

No. The widget JS is loaded asynchronously (<script async>) and weighs roughly 5-8 KB gzipped. Lighthouse Performance impact is typically < 1 point on mobile.

Is there really no signup or API key required?

Really. The script tag is the entire "install". You don't have an account, we don't track you as a customer, no API key, no email, no credit card.

Can I remove the "via FeedPulse" attribution?

The attribution is what keeps the service free. It's intentionally small and unobtrusive. If you remove it via DOM manipulation, our tamper-proof MutationObserver re-adds it.

Will this widget keep working long-term?

Yes. Our entire mission is to be the reliable, free, hosted replacement for the dozens of free widgets that have shut down in the last 10 years. We're funded by widget distribution itself, so longevity is aligned with our economics.

Free GitHub stars badge for any website