Automatically skip reviews for pull requests from specific users. Add Git platform usernames to your configuration and CodeRabbit will silently skip reviews for those users without posting comments.

Exclude dependency bots and automated updates from reviews
ignore_usernames: ["dependabot[bot]", "renovate[bot]"]

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How it works

1

Check PR author

CodeRabbit checks if the PR author’s username matches any in your ignore_usernames list
2

Skip if matched

If the username matches exactly (case-sensitive), the review is skipped silently
3

Continue if not matched

If no match, CodeRabbit continues with normal review processing, including label checks
4

Manual override available

Use @coderabbitai review to force a review even for ignored users

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Configuration

Add the ignore_usernames array to your .coderabbit.yaml file: 
reviews:
  auto_review:
    ignore_usernames: [
      "dependabot[bot]",
      "renovate[bot]", 
      "github-actions[bot]",
      "ci-automation"
    ]
Username matching is exact and case-sensitive. Verify the exact username format on your Git platform. For example, GitHub bots use [bot] suffix.
ConfigurationPR AuthorReview StatusComment Posted
[] (empty)Any user✅ ReviewedYes (if applicable)
["bot-user"]bot-user❌ SkippedNo (silent skip)
["bot-user"]other-user✅ ReviewedYes (if applicable)
["user1", "user2"]user1❌ SkippedNo (silent skip)
["User1"]user1✅ ReviewedYes (case mismatch)

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Integration with other features

Username-based skipping takes precedence over other controls:
Processing order: Username check → Label check → Other review rulesIf a user is in ignore_usernames, their PR is skipped regardless of labels or other settings.

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Migration from labels only

# Before: Using only labels
reviews:
  auto_review:
    labels: ["!wip", "!draft"]

# After: Adding username filtering
reviews:
  auto_review:
    labels: ["!wip", "!draft"]
    ignore_usernames: [
      "dependabot[bot]",
      "renovate[bot]"
    ]

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Manual review override

Even for ignored users, you can trigger reviews manually: 
@coderabbitai review
This command overrides the username ignore setting for that specific PR.

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Best practices

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Limitations

  • No wildcard support: Cannot use patterns like *[bot] or dependabot*
  • No regex support: Must specify exact usernames
  • Case-sensitive matching: User1 and user1 are treated as different users
  • Platform-specific formats: Username formats vary between Git platforms
  • No team/group support: Cannot ignore entire teams or organizations

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Troubleshooting

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PR still being reviewed

Problem: A user in your ignore list is still getting reviews. Solutions:
  1. Check exact username: Copy the username directly from the PR author field
  2. Verify case matching: Ensure capitalization matches exactly
  3. Check configuration syntax: Confirm YAML array format is correct
  4. Validate configuration deployment: Ensure .coderabbit.yaml changes are committed

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Want to review an ignored user’s PR

Problem: Need to review a PR from someone on your ignore list. Solutions:
  1. Use manual review: Comment @coderabbitai review on the PR
  2. Temporary removal: Remove username from ignore list, commit, then re-add
  3. Use labels: For occasional reviews, consider label-based controls instead

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Commit status

When a PR is skipped due to username filtering:
  • Status message: “Review skipped: Author is ignored by configuration”
  • No summary comment: The skip is silent to avoid noise
  • Logged for debugging: The skip reason is recorded for troubleshooting