name	gh-issue-view
description	View GitHub issue details using gh CLI. Shows issue status, comments, timeline, and metadata. Use when user wants to inspect issue information or check status.
allowed-tools	Bash, Read, Grep
handoffs	[object Object], [object Object], [object Object]

GitHub Issue View Skill

View comprehensive GitHub issue information using the gh CLI.

When to Use

User asks "show me issue #123" or "what's the status of this issue"
User wants to see issue comments and discussion
Before working on an issue, to understand requirements
To check if issue is still open or already resolved
To see who's assigned or what labels are applied

Prerequisites

Verify GitHub CLI is installed and authenticated:

gh --version
gh auth status

Execution Workflow

Step 1: Identify the Issue

If user specifies issue number:

gh issue view 123

If user provides issue URL:

gh issue view https://github.com/owner/repo/issues/123

If searching for issues:

gh issue list --search "login bug"

Step 2: Fetch Issue Details

Get comprehensive JSON data:

gh issue view 123 --json \
  number,title,body,state,\
  author,assignees,labels,\
  milestone,createdAt,updatedAt,closedAt,\
  comments,url

Step 3: Format and Present

Parse and present in human-readable format:

## Issue #123: Fix login button on Safari

**Status**: Open | Closed
**Author**: @username
**Created**: 3 days ago
**Updated**: 2 hours ago
**Closed**: N/A (or timestamp)

**Assignees**: @alice, @bob
**Labels**: `bug` `priority-high` `mobile`
**Milestone**: v2.1

### Description

Users cannot log in when using Safari browser on iOS.
Login button doesn't respond when clicked.

### Comments (3)

**@alice** (2 days ago):
I can reproduce this on iOS 17. Investigating...

**@bob** (1 day ago):
Found the issue - event listener not attached correctly.
Working on a fix.

**@charlie** (2 hours ago):
Fixed in PR #234. Testing now.

🔗 [View on GitHub](https://github.com/owner/repo/issues/123)

Step 4: Show Additional Details (if needed)

View with comments:

gh issue view 123 --comments

View timeline:

gh issue view 123 --json timelineItems \
  | jq -r '.timelineItems[] | "\(.createdAt) - \(.typename): \(.body)"'

Check linked PRs:

gh issue view 123 --json timelineItems \
  | jq -r '.timelineItems[] | select(.typename == "CrossReferencedEvent") | .source.url'

Common Scenarios

Scenario 1: Quick Issue Check

# Simple view
gh issue view 123

# Output:
# Fix login button on Safari #123
# Open • alice opened 3 days ago • 5 comments
#
# Users cannot log in when using Safari browser on iOS...
#
# View this issue on GitHub: https://github.com/...

Scenario 2: Detailed Issue Analysis

# Get full details with comments
gh issue view 123 --comments

# Check who's working on it
gh issue view 123 --json assignees \
  | jq -r '.assignees[] | .login'

# Check labels and priority
gh issue view 123 --json labels \
  | jq -r '.labels[] | .name'

# See when it was created
gh issue view 123 --json createdAt,updatedAt \
  | jq -r '"Created: \(.createdAt)\nUpdated: \(.updatedAt)"'

Scenario 3: List All Open Issues

# List all open issues
gh issue list --state open

# List my issues
gh issue list --assignee "@me"

# List high priority bugs
gh issue list --label "bug,priority-high"

# List issues in milestone
gh issue list --milestone "v2.0"

# Custom columns
gh issue list --json number,title,assignees,labels \
  --template '{{range .}}{{.number}}: {{.title}} [@{{range .assignees}}{{.login}} {{end}}]{{"\n"}}{{end}}'

Scenario 4: Search for Issues

# Search by keyword
gh issue list --search "authentication"

# Search with filters
gh issue list --search "login is:open label:bug"

# Search by author
gh issue list --author "alice"

# Search recently updated
gh issue list --search "updated:>2024-01-01"

Scenario 5: Check Issue Status and Blockers

# Get issue with dependencies
ISSUE_BODY=$(gh issue view 123 --json body --jq '.body')

# Parse blocking issues
echo "$ISSUE_BODY" | grep -E "Blocks #[0-9]+" -o | grep -o "[0-9]*"

# Parse dependencies
echo "$ISSUE_BODY" | grep -E "Depends on #[0-9]+" -o | grep -o "[0-9]*"

# Check if blockers are resolved
for blocker in $(echo "$ISSUE_BODY" | grep -E "Depends on #[0-9]+" -o | grep -o "[0-9]*"); do
  STATUS=$(gh issue view $blocker --json state --jq '.state')
  echo "Issue #$blocker: $STATUS"
done

Scenario 6: View Issue Timeline

# Get full timeline
gh issue view 123 --json timelineItems \
  | jq -r '.timelineItems[] | "\(.createdAt | split("T")[0]) - \(.actor.login // "system"): \(.typename)"'

# Example output:
# 2024-01-01 - alice: IssueComment
# 2024-01-02 - bob: LabeledEvent
# 2024-01-03 - system: CrossReferencedEvent
# 2024-01-04 - alice: AssignedEvent

