git-format-patch

Create patches for last N commits

$ git format-patch -[n]

$ git format-patch [commit]

$ git format-patch [commit1]..[commit2]

$ git format-patch -o [patches/] [commit]

$ git format-patch --stdout [commit] > [combined.patch]

$ git format-patch --cover-letter [commit]

git format-patch [options] [since] | [revision-range]

git format-patch generates patch files from commits in a format suitable for email-based code review and submission workflows. Each commit is formatted as a separate .patch file containing the diff, commit metadata, and message in mbox format.
This command is fundamental to email-based development workflows used by projects like the Linux kernel and Git itself. The generated patches can be sent using git send-email or standard email clients, and applied with git am while preserving full commit information including author and date.
Cover letters (--cover-letter) provide a way to introduce patch series with context. Version numbering with -v supports iterative review cycles. The signoff option adds Signed-off-by trailers for Developer Certificate of Origin compliance.

-n

Number of commits.

Output directory.

Output to stdout.

Generate cover letter.

Add Signed-off-by.

Subject prefix.

Version number.

git-am(1), git-send-email(1)