Git Flow Diagram Template

What this template is for

A Git Flow diagram makes your branching strategy visible and shareable — useful when onboarding new engineers, documenting a release process, or debating whether to adopt trunk-based development instead. This template follows the standard Git Flow model: a stable main branch, a develop integration branch, short-lived feature branches, release preparation branches, and emergency hotfix branches. Each branch is color-coded so readers can follow the flow without explanation. Use it in architecture reviews, team wikis, or pull request descriptions to communicate intent without writing a wall of text.

When to use this template

• Onboard new engineers by showing how feature work flows from branch creation to production merge.
• Document your team's release process before handing off responsibilities.
• Compare Git Flow against trunk-based development in an architecture decision record.
• Explain hotfix procedures to an on-call engineer who has never seen the codebase.
• Present branching conventions to a client or stakeholder who needs to understand deployment risk.
• Audit whether your current branch names and merge rules actually match your stated Git Flow.

How to use it

1. 1Identify which branches your team uses — if you skip release branches, remove them from the diagram.
2. 2Place commit circles on each branch at key events: initial commit, feature merge, release cut, hotfix.
3. 3Draw branch-off lines (dashed) from the parent branch to the child branch start point.
4. 4Draw merge lines (solid) pointing back to the target branch and label version tags where relevant.
5. 5Color-code each branch type so readers can identify the flow at a glance.
6. 6Add a short legend or branch naming convention note if the diagram will be read outside your team.

Quick example