Code Review Best Practices in 2026

Code review can feel like a chore, but they are the backbone of high-quality software development. They help teams catch bugs early, improve code maintainability, and foster better collaboration among developers.

In fact, developers spend only 32–43% of their time actually writing new code, and a big chunk of the rest goes into maintenance, reviews, and fixing issues. That means if your code review process is slow or messy, it’s not a small annoyance, it’s eating a serious share of your team’s productive time.

But let's be real, not all code reviews are smooth. Some feel like never-ending tasks and others are rushed approvals that don't add much value.

The truth is code reviews are one of the most powerful and best developer tools in your dev toolkit. They're not just about finding bugs (though they're great at that). They're about making your code better and your team stronger.

Think about it:

• Ever had to debug a production issue that could've been caught earlier?

• Ever spent hours trying to understand a piece of code because it was written in "mystery style"?

• Ever felt like your team was working in silos, with no idea what anyone else was doing?

Code reviews can fix all of that. But here's the catch, they only work if they're done right. Too often, they turn into a bottleneck, a nitpicking session, or worse, a source of tension.

In this guide, we'll show you how to avoid those pitfalls and turn code reviews into something your team actually looks forward to.

Let's start.

Pre-Review Checklist: Before Submitting Code

Before requesting a review, make sure your code is review-ready. A sloppy PR wastes everyone's time, including yours. Here is simple checklist you can follow:

1. Does Your Code Work?

• Run the application and manually test your changes.

• Ensure all unit, integration, and end-to-end tests pass.

• Check logs for unexpected errors or warnings.

2. Is Your Code Clean & Readable?

• Follow the team's coding style guide (Google Style Guide, Airbnb, etc.).

• Name variables, functions, and classes meaningfully, no tempVar or doStuff().

• Avoid redundant code; remove unused imports, variables, and functions.

• Keep functions and classes small and focused.

3. Is Your PR Description Clear & Helpful?

• Write a clear and concise PR title.

• Provide a short summary:

  • What does this PR do?

  • Why is this needed?

  • How was it implemented?

• Example:

  • Fix payment gateway timeout issue

  • Increased API timeout from 5s to 10s

  • Added retry logic for intermittent failures

4. Have You Considered Edge Cases & Performance?

• Test with different input values, including edge cases.

• Check performance, will this slow down the application?

• Ensure it scales well if data grows significantly.

5. Have You Documented Your Changes?

• Update relevant docs if you changed an API or behavior.

• Add comments only where necessary, don't explain the obvious.

• Use TODO comments if further work is needed later.

6. Have You Checked Security & Compliance?

• Avoid hardcoding secrets (API keys, passwords, etc.).

• Validate user inputs to prevent injection attacks.

• Follow security best practices for authentication and authorization.

7. Is Your Code Easy to Review?

• Keep PRs small and focused (ideally under 400 lines of code). Many industry write-ups suggest that once a pull request goes beyond ~400 lines of changes, review quality drops sharply, reviewers skim instead of truly understanding the code. Teams that consistently keep PRs under this threshold see up to 40% fewer production defects and as much as 3× faster review cycles.

• Separate refactoring from new features.

• Remove debug logs and unnecessary print statements.

If you've checked all these, congrats, your PR is ready for review!

The Code Review Process: Step-by-Step

Now that your PR is review-ready, let's talk about how to review code effectively. A great review isn't just about catching bugs—it's about ensuring the code is maintainable, secure, and meets business needs.

Step 1: Understand the Context

Before jumping into the code, take a step back. Ask yourself:

• What is this change trying to achieve?

• Are there any related tickets or documentation to review?

• Is this the right solution to the problem? A quick skim of the PR description, associated JIRA ticket, or Slack discussion can give you some clarity.

Step 2: Review for Readability & Maintainability

Good code should be easy to read and understand. Keep an eye out for:

• Unnecessary complexity – Could this be written more simply?

• Proper variable and function naming – Do they make sense?

• Code duplication – Is there an existing function that can be reused? If something is confusing, leave a friendly comment asking for clarification.

Step 3: Check for Security & Performance Issues

• Are user inputs properly validated?

• Could this code introduce a SQL injection, XSS, or other vulnerabilities?

• Does this impact performance (e.g., unnecessary loops, large queries)?

Step 4: Provide Constructive Feedback

This is where code reviews often go wrong. Your feedback should be:

• Specific: Instead of "This is bad," say, "Consider using X instead of Y because..."

• Actionable: Provide clear suggestions.

