Why Every Project Needs a project-checklist.md File

In modern software development, things move fast — and sometimes they break even faster. Between new features, refactors, deployments, and shifting teams, it’s easy to forget critical tasks.

That’s where the project-checklist.md comes in.

What is project-checklist.md?

It’s a simple Markdown file in your repo that ensures every feature or update meets essential engineering standards before it’s considered “done.”

Think of it as your team’s engineering quality gateway.

View the full checklist:
GitHub Gist: project-checklist.md

What’s Included?

The checklist covers a wide scope, including:

Code Quality & Standards

Build & Deployment

Testing

Documentation

Data & Database

Security & Compliance

Other Essentials

When To Use It

Every time you:

Just open project-checklist.md, scan through, and ensure you’ve covered the bases.

It’s like unit testing for your process.

Bonus Tip

Embed the checklist in your:

It acts as a safety net, reducing bugs, tech debt, and confusion during handoffs.

Final Thoughts

“Checklists turn intentions into results.”
– Atul Gawande, The Checklist Manifesto

In teams big or small, the best engineers are those who leave nothing to chance — and project-checklist.md helps make that a team-wide habit.

Ready to add it to your repo?
Grab the checklist here and customize it to fit your stack.

Happy shipping 🚀