Git: Howto move changes since last commit to a new branch

Question

Hey,

I have been working on a branch which we can call "A". I just realized that the code I have added since I last committed should rather be in a specific (experimental) branch, but not in "A". How can I commit the changes to a new branch and leave branch "A" as it was when I last committed?

Answer 1

If the changes are staged or your working directory, you can simply checkout into a new branch like so:

git checkout -b branch_name

You can then commit directly into the new branch.

Answer 2

git branch new_experimental_branch # create new branch, pointing at the current commit
git reset --hard HEAD^             # now the main branch points to the previous commit

Answer 3

git stash
git checkout branch-A
git stash pop