Filtering Commit History in Git

Last Updated : 24 Mar, 2026

git log is a powerful Git command used to view and analyze the commit history of a repository. It allows developers to list, filter, and display commits in various formats, helping track changes and understand project evolution.

  • Displays complete commit history in reverse chronological order.
  • Shows details like commit ID, author, date, and message.
  • Supports filtering and customization of output.
  • Helps in tracking changes and debugging issues.

Common git log Commands

1. List Commit History

Displays all commits with full details.

git log
List Commit History
  • Commit number which is a unique hash identifies the commit.
  • Author the developer who commits. Also, email information is provided.
  • Date specifies when the commit occurred.

2. One Commit Per Line

Shows a compact view with short commit ID and message.

git log --oneline
List One Commit Per Line

3. Show Statistics

Displays files changed, insertions, and deletions.

git log --stat
Print Statistics

The extra information like changed file, changed file count, number of lines added, number of lines deleted.

4. Show Diff (Patch)

Displays detailed code changes (diff).

git log -p
Print Patch or Diff Information

Added code is shown in green with +, and removed code is shown in red with -.

5. Show Specific Commit

Displays detailed information about a particular commit.

git show <commit-id>
git show b1efd742499b00eef970feeef84dc64f301db61f
Print Specific Commit In Detail

Specific commit provides diff information in detail.

6. Show Specific Commit Stats

Shows only statistics for a specific commit.

git show --stat <commit-id>
git show --stat b1efd742499b00eef970feeef84dc64f301db61f
Show/Print Specific Commit Stats

7. Group Commits by Author

Lists commits grouped by author.

git shortlog
Group Commits By Author

8. Show Author Commit Count

Displays number of commits per author.

git shortlog -s
Show Author Commit Numbers

9. Sort Authors by Commit Count

Sorts authors based on number of commits.

git shortlog -n -s
Sort Authors By Commit Numbers

10. Pretty Print Logs

Customizes log output format.

git log --pretty="%cn committed %h on %cd"
Pretty Print

11. Filter by Author

Shows commits by a specific author.

git log --author="author_name"
git log --author="dmiller"
Filter by Author

12. Limit Number of Commits

Displays a specific number of recent commits.

git log -5 --oneline
Filter by Number

13. Show Only Merge Commits

Displays only merge commits.

git log --merges

14. Exclude Merge Commits

Displays commits excluding merge commits.

git log --no-merges
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