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Contributing

Thanks for taking the time to contribute! 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♂️ Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference. This guide will help you get started with contributing to ScanAPI.

Contents

1. Create a GitHub Account

Make sure you have an account on GitHub. If you don’t have one yet, you can create it here: https://github.com/join

2. Fork the repository

Before you start, you need to create your own copy of the project.

This will create a new repository in your GitHub account, which is a copy of the original ScanAPI project. You’ll be able to freely make changes there and later submit them back to the main project via a pull request.

For more details about how this works, check the GitHub official documentation on forking

3. Set up your environment

At this point, you have the code, but you still need a way to run it, test it, and validate your changes. That’s why this step is necessary.

Running the project allows you to:

  • verify that everything works before you change anything
  • run tests to avoid breaking existing behavior
  • reproduce issues locally
  • validate that your fix or feature actually works

You can do this either locally on your machine or in the cloud. Both options lead to the same result, so choose what fits you best:

Codespaces runs everything in the browser with zero setup, which makes it ideal for quick onboarding. Running locally gives you more control if you already have a development environment configured.

4. Choose a task to work on

Work in ScanAPI is organized through issues. If you’ve never used them before, think of issues as tasks or discussions where work is defined and tracked.

Browse issues here: https://github.com/scanapi/scanapi/issues

If you’re not familiar with how issues work, you can read this quick guide from GitHub: https://docs.github.com/en/issues/tracking-your-work-with-issues/learning-about-issues/quickstart

When choosing an issue:

  • read it carefully and make sure you understand the problem
  • evaluate if it’s something you feel comfortable implementing
  • start with issues labeled good-first-issue if you’re new

If anything is unclear:

  • ask questions directly in the issue
  • confirm your understanding before starting

It’s completely normal to ask questions. It’s better to clarify early than to rework later.

5. Claim the issue

Before you start coding, let others know you're working on the issue.

  • Check if the issue is already assigned
  • If not, comment dibs on the issue

Writing exactly dibs will trigger an automatic assignment via a bot, assigning the issue to you.

This helps avoid duplicated work and keeps contributions organized.

6. Open your first pull request

Once you’ve picked an issue and are ready to start contributing, follow the guide below. It will walk you through the complete workflow, from making changes to opening your pull request: First Pull Request

Final notes

Contributing to open source is not just about code, it’s about learning, collaborating, and improving things step by step. You don’t need to know everything to start. Small contributions like fixing typos, improving documentation, or adding tests are already very valuable.

Ask questions, take ownership of issues, and iterate based on feedback. That’s how meaningful contributions happen.

We also recommend exploring the project Wiki, which contains additional guides and resources to help you throughout the contribution process.

As one of the repositories under the scanapi GitHub organization, this repository follows the ScanAPI Contributing Guideline.

We’re glad you’re here 🚀