Sweep

Sweep turns GitHub Issues into pull requests autonomously. The concept is simple: describe what you want done in an issue, assign it to the Sweep bot, and come back to a PR. It's designed for the long tail of engineering work that always gets deprioritized — bug fixes, small features, tests, refactors, documentation.

How Sweep Works

1. File a GitHub Issue Write a description of what needs to be done: "Fix the null pointer exception in the payment processing module" or "Add input validation to the user registration endpoint" or "Write unit tests for the auth service."

2. Assign to Sweep Add the sweep label to the issue or assign it to the Sweep bot. Sweep receives a webhook notification and starts working.

3. Sweep Plans the Changes Sweep reads your codebase to understand the context. It:

• Identifies which files are relevant to the task
• Reads the existing code and tests
• Plans what changes are needed
• Considers edge cases and existing patterns in your codebase

4. Code is Written Sweep implements the changes across the relevant files — following your existing code style, conventions, and patterns.

5. PR Opened for Review Sweep opens a pull request with:

• The code changes
• A description explaining what was changed and why
• Notes on any design decisions or tradeoffs

You review, request changes if needed, and merge.

What Sweep Does Well

• Bug fixes with clear reproduction steps
• Small feature additions (new API endpoints, UI components)
• Test coverage additions for existing code
• Documentation updates
• Code refactoring following a defined pattern
• Dependency updates with migration

Limitations

Sweep works best on well-defined, bounded tasks. Large architectural changes or tasks requiring deep product judgment are better handled by human engineers. The more context in the issue, the better the output.

Setup

Install the Sweep GitHub app, configure it in your repo, and start filing issues. Sweep works with any language or framework — it reads and understands your existing code.

Pricing

Free tier for open source and public repos. Pro plans for private repos start around $19/month. Team and enterprise plans available.