Claude Code now helps developers preview, review, and merge GitHub pull requests in one streamlined flow. It’s a practical upgrade that trims context switching and speeds up code reviews without skipping safeguards.
What’s new and why it matters
- Preview environments: Quickly see changes before merging to catch UX or integration issues earlier.
- AI-assisted reviews: Summarize diffs, flag risky edits, and suggest improvements with natural-language guidance.
- Merge with confidence: Keep review gates and checks intact while reducing back-and-forth on PR feedback.
According to Anthropic’s announcement, these upgrades aim to reduce review toil so teams can ship faster while keeping quality bars high. Source: Anthropic.
Quick start (5 steps)
- Connect GitHub and grant repo access for PRs you want Claude to help review.
- Open an active PR and ask Claude to summarize the diff and highlight high-risk areas (security, performance, data flows).
- Request specific suggestions (naming, tests, docs, error handling) and copy back accepted patches.
- Open the preview to validate UI/UX changes and confirm acceptance criteria.
- Run required checks and merge once approvals and status checks pass.
Prompts that work
- “Summarize this PR in 5 bullet points. Note any breaking changes or migration steps.”
- “Review the diff for security issues (injection, auth, secrets, SSRF). Propose minimal safe patches.”
- “Write unit test cases to cover the new logic and edge cases. Prefer table-driven tests.”
- “Scan for inconsistent error handling and suggest a consistent pattern. Provide code snippets.”
- “Create a crisp PR description with context, approach, risks, and rollout plan.”
Guardrails to keep
- Require status checks and human approvals before merge.
- Ask Claude to explain any non-trivial suggestion in plain English before applying.
- Confirm preview behavior against user stories or acceptance criteria.
- Prefer small, focused PRs to improve AI review quality and merge safety.
- Log notable changes in CHANGELOG or release notes to aid rollback and audits.
New to PRs or refreshing best practices? See GitHub’s guidance on pull requests and required checks.
Bottom line
Claude Code’s preview, review, and merge flow cuts the friction in PRs while keeping quality controls intact. Use it to speed feedback, tighten reviews, and ship with fewer surprises.
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