• Respectful: Avoid harsh language; assume positive intent. Example: ❌ "This function is terrible." ✔️ "This function is doing too much. Consider breaking it into two smaller functions: one for processing and one for validation."

Step 5: Approve or Request Changes

• If the PR meets all the criteria, approve it.

• If changes are needed, clearly explain why and what's expected.

• If the code is fundamentally flawed, suggest an alternative approach.

why this is worth the effort” ??

Older but still widely cited research on inspections found that design and code reviews can detect around 55–60% of defects, whereas different levels of testing alone typically catch only 25–45% of issues. In other words, well-run code reviews aren’t just process overhead, they’re one of the most effective quality levers you have.

Source: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/372762289_The_Effectiveness_of_Code_Reviews_on_Improving_Software_Quality_An_Empirical_Study

Code Review Best Practices for Reviewers

Code reviews shouldn't feel like a boss pointing out mistakes. They should feel like a team huddle—where you help make the code (and your teammates) better. So, how do you review code without making people hate you?

Reviewing Like a Pro:

• Be quick, but not careless. Review PRs within 24 hours—but actually look at the code.

• Understand before commenting. Don't just react; take a moment to grasp the why behind a change.

• Ask questions instead of making demands. Instead of "Fix this," try "Would it be better if we did it this way?"

• Focus on the big picture. Minor style issues? Leave them to linters. Look for logic errors, security flaws, and maintainability issues.

• Make it a learning experience. Code reviews should be about sharing knowledge, not just passing judgment.

The Golden Rules:

• Bad Review: "This function is bad."

• Good Review: "This function does multiple things. Could we split it into two for clarity?"

• Bad Review: "Change this."

• Good Review: "I think this approach could cause X issue. Maybe we could do Y instead?"

• Bad Review: "Why did you do it this way?" (Sounds accusatory.)

• Good Review: "Curious—what was the reasoning behind this approach?" (Encourages discussion.) A great reviewer isn't just a gatekeeper—they're a mentor, teammate, and problem-solver. Keep that in mind.

Code Review Best Practices for Authors

If you want fast approvals and fewer headaches, here's what you need to do as an author:

How to Get Your PR Merged Faster:

1. Make your PRs reviewer-friendly. Keep them small, focused, and with a clear description.

2. Explain the "why." Reviewers don't live in your head. Tell them why you made certain choices.

3. Don't be defensive. A review isn't an attack—it's feedback to make the code better.

4. Fix issues in one go. Batch your changes instead of pushing tiny commits every five minutes.

5. Push back when necessary. Not every suggested change is right. If you disagree, discuss it.

The Pro Move:

• Instead of dumping 50 changes in one PR, split it up. Reviewers will thank you.

• If you see a pattern in feedback, improve your coding habits. It'll save you time in the long run.

• Respect the reviewer's time. No one wants to review a 1,000-line PR.

Handling Code Reviews at Scale

When your team grows, code reviews can turn into a huge chore. PRs pile up, reviews take forever, and important feedback gets lost in the noise. It's like trying to drink from a firehose. But here's the good news: you don't have to drown. With the right tools and strategies, you can scale your code review process without breaking a sweat.

1. Automate the Boring Stuff

Why waste time manually checking for style issues, formatting errors, or basic bugs? That's where AI tools like CodeAnt.ai come in. CodeAnt.ai automates the tedious parts of code reviews, liinting, style checks, and even basic security scans, so your team can focus on the big picture stuff without breaking a sweat.

Checklist: How to Configure an AI Code Review Tool to Prioritize High-Risk Changes First

If you want an AI tool to surface the most important issues instead of nitpicks, here’s a practical configuration checklist teams use:

• risk-based rules enabled: prioritize logic changes, deleted validations, auth flows, query changes, or areas with past incidents.

• security scanning turned on by default: SQLi, XSS, unsafe APIs should always be top of the queue.

• repo-aware patterns: teach the tool deprecated modules, risky utilities, or known fragile code.

• complexity thresholds: any function or file crossing complexity limits should be flagged early.

• “changed-risky-files” mapping: mark ownerless or historically buggy areas as High Risk.

• coverage-drop alerting: configure “coverage must not drop for changed files.”

• policy gates: block PRs missing tests, touching sensitive systems, or changing business rules without justification.

• noise controls: suppress low-impact comments (style, formatting) so only high-risk issues surface first.

