cherry-pick Git Command Guide

The git cherry-pick command applies changes introduced by existing commits to the current branch. It’s commonly used to incorporate bug fixes or features from other branches without performing a merge.

git cherry-pick Syntax:

git cherry-pick [--edit] [-n] [--no-commit] [-x] [-s] [-m <parent-number>] [-p] [-S[<keyid>]] [--signoff] [--gpg-sign[=<key-id>]] [--ff] [--allow-empty] [--allow-empty-message] [--keep-redundant-commits] [--no-affordance] <commit-ish>...

git cherry-pick --continue
git cherry-pick --skip
git cherry-pick --abort
git cherry-pick --quit

Options:

Option	Description
—continue	Continue the operation in progress using the information in .git/sequencer
—skip	Skip the current commit and continue with the rest of the sequence
—abort	Cancel the operation and return to the pre-sequence state
—quit	Forget about the current operation in progress and return to the pre-sequence state
-e, —edit	Edit the commit message prior to committing
-n, —no-commit	Apply the changes necessary to cherry-pick but do not make any commit
-x	When recording the commit, append a line that says “(cherry picked from commit …)” to the original commit message
-s, —signoff	Add a Signed-off-by trailer at the end of the commit message
—gpg-sign[=]	GPG-sign commits (default is the current user)
—no-gpg-sign	Don’t GPG-sign commits
-m	Use the nth parent of the commit as the mainline
—mainline	Use the nth parent of the commit as the mainline
-p, —strategy-option=recursive,ours	Use a merge strategy
—strategy=	Use a given merge strategy
—rerere-autoupdate	Allow the rerere mechanism to update the index
—no-rerere-autoupdate	Do not allow the rerere mechanism to update the index
—allow-empty	Preserve potentially empty commits
—allow-empty-message	Allow commits with empty messages
—keep-redundant-commits	Create redundant, empty commits even without —allow-empty
—no-affordance	Verbose output showing skipped commits

Parameters:

Parameter	Description
…	Commit to cherry-pick. Can be SHA-1, branch name, tag, etc.

Caution

Cherry-pick can create duplicate commits if not careful. Conflicts may occur similar to merges. Always review the target branch and consider merge commits to avoid losing parent information.

git cherry-pick Command Samples:

Simple cherry-pick of a single commit

git cherry-pick 4c3f2b1

Applies the changes from commit 4c3f2b1 to the current branch.

Cherry-pick multiple commits

git cherry-pick 1a2b3c4 5d6e7f8

Applies changes from the two specified commits.

Cherry-pick with commit message edit

git cherry-pick --edit 9h0i1j2

Allows editing the commit message before applying.

Cherry-pick without committing (for staging)

git cherry-pick -n 2k3l4m5

Applies the changes but doesn’t create the commit, allowing you to review or combine with other changes.

Cherry-pick from another branch

git cherry-pick feature-branch~2

Applies the commit two steps back from the tip of feature-branch.

Handle merge conflicts and continue

git cherry-pick --continue

After resolving conflicts, continue the cherry-pick operation.

Skip a commit during multi-commit cherry-pick

git cherry-pick --skip

Skips the current commit if it can’t be applied cleanly.

Abort a cherry-pick operation

git cherry-pick --abort

Cancels the entire cherry-pick sequence and returns to the original state.

Add cherry-pick tracking information

git cherry-pick -x upstream-fix

Appends cherry picked from commit... to the commit message.

Tip

Use git log --oneline to find specific commit hashes. Test cherry-pick operations on a separate branch first to avoid disrupting main work.

How do I cherry-pick a commit from another branch?

To cherry-pick a commit from another branch, use:

git cherry-pick <commit-hash>

How can I cherry-pick multiple commits at once?

To cherry-pick multiple commits at once, execute:

git cherry-pick <first-commit> <second-commit>

How do I handle merge conflicts during cherry-pick?

To handle merge conflicts during cherry-pick, resolve the conflicts in the affected files, then run:

git cherry-pick --continue

How can I edit the commit message when cherry-picking?

To edit the commit message when cherry-picking, use:

git cherry-pick --edit <commit-hash>

How do I skip a commit during multi-commit cherry-pick?

To skip a commit during multi-commit cherry-pick, use:

git cherry-pick --skip

Applications of the git cherry-pick command

1. Backporting bug fixes from development branches to release branches
2. Applying selective commits from feature branches to master
3. Reordering commits or fixing commit history locally
4. Creating patch releases with specific fixes
5. Incorporating upstream changes in forked repositories without full merges
6. Selective integration of commits from long-lived topic branches