Git Branch Names from GitHub Issue Numbers

GitHub Issue Branch Names

GitHub issues are referenced by a simple number prefixed with # (e.g., #123, #4567). Including the issue number in your branch name enables GitHub's automatic issue-to-PR linking and helps maintain a clean audit trail.

Standard Format

{type}/{issue-number}-{description}

Examples

Issue	Title	Branch Name
#123	Add dark mode support	feature/123-add-dark-mode-support
#456	Fix broken search	bugfix/456-fix-broken-search
#789	Update dependencies	chore/789-update-dependencies
#1011	Add API rate limiting	feature/1011-add-api-rate-limiting

GitHub Automatic Linking

When you create a pull request from a branch that contains an issue number, GitHub provides several automatic behaviors:

1. Issue reference in PR — The PR sidebar shows the linked issue
2. Auto-close on merge — Adding "Closes #123" or "Fixes #123" in the PR description (or commit message) automatically closes the issue when the PR merges
3. Development section — The issue page shows the linked branch and PR in the Development sidebar

GitHub CLI Integration

You can combine the generated branch name with the GitHub CLI for a seamless workflow:

# Create branch and set up tracking
git checkout -b feature/123-add-dark-mode-support

# Create PR that references the issue
gh pr create --title "Add dark mode support" --body "Closes #123"

Naming Tips for GitHub Workflows

• Strip the # prefix — Git branch names cannot contain # (it's treated as a comment character in some contexts). The tool automatically removes it, keeping just the number.
• Number positioning — Place the issue number immediately after the type prefix for consistency: feature/123-description rather than feature/description-123.
• Organization repos — For repos with many contributors, consider adding your username: feature/username/123-description.