Minimal Pull Request Template
A lightweight PR template with only description and related issues. Perfect for small teams or fast-moving projects that prefer minimal ceremony.
Detailed Explanation
Minimal Pull Request Template
Not every project needs an exhaustive PR template. For small teams, personal projects, or repositories with rapid iteration cycles, a minimal template reduces friction while still capturing the essentials.
Template Structure
## Description
<!-- What does this PR do? Why is it needed? -->
## Related Issues
<!-- Fixes #(issue number) -->
When to Use a Minimal Template
A minimal template works best in these scenarios:
- Small teams (1-5 developers) where everyone has context about ongoing work
- Prototype or hackathon projects where speed matters more than process
- Personal repositories where you are the sole contributor
- Monorepos with per-directory templates where a lightweight default is supplemented by directory-specific guidance
Why Include the Description Section
Even in a minimal template, the Description section serves an important purpose. Six months later, when you or a teammate reads the git history, the PR description provides context that commit messages alone cannot convey. It answers the "why" behind a set of changes.
Why Include Related Issues
Linking issues to PRs creates a paper trail. GitHub automatically closes linked issues when the PR merges (using keywords like Fixes #123), which keeps your issue tracker clean and provides bidirectional navigation between issues and the code that addressed them.
Upgrading Later
Starting minimal does not prevent you from adding sections later. As your team grows or your project matures, you can incrementally add Type of Change, Checklist, or Testing sections without disrupting existing workflows.
Use Case
A solo developer or small startup team setting up their first PR template without wanting to impose heavy process. Also useful as a base template in monorepos where specialized templates exist in subdirectories.