actions/setup-go

Install a specific Go version with module and build caching enabled by default.

What it does

actions/setup-go installs a Go toolchain and, since v4, caches the module and build cache automatically based on your go.sum.

Read the version from go.mod with go-version-file so CI tracks the version your project declares.

workflow (.yml)

steps:
  - uses: actions/checkout@v4
  - uses: actions/setup-go@v5
    with:
      go-version-file: 'go.mod'
  - run: go test ./...

Input	Description	Default	Required
`go-version`	Version spec, e.g. 1.22 or 1.22.x.	-	No
`go-version-file`	Read the version from go.mod or a .go-version file.	-	No
`cache`	Enable module/build caching.	`true`	No
`cache-dependency-path`	Path to go.sum for the cache key.	`go.sum`	No

Output	Description
`go-version`	The version that was installed.
`cache-hit`	true if an exact cache was restored.

Caching is on by default in v4+. Set cache: false only if you manage caching yourself.

A cache warning about a missing go.sum appears in modules with no dependencies. It is harmless, or set cache: false.

Do I need a separate cache step for Go?

No. setup-go v4+ caches the module and build cache automatically from go.sum.