Git Commit Amend
Did you make a spelling mistake in your last commit message? Did you forget to add a file? You do not need a new commit for it. The git commit --amend command replaces the last commit with a new and corrected one.
Change the last commit message
$ git log –oneline
f5ab70f (HEAD -> main) Add frist post
$ git commit –amend -m "Add first post"
[main d3c22eb] Add first post
Date: Sat Jan 10 10:42:00 2026 +0000
1 file changed, 1 insertion(+)
create mode 100644 post1.txt
$ git log –oneline
d3c22eb (HEAD -> main) Add first post
Look at the hash. It is different after the amend, because it is a new commit. The old commit is not in the history anymore.
Add a forgotten file to the last commit
$ echo "Hello again" > post2.txt
$ echo "Hello, world" > post1.txt
$ git add post1.txt post2.txt
$ git commit –amend –no-edit
[main 79349a3] Add first post
Date: Sat Jan 10 10:42:00 2026 +0000
2 files changed, 2 insertions(+)
create mode 100644 post1.txt
create mode 100644 post2.txt
$ git show –stat –oneline
79349a3 (HEAD -> main) Add first post
post1.txt | 1 +
post2.txt | 1 +
2 files changed, 2 insertions(+)
The option --no-edit keeps the old message. Now one commit has both files.
Change only the author or date
git commit --amend --reset-author --no-editImportant warning
Amend does not edit the commit, it creates a new commit and drops the old one. So never amend a commit which you already pushed and others may have taken. Their history will not match yours. If you must, you need a force push, which we discuss in Git Push.
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Commit is only on your computer | You can amend freely |
| Commit is pushed, but only you use that branch | Amend and force push with --force-with-lease |
| Commit is pushed on a shared branch | Do not amend. Make a new commit, or use git revert |
| Exercises & Assignments |
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