---
title: "Reviewing pull requests"
description: "Indent reviews pull requests, posts findings on GitHub, and works with you in the comments to get them ready to merge."
---

> Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.indent.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Reviewing pull requests

Indent reads the diff, runs and tests the code, works with you in the comments, and pushes commits
to the branch — turning a raw pull request into one that's ready to merge.

## Enable review on a repository

Review is configured per repository under [**Code Review**](https://app.indent.com/code-review).
Select a repository to open its settings:

- **Review new PRs automatically** — review every pull request when it opens. When this is off, the
  repository is inactive and Indent reviews only the pull requests you opt in to.
- **Review mode** — how reviews continue after the first one. **Fully automatic** keeps reviewing as
  new commits and check results arrive. **Initial review only** runs one round, then waits for you
  to ask for another.
- **Maximum review cost** — pause further reviews once a pull request has cost more than this
  amount. Leave it empty for no limit.
- **Only review specific authors** / **Exclude authors** — limit automatic review to an allowlist of
  authors, or skip pull requests from specific authors.
- **Ignore draft PRs** — skip drafts and start when the pull request is marked ready. On by default.
- **PR summary comment** — include a summary of the change in the review comment.
- **CI failure summary** — explain failed required checks.
- **Wait for full analysis before commenting** — hold the review until analysis finishes, instead of
  posting incrementally.
- **Environment** — run the review inside one of your [environments](/getting-started/environments)
  so Indent can build and test the code.

To connect a repository first, see [Connecting GitHub](/connecting/github).

## Start a review

Depending on the repository's settings, Indent reviews either every pull request when it opens or
only the ones you opt in to. To opt one in, add the **`indent`** label or mention **`@indent`** in a
comment. This works even when automatic review is off. To opt one out, add the **`indent-ignore`**
label. Indent skips drafts by default.

## Read the review

Indent posts a single review comment and keeps it current as the pull request changes. It has three
parts, in order:

- **PR Summary** — what the change does, in a collapsible section.
- **Issues** — each problem Indent found. Indent also posts every issue as an inline comment on the
  relevant lines.
- **CI Checks** — the state of the required checks at the latest commit, and which ones failed.

Each issue carries a severity:

- **critical** — breaks functionality, security, or data.
- **functional** — incorrect behavior.
- **latent** — a potential future issue with a trigger condition.
- **nit** — style or a minor point.

For example, Indent raises an accessibility issue:

> **Issues — 1 potential issue found** Locked-selector tooltips are hover-only: the tooltip trigger
> is a non-focusable `<span>`. Keyboard and screen-reader users focusing the actual control never
> get the "can't be changed" explanation.

## Iterate in the comments

Reply to keep working with Indent:

- In an **inline thread**, reply directly. Indent responds without a mention.
- In a **top-level comment**, mention `@indent`.

Ask Indent to explain a finding or make a change. When you request a change, Indent edits the code,
verifies it, and pushes a commit to the branch.

For example, a reviewer rejects the proposed approach and Indent implements an alternative:

> **jsegaran:** @indent I don't want to fail back compat. Lets have a default **indent:** Done —
> switched `queryId` to `z.string().default("")` instead of required, so nothing breaks on back
> compat. Added a decode test for a legacy call without `queryId`. Green locally: typecheck, lint,
> fmt, and the events/agent/session-processor suites.

A review is a [multiplayer session](/collaborating/multiplayer), so anyone on the team can join the
comments and steer the work.

You can also tell Indent to work directly with the pull request. `@indent rebase` rebases the branch
onto its base, resolves conflicts, and force-pushes.

## Ask for another review

In **Initial review only** mode, and on any pull request where Indent has stopped reviewing
automatically, start a fresh round two ways:

- Select **Request review** in the review comment.
- Mention `@indent` in a comment on the pull request.

Either way Indent reviews the current head commit with the current check results, and reports which
commit it reviewed. Adding the `indent` label doesn't start a round once Indent has stopped
reviewing automatically.

## Cap what a review costs

Set **Maximum review cost** on the repository to stop a single pull request from consuming an
unbounded amount of credit. The amount is what the review is billed to your organization, at least
$0.01, and an empty field means no limit.

When a pull request passes the limit, Indent stops reviewing new commits and says so in the review
comment:

> **Cost limit reached.** Indent will no longer automatically review PR updates. Request another
> review below whenever needed.

Each further round needs its own request — authorizing one round doesn't lift the cap for the rest
of the pull request.

## When billing blocks a review

If your organization is out of credits, its trial has ended, or it has reached its
[spending limit](/administration/billing), Indent doesn't start the review and says which of those
it was, with a **Manage billing** link. Raise the limit or add credits and ask for the review again.

## Autofix

For an issue that Indent has a concrete fix for, you can apply the fix from the web app. Indent
turns the fix into a commit made by the review session, then pushes it to the branch.

## Fix failing checks

Indent watches the pull request as new commits and check results arrive. When a check fails, ask
Indent in a comment to fix it, or tell it to get every check green.

## Review rules

Encode your team's standards as review rules so Indent checks for them on every review. Rules are
committed to the repository as `.mdc` files under `.indent/rules/`, versioned alongside your code.

Each rule is a Markdown file with YAML frontmatter:

- **`description`** — what the rule checks for.
- **`globs`** — glob patterns that scope the rule to specific files. Leave empty to apply to all
  files.
- **`when_to_use`** — additional context about when the rule applies.
- **`alwaysApply`** — apply the rule to every review regardless of the globs.

For example, `.indent/rules/security.mdc`:

```md
---
description: Security review guidelines
globs: "**/auth/**, **/tokens/**, **/secrets/**"
when_to_use: When reviewing security-sensitive code
alwaysApply: false
---

# Security Guidelines

- Never log secrets, tokens, or API keys
- Validate all user input before processing
- Use parameterized queries for database operations
- Check authorization before performing sensitive operations
```

You can also give Indent repository guidance in [AGENTS.md](/learning/agents-md) and
[Skills](/learning/skills).

Source: https://docs.indent.com/working-with-indent/reviewing-pull-requests/index.mdx