# Commitizen — Conventional Commits Made Easy

> Commitizen is a CLI tool that guides developers through writing standardized commit messages following the Conventional Commits specification, enabling automated changelogs and semantic versioning.

## Install

Save the content below to `.claude/skills/` or append to your `CLAUDE.md`:

# Commitizen — Conventional Commits Made Easy

## Quick Use
```bash
# Install globally
npm install -g commitizen cz-conventional-changelog

# Initialize in your project
commitizen init cz-conventional-changelog --save-dev --save-exact

# Use instead of git commit
git add . && git cz
```

## Introduction
Commitizen provides an interactive prompt that walks developers through composing commit messages that follow a consistent format. By enforcing Conventional Commits, teams can automate changelog generation, semantic versioning, and release workflows without manual bookkeeping.

## What Commitizen Does
- Replaces `git commit` with an interactive prompt that structures messages by type, scope, and description
- Enforces Conventional Commits format (feat, fix, chore, docs, etc.) across a team
- Integrates with adapters like cz-conventional-changelog for customizable commit templates
- Works alongside commitlint to reject non-conforming commits at the hook level
- Enables automated CHANGELOG generation and version bumping through tools like standard-version or semantic-release

## Architecture Overview
Commitizen is a Node.js CLI that wraps the git commit step. When invoked via `git cz` or `cz`, it loads an adapter module that defines the prompt flow and message format. The adapter collects answers through Inquirer.js prompts, assembles a formatted commit message string, and passes it to `git commit -m`. The tool itself never touches the repository history; it only generates the message.

## Self-Hosting & Configuration
- Install globally via npm or as a project devDependency alongside an adapter
- Add `"config": {"commitizen": {"path": "cz-conventional-changelog"}}` to package.json
- Combine with a `prepare-commit-msg` or `commit-msg` git hook via Husky for enforcement
- Custom adapters can define project-specific commit types, scopes, and validation rules
- Works in CI by reading commit messages produced during development, not by running interactively

## Key Features
- Interactive CLI prompt eliminates guesswork about commit message format
- Pluggable adapter system supports Conventional Commits, Jira-linked formats, and custom schemas
- Seamless integration with Husky, commitlint, and semantic-release for a full automation pipeline
- Language-agnostic: works on any project that uses git, regardless of tech stack
- Zero runtime overhead since it only runs at commit time

## Comparison with Similar Tools
- **commitlint** — validates commit messages but does not provide an interactive prompt
- **semantic-release** — automates releases based on commit messages but does not help write them
- **standard-version** — generates changelogs from conventional commits but lacks the prompt workflow
- **git-cz** — lighter alternative prompt tool, fewer adapter options
- **Changesets** — version and changelog management for monorepos with a different commit philosophy

## FAQ
**Q: Can I use Commitizen without installing it globally?**
A: Yes. Install it as a devDependency and invoke it via npx cz or add a script in package.json.

**Q: Does Commitizen work with monorepos?**
A: Yes. Scoped commits (e.g., feat(api): ...) let you track changes per package. Pair with Lerna or Changesets for per-package versioning.

**Q: How do I enforce Commitizen usage across a team?**
A: Add a commit-msg hook via Husky that runs commitlint. Developers who forget to use `git cz` will have non-conforming messages rejected.

**Q: Is the Conventional Commits format required?**
A: No. Commitizen supports pluggable adapters, so you can define any commit message schema your team prefers.

## Sources
- https://github.com/commitizen/cz-cli
- https://commitizen-tools.github.io/commitizen/

---
Source: https://tokrepo.com/en/workflows/commitizen-conventional-commits-made-easy-09e06bcf
Author: Script Depot