Let's learn some of the best practices for writing quality commit messages.

Be specific and clear

Clearly mention what you did in the commit message. If you are fixing a bug, mention the bug number in the commit message. If you are adding a new feature, mention the feature name in the commit message.

git commit -m "fix(#123): Resolve issue with user profiles not rendering"

Provide context

Address 'why' this change has been done,

# Bad - No context
git commit -m "Updated files"


# Good - With context around user profiles
git commit -m "fix(#123): Resolve issue with user profiles not rendering"

Keep it short and use imperative mood

# Bad
git commit -m "I have updated dependency for security"

# Good - have context, short and imperative mood
git commit -m "chore: Update dependencies for better security in user endpoints"

Use emojis (bonus)

I like it when people use emojis in commit messages. It makes it more fun to read. Here are some of the emojis I use in my commit messages.

• :bug: - When fixing a bug
• :sparkles: - When adding a new feature
• :art: - When improving the format/structure of the code
• :racehorse: - When improving performance
• :memo: - When writing docs
• :white_check_mark: - When adding tests
• :lock: - When dealing with security
• :arrow_up: - When upgrading dependencies
• :arrow_down: - When downgrading dependencies
• :shirt: - When removing linter warnings

Tagging for improving clarity

• fix - when fixing a bug
• feat - when adding a new feature
• chore - when updating build tasks, package manager configs, etc
• docs - when writing docs
• style - when formatting code, updating linter configs, etc; no code change
• refactor - when refactoring code; no feature or bug fix
• perf - when improving performance
• test - when adding tests; no feature or bug fix
• build - when making changes to build scripts, CI configs, etc
• ci - when making changes to CI configs, etc
• revert - when reverting changes

What if you want to use multiple tags? You can use [] to add multiple tags.

git commit -m "[feat][#123]: Add new user profile page"

Example commit message,

fix: Resolve issue with login button not redirecting to dashboard
chore: Refactor API calls for improved error handling
style: Adjust button padding and font size for better mobile responsiveness
feat: Introduce user authentication via OAuth 2.0
docs: Clarify usage of config parameters in README
test: Add unit tests for user registration module

Hope you learned something new today. Happy coding and ask me any questions on my Twitter 🚀.