What personal information is shared when sponsoring?

[5061726b6572]

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What personal information is shared with the recipient(s) when sponsoring?

[Claudia-Rocha-H]

Typically, the maintainer will see your GitHub username, the amount of your sponsorship, and the tier you've chosen, you have the option to make your sponsorship public or private, if you choose public, your GitHub profile picture and username will be visible on their Sponsors page, if you choose private, your sponsorship will be anonymous to other users, but the maintainer will still know your username and the amount and offcourse your personal billing information is not shared.

[roiander]

When you sponsor a maintainer, they will definitely see your GitHub username and the amount you're sponsoring at. This is so they know who's supporting their work, you do get a choice to make your sponsorship visible to others or keep it private

[Hariswar8018]

Your username and the amount you sponsored are usually visible to the recipient. You can choose to share your email and other profile info, but it’s optional

[MuhammadTanveerAbbas]

When sponsoring someone on GitHub, only your GitHub username and your chosen public profile information (like your display name and avatar) are shared with the recipient. Your payment details, email, or other personal data are not shared.

[Kanishka-Wani]

When sponsoring via GitHub Sponsors, the following personal information may be shared with the recipient:

✅ Shared by Default:

• GitHub username – Visible to the recipient as the sponsoring account
• Amount and frequency – Indicates if the contribution is one-time or recurring
• Sponsorship start date

🔒 Optional (You Control This):

• You can choose your sponsorship visibility:
• Public sponsorship – Your username appears on the recipient’s sponsors list
• Anonymous sponsorship – Your identity is hidden from both the recipient and the public

❌ Not Shared:

• Email address
• Billing/payment information
• Physical address (unless voluntarily provided for rewards)

⚙️ Manage Privacy Settings:
Adjust your visibility anytime via:
Profile → Sponsoring → Manage → Privacy Settings

[5061726b6572]

Did you figure this out through experience or is there official documentation on this I could not find?

[mohammadamuie]

When you sponsor someone on GitHub (through GitHub Sponsors), the recipient may receive some personal information about you, depending on how you sponsor and your settings.

Here’s what’s shared by default:

✅ Always Shared with the Sponsored Developer/Organization
Your GitHub username

Your sponsorship tier and amount

Date of sponsorship

Whether the sponsorship is public or private

🔒 Additional Information (Optional or Based on Settings)
Email address: Only shared if your email is public or you’ve interacted in a way that reveals it.

Mailing address: Only if you're sponsoring with a tier that involves physical rewards (e.g., stickers, shirts), and only if you provide a shipping address.

Name and billing info: GitHub collects it for payment purposes, but it is not shared with the recipient unless part of a reward fulfillment.

✅ Public vs Private Sponsorship
If your sponsorship is public, your username will appear on the recipient’s sponsors list.

If private, only the recipient sees that someone sponsored them at a specific tier—your identity stays hidden from others.

🔒 Not Shared
Your credit card/payment details

Your full billing address (unless required for fulfillment)

Your phone number (if provided to GitHub)

If you want to limit what's shared:

Use private sponsorship.

Avoid tiers that involve physical goods or shipping.

Review GitHub’s privacy settings under Settings > Sponsors.

[AmanRai8]

When you sponsor someone on GitHub, the recipient only sees your GitHub username and profile info that’s publicly visible. Your payment details and personal contact info (like email, billing address) are not shared with them.

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