Code Review Checklist Template - Free Download & Example
Consistent, objective pull request reviews regardless of the reviewer. Code review checklist covering security, performance, accessibility, and test coverage.
Code reviews are essential for ensuring code quality, knowledge sharing and catching bugs early. This checklist template offers a structured approach to reviewing pull requests, with categories for functionality, code style and readability, security checks, performance considerations, error handling, test coverage and documentation. By using a consistent checklist you ensure reviews are objective, thorough and efficient regardless of who performs the review.
Variations
Frontend Code Review Checklist
Specialised checklist for frontend code covering accessibility, responsive design, bundle size, browser compatibility and component reusability.
Best for: Suited for teams working with React, Vue, Angular or other frontend frameworks who want to focus on UX quality and performance.
Backend API Code Review Checklist
Checklist focused on backend code with emphasis on API design, database queries, authentication, input validation, rate limiting and logging.
Best for: Ideal for backend teams building REST or GraphQL APIs that need extra attention on security and scalability.
Security-Focused Code Review Checklist
In-depth security review checklist with checks for OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities, SQL injection, XSS, CSRF and secrets management.
Best for: Perfect for security-sensitive applications such as fintech, healthcare or projects handling personal data.
How to use
Step 1: Download the code review checklist and integrate it into your pull request template on GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket. Step 2: Start the review by reading the pull request description and understanding the purpose of the change. Step 3: Check functionality: does the code do what the description promises? Are edge cases covered? Step 4: Review code style and readability: are names descriptive, are functions short and focused, is the code DRY? Step 5: Walk through security checks: is input validated, are there no hardcoded secrets, is authentication correctly implemented? Step 6: Evaluate performance: are there unnecessary database queries, N+1 problems, or heavy operations inside loops? Step 7: Check test coverage: are there unit tests for new logic, integration tests for API endpoints and edge case tests? Step 8: Provide constructive feedback with suggestions for improvement and mark blocking versus non-blocking comments.
Frequently asked questions
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