Where did 'x commits' go when looking at a Release?

[syardumi]

Discussion Type

Question

Discussion Content

When I clicked on a Release, I used to see how far behind it was ('X commits') on its branch, and I used it quite often. That link was clickable to then see the diff between the branch HEAD and the Release. Where did that link go?

[Abhi999k]

That helpful link is still there, but GitHub hides it under certain conditions.

If you do not see the text X commits to [branch] since this release, it is usually due to one of the following reasons:

1. The Target Branch has Changed or is Missing

When a release is created, it is bound to a specific target branch (like main or dev). If that branch was renamed, deleted, or if the release was created directly from a detached tag/commit hash instead of a live tracking branch, GitHub loses the reference point and removes the "X commits" indicator completely.

2. GitHub UI Redesign Layout

GitHub updated the layout of individual Release pages. Make sure you are not just looking at the main /releases overview feed. You must click directly on the Release Title to enter its dedicated page. The commit indicator should appear at the very top, right below the release header.

---

How to Manually View the Diff (Workaround)

If the link is hidden but you still want to see the exact diff between the Release and your current branch HEAD, you can force GitHub's comparison tool via the URL.

Change your browser's address bar to this format:

https://github.com

• Example: https://github.com
• Important: Put the older release tag first and the current branch second so the diff accurately shows what has been added since that release.

[shaikh-samiha]

I noticed the same behavior recently. One thing that may help narrow it down is whether the release was created from a tag that still belongs to the target branch's history.

In repositories where the tag is still reachable from the branch HEAD (for example main), I can usually still get the comparison view directly with a URL like:

https://github.com/
//compare/...

For example:

octocat/Hello-World@v1.0.0...main

If that URL works for the affected release, it suggests the underlying comparison still exists and the missing "X commits since this release" indicator may be a UI or context issue rather than the diff itself being unavailable.

Could you share a public repository/release where the link disappeared? That would make it easier to verify whether this is a recent GitHub UI change or something specific to how that release/tag was created.

[AhmadHassan-BTed]

Yes : (
this isn't some weird branch config issue on your end. GitHub straight up removed that "X commits" link in a recent UI update. A ton of people are complaining about it because it completely broke that workflow.

Still, If you don't wanna manually type out those /compare/ URLs every single time, here is the easiest UI workaround left:

1. Go to the Pull requests tab.
2. Hit the green New pull request button.
3. Click the compare dropdown, swap to the Tags tab, and just pick your release tag.

It'll spit out the exact same diff and commit list that the old link used to give you.
Hope they bring the real button back soon : (

[shawnwall]

i'd love to know why in the world this was removed