2. Decide: Pair Programming or Async Reviews?

Not every change needs a formal code review. For small, straightforward tasks, pair programming can be faster and more effective. But for bigger changes, async reviews are the way to go. The key is to know when to use which. Here's a quick rule:

• Pair Programming: Great for brainstorming, debugging, or onboarding new team members.

• Async Reviews: Better for complex changes that need deep thought and multiple perspectives. Or you can use CodeAnt.ai to handle the async reviews efficiently. It can give a PR summary, flag potential issues. That way, your ASYNC reviews are faster, smoother, and more productive.

3. Keep PRs Small and Focused

Ever opened a PR with 50+ files and thought, "Nope, not today?" Yeah, we've all been there. Large PRs are hard to review, easy to mess up, and often take forever to get approved. The solution? Break your changes into smaller, focused PRs. Aim for PRs that:

• Solve one problem or add one feature.

• Can be reviewed in under 30 minutes.

• Are easy to roll back if something goes wrong.

4. Set Clear Expectations

How quickly reviews should be done is, clarity is key. Make sure everyone knows:

• When you're dealing with a lot of PRs (e.g., "All PRs should be reviewed within 24 hours").

• What kind of feedback is helpful (and what's just nitpicking).

• Who's responsible for reviewing what.

5. Rotate Reviewers

Don't let the same two people review every PR. Rotate reviewers to spread knowledge, avoid burnout, and get fresh perspectives. Pro Tip: Use tools to automatically assign reviewers based on expertise or workload.

6. Track Metrics to Improve the Process

You can't improve what you don't measure. Keep an eye on metrics like:

• PR cycle time: How long does it take for a PR to go from draft to merge?

• Reviewer load: Are some people drowning in reviews while others are barely contributing?

• Feedback quality: Are reviews catching real issues, or just nitpicking?

Must read: 15 Code Quality Metric to track.

Now, let's understand about the code review metrics a bit in detail.

What Are Code Review Metrics?

Code review metrics are quantitative signals that help measure how fast, how well, and how safely your team reviews and merges code. Common examples include TTFR (time to first review), TTM (time to merge), review cycles, PR size, defect escape rate, change failure rate, and the ratio of review comments to meaningful fixes. These metrics show whether your review process is healthy or if it’s slowing down delivery.

What Metrics Show If AI Code Review Actually Reduces Backlog (Not Just Adding Noise)

One of the biggest concerns teams have with AI reviewers is whether they’re helping or just dropping more comments to triage. The simplest way to measure real impact is to track PR-flow metrics before and after adopting the tool. If AI actually reduces backlog, you should see improvements in:

• Time to First Review (TTFR): Good AI reviewers reduce TTFR from hours to minutes by giving an instant first pass. If TTFR doesn’t drop, the AI isn’t reducing review load.

• Time to Merge (TTM): If merges accelerate by 20–40%, it means AI eliminated nitpicks and clarified issues early.

• PR Reopen / Rework Rate: Fewer “fix after merge” or “follow-up PRs” means better quality at PR-time.

• Review Load per Developer: AI should reduce cognitive load, not create parallel work.

• Comment-to-Fix Ratio: If the AI produces 50 comments but only 5 lead to actual fixes, that’s noise, not value.

• Backlog of Waiting PRs: The big one. If your pending PR queue shrinks over weeks, the AI is genuinely clearing bottlenecks.

You can check more about these metrics in detail here: AI Code Review Metrics That Cut Developer Backlog

Top Code Review Solution in 2026

There are ample AI code review solutions, but the below ones are tried/tested and then listed for you.

1. CodeAnt AI

CodeAnt AI is an AI-powered code review tool designed to enhance code quality and security. It supports over 30 programming languages best for all type of development needs. 

What it's good at:

• AI-Driven Analysis: Automatically identifies critical code quality issues and security vulnerabilities.

• Pull Request Summaries: Provides concise summaries to help teams quickly understand code changes.

• Application Security: Conducts thorough security checks with minimal false positives, allowing developers to focus on real issues.

Pricing:

Plans start at $10/user/month for the AI Code Review package. Other packages, like the Code Quality Platform and Code Security Platform, are priced at $15/user/month.

For: This makes it suitable for mid-sized to large companies.

2. CodeRabbit

CodeRabbit is an AI-powered platform that revolutionizes the software development code review process. It offers line-by-line analysis, security checks, and automated fixes while supporting all programming languages. What it's good at:

• Comprehensive Code Reviews: Provides detailed analysis and feedback on code submissions.

• Security Checks: Identifies potential security vulnerabilities within the code.

• Automated Fixes: Suggests and implements fixes to improve code quality.

