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Open Source Contribution Checklist

Medium 17 items · 1 hour
testuser's avatar
testuser Published 2 weeks ago
Technical

This checklist guides first-time contributors through finding good-first-issues, preparing a local fork, making small focused changes, running tests, and creating a clear pull request. It’s for developers or non-developers who want a reliable step-by-step workflow for safe, respectful open source contributions.

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  1. Identify projects that match your interests and skills — Search by language, topic, or organization to find work you care about.
  2. Filter issues labeled 'good first issue' or 'help wanted' — Use repo labels and GitHub search filters for beginner-friendly tasks.
  3. Read the README and CONTRIBUTING.md thoroughly — Follow repo-specific contribution steps, coding standards, and requirements.
  4. Check the repository license and code of conduct — Confirm you can contribute and that you’ll follow the project's behavior rules.
  5. Comment on the issue or open a discussion to propose your approach — Announce your plan to avoid duplicate work and get early feedback.
  6. Fork the repository to your GitHub account
  7. Clone your fork locally and add the upstream remote — git clone <your-fork> && git remote add upstream <original-repo>
  8. Create a new branch with a clear, descriptive name — Include the issue number and short purpose, e.g., issue-123-fix-typo.
  9. Make a small, focused change that addresses the issue — Keep each PR atomic and limited to one concern for easier review.
  10. Run and update tests and linters locally — Fix failing tests and style issues before committing and pushing.
  11. Run the project's test suite locally — Use the repo's test command (e.g., npm test, pytest, mvn test).
  12. Run linters/formatters and fix style issues — Follow repo rules (prettier, eslint, black) and autofix where possible.
  13. Write clear, conventional commit messages — Use a format like type(scope): short summary — e.g., fix(parser): handle null.
  14. Push your branch to your fork — git push origin <branch-name>
  15. Open a pull request with a clear title and detailed description — Explain what, why, and how; reference the issue number and any tests run.
  16. Respond to review feedback and update the PR promptly — Address requested changes, add tests if asked, and explain choices in replies.
  17. Delete the branch after merge and note your learnings — Clean up local/remote branches and record tips for next contribution.
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