# Changelog Generator > Automatically creates or updates changelogs from git commits by analyzing commit history, categorizing changes and transforming technical commits into clear, customer-friendly release notes. Turns hours of manual changelog writing into minutes of automated generation. Use when this capability is needed. - Skill: `tomevault-io/changelog-generator-16` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tomevault-io/changelog-generator-16` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tomevault-io/changelog-generator-16/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: tomevault-io (https://skillmd.com/u/tomevault-io) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/tomevault-io/changelog-generator-16 --- # Changelog Generator This skill transforms technical git commits into polished, user-friendly changelogs that your customers and users will actually understand and appreciate. ## When to Use This Skill - Preparing release notes for a new version - Creating weekly or monthly product update summaries - Documenting changes for customers - Writing changelog entries for app store submissions - Generating update notifications - Creating internal release documentation - Maintaining a public changelog/product updates page ## What This Skill Does 1. **Scans Git History**: Analyzes commits from a specific time period or between versions 2. **Categorizes Changes**: Groups commits into logical categories (features, improvements, bug fixes, breaking changes, security) 3. **Translates Technical → User-Friendly**: Converts developer commits into customer language 4. **Formats Professionally**: Creates clean, structured changelog entries 5. **Filters Noise**: Excludes internal (refactoring, tests, etc.) and documentation-only commits by default 6. **Follows Best Practices**: Applies changelog guidelines and your brand voice ## Default Filtering Policy (Product-Only) When generating changelogs, use **strict product relevance** by default. Include only changes that directly affect shipped behavior, user experience, API behavior, reliability, performance, security, or supported runtime/platform versions. Exclude by default: - Documentation-only changes (`docs:`, README, ADRs, guides, diagrams, CODE_OF_CONDUCT, AGENTS.md) - AI-agent and skill metadata/workflow changes (`.agents/`, `SKILL.md`, prompt/instruction tuning) - Internal housekeeping with no user impact (formatting, comment-only edits, rename-only refactors) - Test-only changes unless they fix a production defect or prevent a real regression - CI/CD, pipeline, and developer tooling changes unless they impact released product behavior - Changelog-only updates (`chore(changelog)`, `docs(changelog)`) Borderline rule: - If uncertain whether a commit is user-visible, **exclude it** and add a short note in a separate "Excluded/Internal" review list for human confirmation. ## Commit Triage Workflow 1. Collect commits in range (between tags, dates, or `last release..HEAD`). 2. Drop merge commits and duplicate back-merges. 3. Classify each commit as `product`, `internal`, or `docs-only`. 4. Only summarize `product` commits in CHANGELOG sections. 5. Keep language user-facing; avoid internal filenames unless needed for clarity. ## How to Use ### Basic Usage From your project repository: ``` Update the changelog with recent commits ``` ``` Create a changelog from commits since last release ``` ``` Generate changelog for all commits from the past week ``` ``` Create release notes for version 2.5.0 ``` ### With Specific Date Range ``` Create a changelog for all commits between March 1 and March 15 ``` ### With Custom Guidelines ``` Create a changelog for commits since v2.4.0, using the changelog guidelines from [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/) ``` ## Example **User**: "Create a changelog for commits from the past 7 days" **Output**: ```markdown # Updates - Week of March 10, 2024 ## ✨ New Features - **Team Workspaces**: Create separate workspaces for different projects. Invite team members and keep everything organized. - **Keyboard Shortcuts**: Press ? to see all available shortcuts. Navigate faster without touching your mouse. ## 🔧 Improvements - **Faster Sync**: Files now sync 2x faster across devices - **Better Search**: Search now includes file contents, not just titles ## 🐛 Fixes - Fixed issue where large images wouldn't upload - Resolved timezone confusion in scheduled posts - Corrected notification badge count ``` **Inspired by:** Manik Aggarwal's use case from Lenny's Newsletter ## Tips - Run from your git repository root - Use an existing CHANGELOG.md as a basis and add new entries to it - Specify date ranges for focused changelogs - Use [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/) for consistent formatting - Review and adjust the generated changelog before publishing - Save output directly to CHANGELOG.md in the repo root. --- > Converted and distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io/claim/bridgingit-gmbh) — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.