TL;DR – git log --grep="" searches commit messages.

git grep $(git rev-list --all) searches the code itself.

Add filters (--author, --since, -- path/) or context flags (-p, -S, -G) to zero‑in fast.

Modern repositories can hide tens of thousands of commits. Manually scrolling—or memorising hash IDs—wastes time you could spend shipping code.

Below is a toolkit of six repeatable search patterns that work in any project, whether it’s a fresh micro‑service, a sprawling monorepo, or a decade‑old SVN‑convert.

Why Bother Searching Your Git History?

  • Trace when a bug‑causing string first appeared.
  • Audit new licenses (e.g. "MIT").
  • Track feature toggles or API keys before release.

1  Search Commit Messages Only 

# Case‑sensitive
git log --grep="facebook"

# Case‑insensitive + pretty output
git log --all --grep="facebook" -i --pretty="%h %ad | %s" --date=short

Tip: Combine multiple patterns with --grep and --invert-grep.

  Search Code Changes (Pickaxe) 

# Show commits that add or remove the string
git log -S"facebook"

# Regex version (‑G) – useful for variable names
git log -G"facebook_[0-9]+" -p

-S compares string counts between parent/child patches; -G runs a regex diff.

Once you've squashed the fix, branch, squash, and fork correctly before opening a pull request.

# Every revision, but only for *.js files
git grep "facebook" $(git rev-list --all) -- '*.js'

Add -n (line numbers) or -I (skip binaries) for speed.

Narrow the Search 

# Flag           Purpose                     Example
--author         limit by committer          --author="[email protected]"
--since          date lower bound            --since="2024-01-01"
--until          date upper bound            --until="2024-12-31"
-- path/         specific directory          -- src/cli/
-i               case‑insensitive            -i

Combine freely:

git log --grep="facebook" --author=alice --since="2 weeks ago" -- src/

Quick One‑Liner Cheatsheet 

# Search messages
alias glg='git log --all --grep'

# Pickaxe search w/ patch
alias gls='git log -S -p'

Save to ~/.gitconfig under [alias] for muscle memory.

And when you’re ready to ship, see our guide on automating your deploy for zero‑downtime releases.

Visual Alternatives

gitk --all --grep – lightweight GUI.
VS Code → Source Control panel → Search Commits extension.
GitHub → repository → Insights → Community → Commits and filter.
Next up → branch, squash, and fork correctly • automate your deploy.

Common Pitfalls

Binary files – add -I (capital‑i) to skip.
Submodules – run in each submodule or use --recurse-submodules (Git 2.13+).
Large repos – prepend LC_ALL=C to speed regex; or restrict with -- path/.

That’s It—Happy Hunting

Spotted something outdated or have a faster trick? Open a PR—or better, join Gun.io and build with engineers who live in their terminal.