Contributing to Metabase

Learn how to contribute to the Metabase open source project

Metabase is an open-source project, and we welcome contributions from the community. Whether you’re fixing bugs, adding features, improving documentation, or building drivers, your contributions help make Metabase better for everyone.

Ways to contribute

There are many ways to contribute to Metabase:

• Report bugs - If you find a bug, please report it on our GitHub issues
• Fix bugs - Pick an issue and submit a pull request
• Add features - Implement new functionality that benefits the community
• Improve documentation - Help make our docs clearer and more comprehensive
• Build drivers - Create drivers for databases not yet supported
• Answer questions - Help other users in our Discourse community

Before you start

Before diving into code, it’s helpful to:

1. Check existing issues - Someone may already be working on what you have in mind
2. Discuss major changes - For significant features, open an issue first to discuss your approach
3. Read the code review guidelines - Understand our review process and expectations

For security vulnerabilities, please see our Security Policy for responsible disclosure guidelines.

Getting started

1. Set up your development environment

   Follow our development environment guide to get Metabase running locally.

2. Find an issue to work on

   Browse the issues on GitHub and look for issues labeled good first issue or help wanted.

3. Fork and clone the repository

   Fork the Metabase repository and clone it to your local machine.

   git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/metabase.git
   cd metabase
   
4. Create a branch for your work

   Create a descriptive branch name for your changes:

   git checkout -b fix-query-builder-bug
   
5. Make your changes

   Write your code, following our coding conventions and style guides. Make sure to:

   • Write tests for your changes
   • Update documentation if needed
   • Follow the existing code style
6. Test your changes

   Run tests locally to ensure everything works:

   # Frontend tests
   bun run test-unit
   
   # Backend tests
   clojure -X:dev:test
   
7. Submit a pull request

   Push your changes and create a pull request on GitHub. Include:

   • A clear description of the changes
   • Reference to any related issues
   • Screenshots or videos if applicable

Code review process

All pull requests go through a code review process:

Goals of code review

• Catch bugs - Identify potential issues before they reach production
• Ensure quality - Maintain high code quality standards
• Share knowledge - Learn from each other’s approaches
• Consider implications - Think about how changes affect the broader codebase

Review requirements

Every PR of significant complexity needs at least one approval from another engineer on the team before merging.

Review feedback

Reviewers use these symbols to indicate their feedback:

• 👍 (+1) - Approved, ready to merge
• 👎 (-1) - Strong veto, must be resolved before merging
• 🤷 (±0) - Minor concerns, but won’t block if others approve

A PR with a 👎 (-1) cannot be merged until the issues are resolved. Use this sparingly and only for critical issues like missing tests, security concerns, or breaking changes.

Timing expectations

• High priority PRs - Should be reviewed as soon as possible
• Milestone PRs - Can wait a few days
• Unreviewed PRs - It’s the PR author’s responsibility to follow up and request reviews

Best practices for contributors

Writing good commit messages

• Use present tense (“Add feature” not “Added feature”)
• Keep the first line under 72 characters
• Be descriptive about what changed and why
• Reference issue numbers when applicable

Making reviewers’ lives easier

• Keep PRs focused - One feature or fix per PR
• Add context - Explain your approach in the PR description
• Comment on complex code - Guide reviewers through tricky sections
• Use clear naming - Make your code self-documenting

Getting better reviews

Tips for getting thorough reviews

• Tag specific reviewers who have expertise in the area
• Use GitHub’s Notes and Warnings to highlight important information
• Test your changes locally and share evidence in the PR
• Be responsive to feedback and questions

Community

Join our community channels:

• Discourse - Ask questions and discuss features
• GitHub Discussions - Long-form discussions
• Twitter - Follow for updates

License

By contributing to Metabase, you agree that your contributions will be licensed under the same license as the project. Metabase contains both AGPL (open source) and commercially licensed code. See LICENSE.txt for details.

Questions?

If you have questions about contributing, feel free to ask in our Discourse community or open a discussion on GitHub.