Hacktoberfest
A practical guide to Hacktoberfest: how to participate, pick issues, and get your first PR merged.
Hacktoberfest is an annual event that helps developers make their first open source contributions (or keep the streak going). The goal is simple: ship real pull requests, learn the workflow, and build confidence.
How Hacktoberfest Works #
- You contribute to public repositories on GitHub (and sometimes other platforms).
- Maintainers review and merge your pull requests.
- You need a certain number of accepted PRs to complete the challenge for the year.
How to Find Good Issues (Without Wasting Days) #
- Start with “good first issue” and “help wanted” labels.
- Prefer repos with recent activity (commits, PR reviews, issues).
- Read the contributing guide before you code.
- Avoid oversized issues on Day 1—aim for quick wins.
A Safe First PR Workflow #
- Fork → create a branch → make a small change.
- Run tests/linters locally if provided.
- Open PR with a clear description and screenshots/logs when relevant.
- Respond to review comments quickly and politely.
Common Mistakes #
- Picking abandoned repos (no maintainers responding)
- Opening PRs without context (no issue link, no reproduction)
- Submitting large refactors as a first contribution