How do I set up a private Git repository on GitHub? Is it even possible?

Question

I intend to share my source code on an invite-only basis to a few dozen users maybe. The source code itself should not be public. Participants are allowed and encouraged to submit their changes. So I need source control, preferably Git, hosted on a public server with private access for multiple users.

I learned that it is possible to set up private Git repositories on GitHub which use https:// links. On GitHub itself such a project does not show up in searches. For participating users the project shows a "lock" icon. So there are obviously private repositories; I just don't know how set one up. A lot of tutorials use SSH to set up private repositories but they all require you to have "your own server".

I don't care about secure connections when pushing/pulling source code nor do I have trust issues with GitHub. All I care about is giving access only to users I invite. Maybe I'm naive and such a solution is only available via commercial hosting (e.g., Unfuddle, Assembla), but if not, I'd really like to know how it's done!

Answer 1

On January 7th 2019, GitHub announced free and unlimited private repositories for all GitHub users, paying or not. When creating a new repository, you can simply select the Private option.