Anyone who’s done a code reviews knows it’s not just about scanning for bugs. The real challenge is finding a balance between efficiency and quality while keeping the team’s workflow smooth and productive. This means looking beyond whether the code simply works, considering things like readability, maintainability, and alignment with the team’s standards.
But where to start? First off, remember that code review isn’t about “finding mistakes”—it’s about making sure the code is clear and understandable for everyone. If you only focus on hunting for issues, you miss the chance to improve design, encourage best practices, and share knowledge.
1. Understand the Context First
Before opening the pull request (PR) and diving into the review, take a moment to understand the context behind the change. Reading the PR description, the related task, or even chatting with the author helps give you an idea of what to expect. You don’t want to be reviewing “blindly” without knowing the reason for the change, right?
Knowing the context makes understanding the code easier and lets you give feedback that really matters. It also avoids wasting time pointing out things that aren’t relevant to that specific change and ensures your feedback is focused and constructive.
2. Be Objective and Constructive with Feedback
When reviewing code, focus on the aspects that really make a difference for code quality and clarity. Prioritize business logic, performance, readability, and whether the code follows team standards and best practices. This helps keep the review on track without getting hung up on minor details like spacing or formatting—let automated linters handle those.
Also, give feedback that gets the developer thinking. Instead of just pointing out issues, ask questions that make them reflect on their design choices. For example, rather than saying, “This function is too long,” try something like, “What do you think about splitting this function to make it easier to read?” This helps foster a culture of continuous learning and collaboration.
3. Code Review Is Not Just About Finding Bugs
Many people think code review is just about pointing out issues, but recognizing and praising good stuff is just as important as giving corrective feedback. Did you see well-organized code or a creative solution? Give it a shout-out! It motivates the author and creates a more positive environment for everyone.
Remember, code review is a two-way street: reviewers learn from others’ code, and authors learn from the feedback. By praising best practices, you reinforce those behaviors and help create a more cohesive codebase.
4. Don’t Get Drowned in Huge Pull Requests
When a PR is too big, it becomes harder to do a thorough review. To avoid this, encourage the team to send smaller, more frequent PRs. Breaking changes into steps helps keep the review quick and focused, and it reduces the chances of bugs slipping through.
If you get a massive PR, don’t hesitate to ask the author to split it into smaller parts. It makes the review easier for everyone involved and keeps the development flow smooth.
5. Use Checklists to Make Sure You Don’t Miss Anything
A checklist is a great way to make sure you’re covering all the important points during a code review. Create a list with items that are relevant to your team, like coding standards, business logic, test coverage, performance, and readability. Having that list handy makes the review easier and helps ensure nothing important gets overlooked.
For example:
- Does the implementation do exactly what the task or issue asks for?
- Does the PR contain only the changes needed for the task, or are there unrelated changes?
- Is the PR size reasonable, or should it be broken into smaller parts?
- Is the code following standards like modularity and separation of concerns?
- Is there adequate test coverage for the new or changed logic?
- Are the key scenarios covered by tests?
- Does the code handle sensitive data correctly?
6. Automate Wherever Possible
One of the best ways to keep code reviews efficient is to automate whatever you can. Tools like linters, static analysis, and style validation help ensure that small things like formatting and coding standards are automatically corrected before manual review. This frees up the reviewer to focus on the important stuff, like business logic and design.
Also, using AI tools for code review can optimize the process even further.
Automate Code Reviews with Kody
If you’re looking to automate parts of your code review, Kody could be a great ally. It’s our AI agent that automatically analyzes pull requests as soon as they’re opened on GitHub or GitLab. The goal isn’t to replace human review but to provide an extra layer of review, highlighting potential improvements, inconsistencies, and best practices.
One of the benefits of Kody is that it allows customization—you can define what should be reviewed, adjust the level of detail in feedback, and even exclude certain PRs based on tags. This ensures the automated code review doesn’t add unnecessary overhead but instead complements the work of human reviewers, focusing on the details that matter and freeing up time to discuss more complex points. Learn more here.
7. Be Patient and Take the Time to Review Properly
Rushing through a code review is a recipe for missing important details. Taking the time to review the code calmly and carefully makes all the difference. If you’re overwhelmed and can’t give the review the attention it needs, it’s better to postpone it until you have the availability. A rushed review tends to be shallow and can miss important issues.
Remember, the goal is to maintain code quality and help the team grow. So treat code reviews as an opportunity to learn, share knowledge, and contribute to the project’s success.
8. Focus on the Bigger Picture, Not Just the Details
It’s common during a code review to get caught up in the details of implementation, like the logic of a function or correct usage of patterns. However, it’s also important to consider the code as a whole. Ask yourself: does this change make sense for the project? Is the code readable and well-structured? Are there opportunities to improve modularity or reduce complexity?
A good code review finds a balance between the details and the bigger picture. Don’t just stick to the small points; always try to have a holistic view of what that change means for the entire project.
Code Reviews Is About Collaboration and Learning
A good code review is much more than just fixing issues in the code. It’s a tool for learning, collaboration, and continuous improvement for the team. By focusing on clear communication, respect, standardization, and automation, you can create a review process that not only improves code quality but also strengthens team cohesion and encourages knowledge sharing.
So next time you’re reviewing or having your code reviewed, keep these best practices in mind. The ultimate goal is always to improve the code, share knowledge, and grow as a developer—all in a constructive and collaborative way.
