Reordering Commits

Why Reorder Commits?

Sometimes, you make commits in an order that doesn’t make sense for the project’s history.
Maybe you fixed a typo before adding the main feature, or you want related changes grouped together.
Reordering commits helps you organize your history so it’s logical, readable, and easy to review.

How to Reorder Commits in Git

You use interactive rebase to reorder commits.
This lets you pick up any commit and move it before or after others.

Step-by-Step: Reordering Commits

Suppose your history looks like this (from newest to oldest):

* d4e5f6g - Update styles
* c3d4e5f - Add logout button
* b2c3d4e - Fix typo
* a1b2c3d - Add login form

But you want “Fix typo” to come after “Add login form” and before “Add logout button”.

1. Start an Interactive Rebase

Decide how many commits you want to reorder (counting backwards from HEAD):

git rebase -i HEAD~4

2. The Rebase Todo List

Git opens your editor with:

pick a1b2c3d Add login form
pick b2c3d4e Fix typo
pick c3d4e5f Add logout button
pick d4e5f6g Update styles

• Commits are listed from oldest (top) to newest (bottom).
• The order here is the order they will appear in history after the rebase.

3. Change the Order

To reorder, simply move the lines up or down.

Example:
To put “Fix typo” after “Add logout button”:

pick a1b2c3d Add login form
pick c3d4e5f Add logout button
pick b2c3d4e Fix typo
pick d4e5f6g Update styles

• Save and close the editor.

4. Finish the Rebase

• Git will replay the commits in the new order.
• If there are conflicts, Git will pause and let you resolve them:
  • Fix the files.
  • Run git add <file>.
  • Continue with git rebase --continue.

Tips for Reordering Commits

• Test after reordering:
  Changing commit order can sometimes cause conflicts or break your code if commits depend on each other.
• Keep related changes together:
  Grouping related commits makes your history easier to understand.
• Use meaningful commit messages:
  After reordering, you can also use reword to update messages for clarity.

When to Reorder Commits

• Before merging a feature branch, to make history logical.
• When you want to group bug fixes or features together.
• When preparing a pull request for review.

Caution

• Reordering rewrites history.
  Only reorder commits on branches that haven’t been pushed/shared, or coordinate with your team.
• Never reorder commits on public/shared branches unless everyone agrees.

Tip:
Reordering commits is a great way to make your project history logical and professional.
Practice on a test branch to get comfortable before using it on important work!