.nh
.TH "GH-SEARCH-COMMITS" "1" "Apr 2026" "GitHub CLI 2.92.0" "GitHub CLI manual"

.SH NAME
gh-search-commits - Search for commits


.SH SYNOPSIS
\fBgh search commits [<query>] [flags]\fR


.SH DESCRIPTION
Search for commits on GitHub.

.PP
The command supports constructing queries using the GitHub search syntax,
using the parameter and qualifier flags, or a combination of the two.

.PP
GitHub search syntax is documented at:

\[la]https://docs.github.com/search\-github/searching\-on\-github/searching\-commits\[ra]

.PP
For more information on handling search queries containing a hyphen, run \fBgh search --help\fR\&.


.SH OPTIONS
.TP
\fB--author\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter by author

.TP
\fB--author-date\fR \fB<date>\fR
Filter based on authored date

.TP
\fB--author-email\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter on author email

.TP
\fB--author-name\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter on author name

.TP
\fB--committer\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter by committer

.TP
\fB--committer-date\fR \fB<date>\fR
Filter based on committed date

.TP
\fB--committer-email\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter on committer email

.TP
\fB--committer-name\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter on committer name

.TP
\fB--hash\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter by commit hash

.TP
\fB-q\fR, \fB--jq\fR \fB<expression>\fR
Filter JSON output using a jq expression

.TP
\fB--json\fR \fB<fields>\fR
Output JSON with the specified fields

.TP
\fB-L\fR, \fB--limit\fR \fB<int> (default 30)\fR
Maximum number of commits to fetch

.TP
\fB--merge\fR
Filter on merge commits

.TP
\fB--order\fR \fB<string> (default "desc")\fR
Order of commits returned, ignored unless '--sort' flag is specified: {asc|desc}

.TP
\fB--owner\fR \fB<strings>\fR
Filter on repository owner

.TP
\fB--parent\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter by parent hash

.TP
\fB-R\fR, \fB--repo\fR \fB<strings>\fR
Filter on repository

.TP
\fB--sort\fR \fB<string> (default "best-match")\fR
Sort fetched commits: {author-date|committer-date}

.TP
\fB-t\fR, \fB--template\fR \fB<string>\fR
Format JSON output using a Go template; see "gh help formatting"

.TP
\fB--tree\fR \fB<string>\fR
Filter by tree hash

.TP
\fB--visibility\fR \fB<strings>\fR
Filter based on repository visibility: {public|private|internal}

.TP
\fB-w\fR, \fB--web\fR
Open the search query in the web browser


.SH JSON FIELDS
\fBauthor\fR, \fBcommit\fR, \fBcommitter\fR, \fBid\fR, \fBparents\fR, \fBrepository\fR, \fBsha\fR, \fBurl\fR


.SH EXIT CODES
0: Successful execution

.PP
1: Error

.PP
2: Command canceled

.PP
4: Authentication required

.PP
NOTE: Specific commands may have additional exit codes. Refer to the command's help for more information.


.SH EXAMPLE
.EX
# Search commits matching set of keywords "readme" and "typo"
$ gh search commits readme typo

# Search commits matching phrase "bug fix"
$ gh search commits "bug fix"

# Search commits committed by user "monalisa"
$ gh search commits --committer=monalisa

# Search commits authored by users with name "Jane Doe"
$ gh search commits --author-name="Jane Doe"

# Search commits matching hash "8dd03144ffdc6c0d486d6b705f9c7fba871ee7c3"
$ gh search commits --hash=8dd03144ffdc6c0d486d6b705f9c7fba871ee7c3

# Search commits authored before February 1st, 2022
$ gh search commits --author-date="<2022-02-01"

.EE


.SH SEE ALSO
\fBgh-search(1)\fR