/attach-review-to-pr

name: attach-review-to-pr
description: Add line-specific review comments to pull requests using GitHub CLI API

How to Attach Line-Specific Review Comments to Pull Requests

This guide explains how to add line-specific review comments to pull requests using the GitHub CLI (`gh`) API or `mcp__github_inline_comment__create_inline_comment` if it not available, similar to how the GitHub UI allows commenting on specific lines of code.

Preferred Approach: Using MCP GitHub Tools

**If available**, use the `mcp__github_inline_comment__create_inline_comment` MCP tool for posting line-specific inline comments on pull requests. This approach provides better integration with GitHub's UI and is the recommended method.

**Fallback**: If the MCP tool is not available, use the GitHub CLI (`gh`) API methods described below:

• For single comments: Use the `/comments` endpoint (see [Adding a Single Line-Specific Comment](#adding-a-single-line-specific-comment))
• For multiple comments: Use the `/reviews` endpoint (see [Adding Multiple Line-Specific Comments Together](#adding-multiple-line-specific-comments-together))

Overview

While `gh pr review` provides basic review functionality (approve, request changes, general comments), it **does not support line-specific comments directly**. To add comments on specific lines of code, you must use the lower-level `gh api` command to call GitHub's REST API directly.

Prerequisites

1. GitHub CLI installed and authenticated:

   gh auth status

2. Access to the repository and pull request you want to review

Understanding GitHub's Review Comment System

GitHub has two types of PR comments:

1. **Issue Comments** - General comments on the PR conversation 2. **Review Comments** - Line-specific comments on code changes

Review comments can be added in two ways:

• **Single comment** - Using the `/pulls/{pr}/comments` endpoint
• **Review with multiple comments** - Using the `/pulls/{pr}/reviews` endpoint

Adding a Single Line-Specific Comment

Basic Syntax

gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/{pr_number}/comments \
  -f body='Your comment text here' \
  -f commit_id='<commit-sha>' \
  -f path='path/to/file.js' \
  -F line=42 \
  -f side='RIGHT'

Parameters Explained

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description | |-----------|------|----------|-------------| | `body` | string | Yes | The text of the review comment (supports Markdown) | | `commit_id` | string | Yes | The SHA of the commit to comment on | | `path` | string | Yes | Relative path to the file being commented on | | `line` | integer | Yes | The line number in the diff (use `-F` for integers) | | `side` | string | Yes | `RIGHT` for new/modified lines, `LEFT` for deleted lines | | `start_line` | integer | No | For multi-line comments, the starting line | | `start_side` | string | No | For multi-line comments, the starting side |

Parameter Flags

• `-f` (--field) - For string values
• `-F` (--field) - For integer values (note the capital F)

Complete Example

# First, get the latest commit SHA for the PR
gh api repos/NeoLabHQ/learning-platform-app/pulls/4 --jq '.head.sha'

# Then add your comment
gh api repos/NeoLabHQ/learning-platform-app/pulls/4/comments \
  -f body='Consider adding error handling here. Should we confirm the lesson was successfully marked as completed before navigating away?' \
  -f commit_id='e152d0dd6cf498467eadbeb638bf05abe11c64d4' \
  -f path='src/components/LessonNavigationButtons.tsx' \
  -F line=26 \
  -f side='RIGHT'

Understanding Line Numbers

The `line` parameter refers to the **position in the diff**, not the absolute line number in the file:

• For **new files**: Line numbers match the file's line numbers
• For **modified files**: Use the line number as it appears in the "Files changed" tab
• For **multi-line comments**: Use `start_line` and `line` to specify the range

Response

On success, returns a JSON object with comment details:

{
  "id": 2532291222,
  "pull_request_review_id": 3470545909,
  "path": "src/components/LessonNavigationButtons.tsx",
  "line": 26,
  "body": "Consider adding error handling here...",
  "html_url": "https://github.com/NeoLabHQ/learning-platform-app/pull/4#discussion_r2532291222",
  "created_at": "2025-11-16T22:40:46Z"
}

Adding Multiple Line-Specific Comments Together

To add multiple comments across different files in a single review, use the `/reviews` endpoint with JSON input.

Why Use Reviews for Multiple Comments?

• **Atomic operation** - All comments are added together
• **Single notification** - Doesn't spam with multiple notifications
• **Better UX** - Appears as one cohesive review
• **Same mechanism as GitHub UI** - "Start a review" → "Finish review"

Basic Syntax

cat <<'EOF' | gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/pulls/{pr_number}/reviews --input -
{
  "event": "COMMENT",
  "body": "Overall review summary (optional)",
  "comments": [
    {
      "path": "file1.tsx",
      "body": "Comment on file 1",
      "side": "RIGHT",
      "line": 15
    },
    {
      "path": "file2.tsx",
      "body": "Comment on file 2",
      "side": "RIGHT",
      "line": 30
    }
  ]
}
EOF

Review Event Types

| Event | Description | When to Use | |-------|-------------|-------------| | `COMMENT` | General review comment | Just leaving feedback without approval | | `APPROVE` | Approve the PR | Changes look good, ready to merge | | `REQUEST_CHANGES` | Request changes | Issues that must be fixed before merge |

Complete Example

cat <<'EOF' | gh api repos/NeoLabHQ/learning-platform-app/pulls/4/reviews --input -
{
  "event": "COMMENT",
  "body": "Testing multiple line-specific comments via gh api",
  "comments": [
    {
      "path": "src/components/CourseCard.tsx",
      "body": "Test comment generated by Claude",
      "side": "RIGHT",
      "line": 15
    },
    {
      "path": "src/components/CourseProgressWidget.tsx",
      "