GitHub Now Automatically Recognizes Stacked Pull Requests Without Extra Tools

GitHub has quietly rolled out native support for stacked pull requests, allowing developers to break large code changes into chains of smaller, focused PRs that are easier to review. The feature works by having each PR target the branch of the previous PR in the chain rather than the main branch, and GitHub automatically detects this pattern. No special CLI extension or configuration is required — once the PRs are opened with the correct base branches, GitHub displays a stack banner and preview button automatically. The approach addresses a longstanding code review problem where massive diffs with hundreds of changed files are difficult for reviewers to assess thoroughly. Foundational changes sit at the bottom of the stack, while dependent layers such as API routes or frontend code are added on top.
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