Good pull request titles help reviewers quickly understand the nature of a change and set the context before diving into the diff. In this guide, we'll discuss best practices for pull request titles, share clear examples, and review pull request naming conventions and GitHub pull request guidelines. We also explore how Graphite’s AI capabilities can assist you in writing strong PR titles and clear pull request summaries.
Why PR titles matter
A pull request (PR) title is the first point of contact between your code and the reviewer. Effective PR titles:
- Help reviewers quickly assess the purpose and scope of changes.
- Improve traceability by linking code changes to specific issues or tasks.
- Reduce review time by clearly conveying what the change is about.
Using descriptive PR titles and clear pull request summaries is especially important when the PR list on GitHub is long. Following these best practices for PR titles ensures that both you and your team stay unblocked and can efficiently review code.
Best practices for writing good PR titles
When writing a pull request title, consider the following guidelines and examples:
Be concise and descriptive Poor example:
- “fix bug” Good example:
- “fix: resolve null pointer error in authentication module”
Use an imperative mood This style matches commit messages and sets a clear action. Example:
- “add: support CSV export for reports”
Follow a consistent naming convention Many teams use a conventional commit style or similar rules. For instance, prefix titles with keywords such as “feat”, “fix”, “docs”, or “chore” to indicate the nature of the change. Example:
- “docs: update usage examples for API endpoints”
Include references to issue or ticket numbers when applicable Linking PRs to their related issues helps maintain traceability. Example:
- “feat: implement user profile view (closes #123)”
Ensure the title provides a clear summary A good PR title should serve as a mini summary for the code change so that anyone browsing the list can understand the purpose without reading the entire description.
Pull request naming conventions and GitHub guidelines
GitHub pull request guidelines recommend that PR titles be clear and self-explanatory. Here are some additional pointers:
- Use descriptive language Avoid vague titles like “update files” or “fix issue.” Instead, specify what the change addresses.
- Limit the length A concise title (typically under 50 characters) is ideal for list views, but make sure it remains descriptive.
- Be consistent across the team Establishing and following PR naming conventions helps maintain a uniform workflow and makes it easier to review changes.
Adopting these pull request title best practices not only adheres to GitHub guidelines but also streamlines the code review process and improves team communication.
Clear examples
Here are a few side-by-side examples that demonstrate how to write good PR titles versus titles that lack clarity:
Example 1: Poor: “bug fix” Good: “fix: correct off-by-one error in pagination logic”
Example 2: Poor: “update code” Good: “refactor: extract authentication middleware for reusability”
Example 3: Poor: “PR for new feature” Good: “feat: add search functionality to user dashboard (closes #456)”
Using examples like these makes it clear how specific and actionable your pull request titles should be.
Leveraging AI tools and Graphite
Modern tools can further assist you in creating strong PR titles. Graphite, for example, offers AI-powered features that can help you write pull request descriptions and generate PR titles. With Graphite, you can benefit from:
- Automatic title generation: Graphite can analyze the changes in your diff and propose a descriptive title that meets best practices for PR titles.
- Clear pull request summaries: AI can generate a concise summary of the changes to include in your PR description, saving time and ensuring consistency.
- Improved review workflow: By integrating with your GitHub workflow, Graphite helps ensure that your PRs follow established naming conventions and maintain clear, descriptive titles.
Using such AI-powered tools can be particularly helpful if you’re new to open source contributions or if your team is looking to standardize how PR titles are written across multiple repositories.
Conclusion
Strong pull request titles are more than just labels—they’re a vital part of an efficient code review process. By following these best practices for PR titles and adhering to clear naming conventions (as outlined by GitHub guidelines), you help create descriptive PR titles and clear pull request summaries that facilitate collaboration. Plus, tools like Graphite, with their AI capabilities, can further accelerate your workflow by automatically generating effective PR titles and detailed descriptions.
Adopting these practices will not only improve the quality of your PRs but also save time for reviewers and maintainers, leading to faster merges and a smoother development process.