Why Is GitLab So Slow?

How to fix it

Try these in order — the most common fix is first.

1. 1. Shrink the repository

   Copy steps
   1. Use shallow clone: git clone --depth 20.
   2. Move large binaries to Git LFS and remove old blobs.
   3. Run git gc locally and check repository size under Settings > General.
   Did this fix it? Yes No

2. 2. Speed up pipelines

   Copy steps
   1. Cache dependencies with cache: and key by lockfile.
   2. Use needs: and DAG to run jobs in parallel.
   3. Use rules: to skip unneeded jobs and a smaller Docker image.
   Did this fix it? Yes No

3. 3. Own runners for queue time

   1. Shared runner wait is the usual cause of slow start; register your own runner.
   Did this fix it? Yes No

4. 4. Self-managed tuning

   Copy steps
   1. Follow GitLab reference architectures for your user count.
   2. Put Gitaly on fast SSD storage and add RAM, then monitor with the built-in Prometheus.
   3. Keep GitLab updated.
   Did this fix it? Yes No

Symptoms

Pages take many seconds to load, merge request diffs lag, clones are slow, or pipelines queue for a long time.

Why it happens

• Large repositories, big diffs and long histories
• Shared runner queue wait on GitLab.com
• Self-managed server below recommended CPU/RAM
• Slow storage or Gitaly under load
• Many jobs and large artifacts

This guide also covers

• why is gitlab so slow
• gitlab slow
• gitlab ui slow
• gitlab pipeline slow

Other GitLab errors

• GitLab Permission Denied (publickey) Error
• GitLab Pipeline Stuck on Pending
• GitLab Runner Not Picking Up Jobs
• GitLab "HTTP Basic: Access Denied" on Push or Clone
• GitLab "You Are Not Allowed to Push Code to Protected Branches"
• How to Resolve GitLab Merge Conflicts
• GitLab "No More Compute Minutes" or CI Minutes Quota Exceeded
• GitLab Pipeline Not Running or "yaml invalid"