Creating high-quality pull requests: tips and tricks

In the busy world of software development, pull requests (PRs) are a vital part of collaborative coding. They help us review each other's work, share knowledge, and keep our projects running smoothly. However, creating a great PR takes some skill and know-how.

Following simple guidelines from this post, you'll learn how to elevate your PRs and make them clearer, more concise, and more reviewer-friendly. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting out, getting good at pull requests can boost your workflow and improve collaboration within your team.

Let’s explore how you can optimize your pull requests to ensure faster and more thorough reviews! 👇

1. Level up your PR description

After you’ve given your PR a title that succinctly summarizes the changes, let’s focus on the PR description.

• Describe the context: Explain the problem and the task you're solving. What is the motivation behind your changes? This will make the possible context switch easier for reviewers and allow them to understand your changes quickly. Accurately describe the scope of PR—what does your PR cover, and what will be done in a follow-up task? This helps set expectations and avoids confusion.
  • Tip: Using bullet points can be helpful here to help the reviewer parse the information more effectively.
  • Tip: If writing is not your forte, consider using tools like Grammarly to help you (not sponsored)!
• Include relevant links: Add links to related resources, such as design documents, Jira tickets, feature management tools, Slack threads, etc. Painting a complete picture can help reviewers in conducting a more valuable review. It also saves your team time because they won’t have to dig up related resources; sharing them in your PR ensures that the reviewer starts on the same page as the author.
• Include steps describing how to test your changes: What are the prerequisites to reproducing a flow, or how can the reviewer reproduce a bug? Outline the steps required to validate your changes. Make sure to cover edge cases, too! This ensures that reviewers can verify your work efficiently.
• Add visuals: If applicable, add visuals of the before and after situation. Provide screenshots or screen recordings so reviewers can see what to look for. Visual aids can help reviewers understand the impact of your changes more clearly.
• Consider future reference: A detailed PR description is invaluable if you or someone else needs to revisit the code later. It provides context for why specific changes were made, which is especially helpful when debugging or tracing code.

Implementing a PR template can help maintain a consistent standard across your team, ensuring all necessary information is included. Finding and creating the right template might require a few iterations, but can serve your team well in the long run.

Having a solid description already boosts the quality of your PR significantly, but keep reading on if you want to learn more!

2. Atomic commits and meaningful commit messages

Clarity in your PR begins even before its creation, starting with how you commit your code.

• Atomic commits + meaningful commit messages: Make sure each commit is atomic, representing a single logical change. This makes your commits easier to understand and review. Pair this with meaningful commit messages that clearly describe what each commit does.
• Limit the number of files changed: Try to minimize the number of files altered in a single PR. Reviewing hundreds of code changes across many files can be overwhelming and can lower the quality of the review. Smaller, focused commits make the review process less daunting and more manageable.
• Review per commit: For larger PRs, consider advising your peers to review the changes commit by commit. This naturally breaks down the review process into smaller, more digestible chunks, making it easier to follow the changes and provide detailed feedback. Atomic commits and meaningful messages help reviewers understand your changes and maintain a cleaner project history.

3. Self-review and annotate your PR

Consider doing these as a final touch before sharing your PR with the wider team for a smooth handover.

• Annotate your PR: You can do this by leaving PR comments on your code changes. Add comments to your code changes to explain your decisions and thought process. This provides valuable context, helping others understand your reasoning and intentions and facilitating more meaningful feedback.
• Self-review: This is similar to chefs tasting their food before serving. Prior to asking others for a review, take the time to review your PR. Check for clarity and completeness. You might find unnecessary code or realize the PR is too large. Evaluate your PR as if you were the reviewer, ensuring it is well-organized and easy to understand.

Hopefully, this was helpful! What are some of your methods for making reviewing easier for your team?