Git Workflows with Claude Code

Claude Code has deep git integration. It can create commits, manage branches, and even open pull requests.

Automatic Checkpoints

Claude creates git checkpoints automatically before making changes:

Before: Working on auth feature
Claude: [makes changes]
After: Checkpoint created, changes saved

You can always roll back if something goes wrong.

Viewing Changes

See what changed

Show me what files were modified

Or:

Run git status

View diffs

Show the diff for auth.ts

Or:

What changes did you make?

Creating Commits

Ask Claude to commit

Commit these changes with an appropriate message

Claude will:

Run git status
Stage relevant files
Write a descriptive commit message
Create the commit

Conventional commits

Commit using conventional commit format

Results in:

feat(auth): add password reset functionality

- Add reset password endpoint
- Send reset email
- Validate reset tokens

Specific commit message

Commit with message "fix: resolve login timeout issue"

Branch Management

Create a branch

Create a branch for the new search feature

Switch branches

Switch to the main branch

List branches

What branches exist?

Pull Requests

Create a PR

Create a pull request for this branch

Claude will:

Push the branch
Generate a PR description
Create the PR via GitHub CLI

PR with specifics

Create a PR targeting the develop branch with a detailed description

Code Review

Review staged changes

Review my staged changes before I commit

Review a PR

Review PR #123

Get feedback

What could be improved in the changes I just made?

Common Workflows

Feature development

1. Create branch: "Create a branch for user-profile-feature"
2. Make changes: "Add the profile page component"
3. Review: "Review these changes"
4. Commit: "Commit with a descriptive message"
5. PR: "Create a pull request"

Bug fix

1. Find issue: "Find where the login bug occurs"
2. Fix: "Fix the null pointer error"
3. Test: "Run the auth tests"
4. Commit: "Commit as a bug fix"
5. PR: "Create a PR for review"

Quick cleanup

1. Fix: "Remove unused imports from all files"
2. Commit: "Commit as a chore"

Gitignore and Sensitive Files

Claude respects gitignore and won’t commit sensitive files:

Claude will NOT commit:
- .env files
- API keys
- Credentials
- Files matching .gitignore

If you try:

Commit the .env file

Claude will warn you about committing secrets.

Conflict Resolution

Identify conflicts

Are there any merge conflicts?

Resolve conflicts

Resolve the merge conflict in utils.ts, keeping our changes

After resolution

Mark conflicts as resolved and commit

Git History

Recent commits

Show the last 5 commits

Specific file history

Show the commit history for auth.ts

Who changed what

Who last modified the login function?

Undoing Changes

Discard changes

Discard changes to auth.ts

Revert a commit

Revert the last commit

Reset to checkpoint

Reset to the last Claude checkpoint

Stashing

Stash current work

Stash my current changes

Apply stash

Apply the last stash

List stashes

What's in my stash?

Branch Protection

Claude respects branch protection:

# Claude will refuse to:
- Push directly to main/master
- Force push without permission
- Delete protected branches

For protected branches:

Create a PR to merge this into main

Custom Git Hooks

Integrate Claude with git hooks:

#!/bin/bash
# .git/hooks/pre-commit

# Run Claude to check for issues
claude --headless "Check staged files for obvious problems"

Best Practices

1. Review before committing

Review the changes, then commit if they look good

2. Use descriptive messages

Commit with a message explaining why, not just what

3. Keep commits focused

Commit the auth changes separately from the UI changes

4. Don’t force push

# Claude won't do this without explicit request
git push --force  # Avoided by default

Quick Reference

Task	Command
See changes	`Show git status`
Commit	`Commit these changes`
New branch	`Create branch for X`
Switch branch	`Switch to main`
Create PR	`Create a pull request`
Review PR	`Review PR #123`
Undo	`Revert last commit`
Stash	`Stash my changes`