Standardized Commit Messages with Conventional Commits

Beginner12 minTrending

Set up and enforce the Conventional Commits specification with commitlint and commitizen for consistent, parseable commit messages.

Prerequisites

-Node.js and npm installed
-A Git repository
-Basic understanding of commit message conventions

Steps

Install commitlint and the conventional config

Install commitlint, which validates commit messages, along with the conventional commits preset that defines the rules.

$ npm install --save-dev @commitlint/cli @commitlint/config-conventional

Create the commitlint configuration file

Create a config file that tells commitlint to use the conventional commits ruleset. Types include feat, fix, docs, style, refactor, test, chore, and more.

$ echo "export default { extends: ['@commitlint/config-conventional'] };" > commitlint.config.mjs

You can customize rules by adding a 'rules' object to the config. For example, set max header length or allow custom types.

Install husky for Git hooks

Install husky and initialize it. This creates a .husky directory with a pre-commit hook template.

$ npm install --save-dev husky && npx husky init

Add a commit-msg hook for commitlint

Create a commit-msg hook that runs commitlint against every commit message. Invalid messages will be rejected.

$ echo 'npx --no -- commitlint --edit "$1"' > .husky/commit-msg

Make sure the hook file is executable. On Unix systems, run 'chmod +x .husky/commit-msg'.

Test with a valid conventional commit

Create a test commit using the conventional format: type(optional-scope): description. The hook should pass.

$ git commit --allow-empty -m "feat: add user authentication module"

Common types: feat (new feature), fix (bug fix), docs (documentation), refactor (code restructuring), test (adding tests), chore (maintenance).

Test with an invalid commit message

Try committing with a non-conventional message. Commitlint should reject it with an error explaining the required format.

$ git commit --allow-empty -m "added stuff"

Full Script

full-script.sh

#!/usr/bin/env bash
# conventional-commits-setup.sh — Set up commitlint + husky
set -euo pipefail

echo "Installing commitlint..."
npm install --save-dev @commitlint/cli @commitlint/config-conventional

echo ""
echo "Creating commitlint config..."
cat > commitlint.config.mjs << 'CONFIGEOF'
export default {
  extends: ['@commitlint/config-conventional'],
  rules: {
    'header-max-length': [2, 'always', 100],
    'type-enum': [
      2,
      'always',
      [
        'feat', 'fix', 'docs', 'style', 'refactor',
        'perf', 'test', 'build', 'ci', 'chore', 'revert',
      ],
    ],
  },
};
CONFIGEOF

echo ""
echo "Installing and initializing husky..."
npm install --save-dev husky
npx husky init

echo ""
echo "Creating commit-msg hook..."
echo 'npx --no -- commitlint --edit "$1"' > .husky/commit-msg
chmod +x .husky/commit-msg 2>/dev/null || true

echo ""
echo "Setup complete. Conventional commit format:"
echo "  type(scope): description"
echo ""
echo "Examples:"
echo "  feat(auth): add OAuth2 login flow"
echo "  fix(api): handle null response from payment gateway"
echo "  docs: update API reference for v3 endpoints"

FAQ

Discussion

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#!/usr/bin/env bash # conventional-commits-setup.sh — Set up commitlint + husky set -euo pipefail echo "Installing commitlint..." npm install --save-dev @commitlint/cli @commitlint/config-conventional echo "" echo "Creating commitlint config..." cat > commitlint.config.mjs << 'CONFIGEOF' export default { extends: ['@commitlint/config-conventional'], rules: { 'header-max-length': [2, 'always', 100], 'type-enum': [ 2, 'always', [ 'feat', 'fix', 'docs', 'style', 'refactor', 'perf', 'test', 'build', 'ci', 'chore', 'revert', ], ], }, }; CONFIGEOF echo "" echo "Installing and initializing husky..." npm install --save-dev husky npx husky init echo "" echo "Creating commit-msg hook..." echo 'npx --no -- commitlint --edit "$1"' > .husky/commit-msg chmod +x .husky/commit-msg 2>/dev/null || true echo "" echo "Setup complete. Conventional commit format:" echo " type(scope): description" echo "" echo "Examples:" echo " feat(auth): add OAuth2 login flow" echo " fix(api): handle null response from payment gateway" echo " docs: update API reference for v3 endpoints"