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Merge

Git Basics

In one line

Merging combines the changes from one branch into another, uniting two lines of development.

In simple words

Merging brings the commits from one branch into another. When your feature is finished, you switch to main and run git merge feature/login to fold the feature's changes into the main line. Git tries to combine the histories automatically.

If both branches changed the same lines, Git cannot decide which version wins and reports a merge conflict. You must open the conflicted files, choose the correct version, and commit the resolution. Good communication and small, frequent merges reduce conflicts.

An alternative to merging is rebasing, which replays your commits on top of the target branch for a linear history. Merging preserves the branch structure with a merge commit; rebasing rewrites history. Both are valid — choose based on your team's convention.

Example

bash
# Switch to the target branch
git checkout main

# Merge the feature branch into main
git merge feature/login

# If there are conflicts, Git pauses:
# 1. Open the conflicted files and resolve them
# 2. Stage the resolved files
git add .
# 3. Complete the merge
git commit

git merge combines the feature branch into main. If conflicts occur, resolve them, stage, and commit.

Common confusions

  • Confused with: rebase

    The difference: A merge combines two branches and creates a merge commit, preserving branch history. A rebase replays your commits on top of another branch, producing a linear history but rewriting commit hashes. Merge is safer for shared branches; rebase gives cleaner history.

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