staticcheck
TLDR
Analyze all packages in current module
SYNOPSIS
staticcheck [flags] [packages]
DESCRIPTION
staticcheck is a state-of-the-art static analysis linter for Go. It finds bugs, performance issues, and code quality problems using sophisticated analysis techniques that go beyond what the standard go vet tool provides.
The tool includes over 150 checks organized into categories: SA (staticcheck - bugs and correctness), S (simple - code simplifications), ST (stylecheck - style issues), QF (quickfix - suggested improvements), and U (unused - dead code detection).
Staticcheck integrates seamlessly with Go's tooling conventions, accepting packages in the same format as go build. It supports configuration via staticcheck.conf files for project-wide settings and inline directives like //lint:ignore for suppressing specific warnings.
The linter is used as the default in VS Code's Go extension and is included as a component of golangci-lint. It provides machine-readable output formats for CI/CD integration.
PARAMETERS
-checks checks
Comma-separated list of checks to run. Supports wildcards and negation.-f format
Output format: text (default), stylish, json, sarif, or null.-fail checks
Comma-separated list of checks that cause non-zero exit on findings.-explain check
Display detailed explanation of a specific check.-show-ignored
Include findings that have been explicitly ignored via directives.-go version
Target Go version for compatibility checks.-debug.cpuprofile file
Write CPU profile to file.-debug.memprofile file
Write memory profile to file.-debug.version
Print detailed version information.-version
Display version information.
CAVEATS
Check categories are disabled by default in some contexts. ST checks (style) include some controversial rules that are off by default. Configuration files use a different syntax than command-line flags. Some checks require analyzing dependencies which increases runtime. The tool is developed by Dominik Honnef with sponsorship from Google.
HISTORY
Staticcheck was created by Dominik Honnef, starting development while at Google. It evolved from earlier tools like go vet and golint to provide more comprehensive static analysis. The tool gained widespread adoption in the Go community and became the default linter for VS Code's Go extension. It is now sponsored by both Google and the Go team.
SEE ALSO
go(1), golangci-lint(1), gofmt(1), revive(1)
