Git Rebase vs Merge - When to Use Each

Teams debate whether to use rebase or merge. Wrong choice leads to messy history, lost commits, or difficult conflict resolution.

Simple rule: Rebase for local cleanup, merge for integration.

Use REBASE when:

• Updating your feature branch with latest main

  git checkout feature
  git rebase main
  # Your commits are replayed on top of main
  

• Cleaning up commit history before PR

  git rebase -i HEAD~5
  # Squash, reorder, edit messages
  

• You're the ONLY one working on the branch

Use MERGE when:

• Integrating a feature branch into main

  git checkout main
  git merge --no-ff feature
  # Creates a merge commit, preserves branch history
  

• Multiple people work on the same branch
• You want to preserve the exact history of how changes happened

NEVER rebase:

• Shared/public branches (main, develop)
• After pushing to a branch others are working on
• If you're not comfortable resolving conflicts

Golden Rule: Don't rebase commits that exist outside your local repository.

Team workflow suggestion:

1. Create feature branch from main
2. Rebase onto main periodically (keep up to date)
3. When ready: squash commits if desired
4. Merge (or squash merge) into main via PR
5. Delete feature branch

Rebase creates a linear history (easier to read and bisect) but rewrites commits (dangerous on shared branches). Merge preserves history but creates merge commits (noisier log).

Choosing between git rebase and merge