pre-commit

TLDR

Install hooks into repository

$ pre-commit install

Run all hooks manually

$ pre-commit run --all-files

Run specific hook

$ pre-commit run [hook_id]

Update hook versions

$ pre-commit autoupdate

Create sample config

$ pre-commit sample-config

Install commit-msg hooks

$ pre-commit install --hook-type commit-msg

Run on specific files

$ pre-commit run --files [file1] [file2]

Clean cached hook environments

$ pre-commit clean

SYNOPSIS

pre-commit command [--all-files] [--files files] [options]

pre-commit manages and runs git hooks as code quality checks. Hooks run automatically before commits, catching issues before they enter the repository.
Configuration lives in .pre-commit-config.yaml, listing repositories and hooks to use. Hooks can check formatting, lint code, validate files, or run any custom command.
Each hook runs in an isolated environment, automatically installed and cached. This ensures consistent behavior regardless of developer's local setup. Language-specific environments (Python, Node, Ruby, etc.) are supported.
Common hooks include: trailing-whitespace, end-of-file-fixer, check-yaml, check-json, black, flake8, prettier, eslint. The hook ecosystem provides ready-made checks for most needs.
Autoupdate fetches latest hook versions from repositories. The --all-files flag runs against the entire codebase, useful for CI or initial cleanup. Stage-specific hooks (commit-msg, pre-push) enable additional checks.

PARAMETERS

install

Install git hooks.

uninstall

Remove git hooks.

run [hookid_]

Run hooks manually.

autoupdate

Update hooks to latest versions.

sample-config

Generate sample configuration.

clean

Clean cached environments.

Garbage collect unused environments.

try-repo REPO

Try hooks from repository.

--all-files, -a

Run on all files, not just staged.

--files FILES

Run on specific files.

--hook-stage STAGE

Run hooks for stage: commit, push, etc.

--hook-type TYPE

Install hooks for type.

--color WHEN

Color output: auto, always, never.

--verbose, -v

Verbose output.

CAVEATS

Initial hook installation can be slow. Requires hooks to be installed per-clone. Some hooks may conflict with each other. Large files slow down commits. Breaking changes in hook updates possible. CI and local environments should match.

HISTORY

pre-commit was created by Anthony Sottile at Yelp around 2014. It addressed the problem of managing git hooks across teams - previously, hooks were often uncommitted or inconsistent. The framework standardized hook management and spawned a large ecosystem of shareable hooks.