fatal: remote origin already exists
This error matches known, documented patterns with reliable solutions.
Quick Fix (Most Common Solution)
- Use git remote set-url to update
- Remove old remote first
Seeing "fatal: remote origin already exists"? This error can be frustrating, but it's usually fixable. It typically affects your development workflow or system. Below you'll find clear, step-by-step solutions to resolve this issue.
What This Error Means
You are trying to add a remote with a name that is already used.
Frequently documented in developer and vendor support forums.
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Common Causes
- Remote already added
- Trying to add instead of update
- Cloned repository has origin
How to Fix
- Use git remote set-url to update
- Remove old remote first
- Use different remote name
Last reviewed: April 2026 How we review solutions
Edge Cases
Large File Storage and Hook Failures Causing Remote Already Exists
Remote Already Exists that developers overlook when the error message points to a different root cause.
Git hooks run automatically on operations like commit, push, and merge. If a pre-push hook fails (due to a missing test runner, lint failure, or network check), Git aborts the operation and surfaces the hook's exit code as the error — which may be reported similarly to Remote Already Exists. To bypass hooks temporarily for testing, use git push --no-verify. For Git LFS issues: LFS must be initialized on every machine that clones the repository. Run git lfs install once per machine, then git lfs pull to download large files. If LFS is not installed, git checkout or git pull may fail with errors resembling Remote Already Exists when trying to materialize LFS pointer files. Verify LFS status with git lfs status and check tracked patterns with git lfs track.Improve your site security & speed?
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Optional follow-up
Some users ask whether saving fixes for recurring errors would be useful when the same issue appears again.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How do I see existing remotes?
Run git remote -v to list all remotes.
How do I remove a remote?
Use git remote remove origin
Related Resources
Also Known As
- Git error
- Version control error
- Git command failure
- Repository error
Common Search Variations
- "git push rejected fix"
- "git merge conflict how to resolve"
- "git error what to do"
- "git command failed"
- "fix git repository error"
- "git authentication failed solution"
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