Drawbacks:

• Contextual Limitations: Some users have noted that code suggestions can lack sufficient context, affecting recommendation accuracy.

• Pricing Transparency: Detailed pricing information is limited, which might require direct inquiry for clarity.

Pricing: CodeRabbit offers a free plan with limited features. The Pro plan starts at $24 per month. For: Best for small to midsized teams.

3. Graphite

Graphite is a lightweight code review tool that offers AI-augmented code reviews. It's designed to provide immediate, actionable feedback on every pull request, adapting to your specific coding standards and patterns. What it's good at:

• Quick Feedback: Delivers prompt insights to streamline the review process.

• Customization: Adapts to your team's coding standards and practices.

• Integration: Seamlessly integrates with existing development workflows.

Drawbacks:

• Feature Set: May lack some advanced features found in more comprehensive tools.

• Scalability: Could be less suitable for very large projects with complex requirements.

Pricing: Has a free plan. Paid plan starts at $25/user/month.

4. Review Board

Review Board is an open-source, web-based code review tool that integrates with various version control systems like Git, Mercurial, CVS, Subversion, and Perforce. What it's good at:

• Syntax Highlighting: Makes reading and reviewing code easier by highlighting syntax.

• Pre and Post-Commit Reviews: Offers flexibility to review code before or after it's committed.

• Integration Capabilities: Works well with multiple version control systems, fitting into diverse workflows.

Drawbacks:

• User Interface: Some folks find the interface a tad outdated compared to newer tools.

• Setup Requirements: Needs installation and configuration, which might be a bit of a hassle for some.

Pricing: Since it's open-source, Review Board is free to use. Also has a hosted version, which is paid. For: Great for teams of all sizes.

5. CodeScene

CodeScene is a tool that goes beyond traditional code analysis by examining your codebase to identify potential risks and technical debt. What it's good at:

• Behavioral Code Analysis: Looks at how your code has changed over time to spot hidden risks.

• Prioritization: Helps you focus on the most critical areas that need attention.

• Team Insights: Provides a peek into team dynamics and code ownership, which can be handy for managing resources.

Drawbacks:

• Complexity: Might be overkill for smaller projects or teams.

• Learning Curve: Takes a bit of time to get the hang of all its features.

Pricing: Paid plans start from €18/user/month. For: Generally suited for mid- to large-sized companies.

6. Crucible

Crucible, developed by Atlassian, is a collaborative code review tool that supports various version control systems like SVN, Git, Mercurial, CVS, and Perforce. What it's good at:

• Inline Commenting: Lets reviewers add comments directly within the code, making feedback clear and contextual.

• Integration with Atlassian Products: Works seamlessly with other Atlassian tools like Jira and Bitbucket, which is great if you're already using their ecosystem.

• Customizable Workflows: Allows you to tailor review processes to fit your team's needs.

Drawbacks:

• Cost: Might be a bit pricey for smaller teams or solo developers.

• Setup and Maintenance: It requires some effort to set up and keep running smoothly.

Pricing: Paid plan starts at $10/5 users/month for unlimited repos.

These are some tools; if you are looking to deep dive into some code analysis tools, you can check out

• 20 Code Quality Tools in 2025

• Cloud infrastructure security solutions

• 6 GitLab code review tools in 2025

• 13 SAST Tools in 2025

Best Code Review Analytics Solutions for Remote Engineering Teams

Remote teams need tools that not only automate reviews, but also provide analytics on workflow, review velocity, and risk hotspots. In 2026, the solutions that stand out are the ones that combine AI review + analytics, giving remote leaders visibility without micromanagement. Platforms like CodeAnt.ai offer Developer 360 metrics (TTFR, merge time, PR size, hotspots, incident correlations), while other tools like CodeRabbit and Graphite offer lighter-weight AI review with limited analytics. For distributed teams, these analytics become crucial because they replace “hallway context” with objective patterns in code health and team flow.

What next?

We talked about how getting those extra sets of eyes (or even an AI buddy!) on your code can save tons of time, cut down on bugs, and make your project way more solid.

Sometimes it feels like a chore, but a good code review makes the whole process smoother and even a bit exciting when you see improvements.

And hey, if you're looking to make your life easier, check out CodeAnt.ai. It's like having a really smart friend who spots the tricky parts in your code, gives you quick fixes with just one click, and even helps you keep everything secure, all while you focus on building cool stuff.

Plus, you can start a free trial and see the magic for yourself.

Happy coding and reviewing!