Git’s sparse checkout feature allows users to clone specific files or directories from a Git repository, rather than the entire codebase. This can be particularly useful when dealing with large repositories or in automated processes, helping to save time, bandwidth, and disk space. Sparse checkout is ideal for scenarios such as needing just a single script or config for automations, extracting one project from a monorepo, or when the full repository is unnecessary. By utilizing sparse checkout, users can efficiently retrieve only the necessary parts of a repository without cloning the entire codebase.