gh-issue-bulk-create

A GitHub CLI extension to create multiple GitHub issues in bulk.

Prerequisites

The extension requires the gh CLI to be installed and in the PATH. The extension also requires the user to have authenticated via gh auth.

Installation

This project is a GitHub CLI extension. After installing the gh CLI, from a command-line run:

gh extension install ntsk/gh-issue-bulk-create

Usage

This extension uses a template markdown file and a CSV file containing data to create multiple GitHub issues in bulk.

gh issue-bulk-create --template <template_file> --csv <csv_file> [--repo <owner/repo>] [--dry-run]

Options

• --template: Path to the template markdown file (required)
• --csv: Path to the CSV file containing data (required)
• --repo: Target repository in the format of owner/repo (default: current repository)
• --dry-run: Only show the content of issues without creating them

Template File

The template file follows the GitHub Issue template format with front matter metadata at the beginning of the file:

---
title: "{{title}}"
labels: "{{label1}}, {{label2}}"
assignees: "{{assignee}}"
---

## Description
{{description}}

## Steps to Reproduce
{{steps}}

You can use mustache syntax ({{variable_name}}) in the template to embed data from the CSV file.

CSV File

The CSV file must contain a header row with column names that match the variable names used in the template. The first line is the header row, and each subsequent line will be used to create a separate issue.

title,label1,label2,assignee,description,steps
Login page error,bug,frontend,username,Error appears when clicking login button,Click login button
Search not working,bug,backend,username,"Results don't appear when searching,Enter ""test"" in search box and click search"

CSV Requirements

• The file must be in a standard comma-separated values (CSV) format following RFC 4180 specifications
• Headers are required and must be in the first row of the CSV file
• Each header (column name) must not be empty and should match variables used in the template
• Fields containing commas, newlines, or double quotes must be enclosed in double quotes
• Double quotes within a quoted field must be escaped by doubling them (e.g., " becomes "")
• Example of properly formatted CSV with special characters:

  title,description
  "Title with, comma","Description with ""quotes"""
  "Line breaks
  in text","Another field"
  

Warning Behaviors

• If there are CSV headers that aren't used in the template: A warning is displayed but the process continues
• If there are template variables that don't have corresponding CSV headers: A warning is displayed and you'll be prompted to confirm whether to continue. If you continue, those missing variables will be left empty in the generated issues

Example

You can try it with the sample files included in the repository:

# From inside a git repository directory
gh issue-bulk-create --template sample-template.md --csv sample-data.csv --dry-run

# Or specify a different repository
gh issue-bulk-create --template sample-template.md --csv sample-data.csv --repo owner/repo-name