Scenario 7: Export Issue to File

# Export issue details to markdown
gh issue view 123 > issue-123.md

# Export with comments
gh issue view 123 --comments > issue-123-full.md

# Export JSON for processing
gh issue view 123 --json \
  number,title,body,state,author,assignees,labels,comments,createdAt \
  > issue-123.json

Advanced Queries

Check Issue Age and Activity

# Calculate issue age
CREATED=$(gh issue view 123 --json createdAt --jq '.createdAt')
NOW=$(date -u +%s)
CREATED_TS=$(date -d "$CREATED" +%s 2>/dev/null || date -j -f "%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ" "$CREATED" +%s)
AGE_DAYS=$(( ($NOW - $CREATED_TS) / 86400 ))

echo "Issue is $AGE_DAYS days old"

# Check if stale (no activity in 30 days)
UPDATED=$(gh issue view 123 --json updatedAt --jq '.updatedAt')
UPDATED_TS=$(date -d "$UPDATED" +%s 2>/dev/null || date -j -f "%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ" "$UPDATED" +%s)
STALE_DAYS=$(( ($NOW - $UPDATED_TS) / 86400 ))

if [ $STALE_DAYS -gt 30 ]; then
  echo "⚠️ Issue is stale (no activity for $STALE_DAYS days)"
fi

Find Related Issues

# Find issues with same labels
LABELS=$(gh issue view 123 --json labels --jq '.labels[].name' | paste -sd,)

gh issue list --label "$LABELS" --json number,title \
  | jq -r '.[] | select(.number != 123) | "#\(.number): \(.title)"'

Check Resolution Status

# Check if issue is closed and how
gh issue view 123 --json state,stateReason \
  | jq -r 'if .state == "CLOSED" then "Closed as: \(.stateReason)" else "Still open" end'

# stateReason can be: COMPLETED, NOT_PLANNED, REOPENED

Analyze Comment Activity

# Count comments
COMMENT_COUNT=$(gh issue view 123 --json comments --jq '.comments | length')
echo "Total comments: $COMMENT_COUNT"

# List participants
gh issue view 123 --json comments \
  | jq -r '.comments[].author.login' | sort -u

# Find last comment timestamp
gh issue view 123 --json comments \
  | jq -r '.comments[-1].createdAt // "No comments"'

Issue Metrics Dashboard

# Create issue metrics dashboard
echo "=== Issue Metrics ==="

# Total issues
TOTAL=$(gh issue list --limit 1000 | wc -l)
echo "Total open issues: $TOTAL"

# By label
echo -e "\nBy Label:"
gh issue list --json labels --jq '.[].labels[].name' | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn | head -5

# By assignee
echo -e "\nBy Assignee:"
gh issue list --json assignees --jq '.[].assignees[].login' | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn | head -5

# By milestone
echo -e "\nBy Milestone:"
gh issue list --json milestone --jq '.[].milestone.title' | grep -v null | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn

Formatting Options

JSON Output

# Raw JSON
gh issue view 123 --json number,title,state,assignees

# Pretty JSON
gh issue view 123 --json number,title,state | jq '.'

# Specific field
gh issue view 123 --json title --jq '.title'

Custom Template

# Go template formatting
gh issue view 123 --template '
Issue #{{.number}}: {{.title}}
State: {{.state}}
Author: {{.author.login}}
Assignees: {{range .assignees}}@{{.login}} {{end}}
Labels: {{range .labels}}{{.name}} {{end}}
'

Web View

# Open in browser
gh issue view 123 --web

# Open comments in browser
gh issue view 123 --web --comments

Filtering and Sorting

List with Filters

# Open bugs only
gh issue list --label "bug" --state open

# My assigned issues
gh issue list --assignee "@me"

# Issues without assignee
gh issue list --search "no:assignee is:open"

# Issues in current milestone
MILESTONE=$(gh api repos/:owner/:repo/milestones --jq '.[0].title')
gh issue list --milestone "$MILESTONE"

# Recently updated
gh issue list --search "updated:>2024-01-01 is:open"

# Sort by created date
gh issue list --json number,title,createdAt \
  | jq -r 'sort_by(.createdAt) | reverse | .[] | "#\(.number): \(.title)"'

Complex Searches

# Find old open issues
gh issue list --search "is:open created:<2023-01-01"

# Find issues with no comments
gh issue list --search "is:open comments:0"

# Find issues with many comments (active discussion)
gh issue list --search "is:open comments:>10"

# Find issues by keyword in body
gh issue list --search "authentication in:body"

Tips

Use web view for detailed review: --web opens in browser
Cache results for dashboards: Store gh issue list output
Filter by multiple criteria: Combine labels, milestones, assignees
Use JSON for automation: Parse with jq for scripts
Check dependencies: Look for "Depends on #" in issue body
Monitor timeline: Track issue history with timeline
Export for reporting: Save issues to files for records

Error Handling

Error: "Issue not found"

Cause: Issue doesn't exist or you don't have access
Solution: Verify issue number with gh issue list

Error: "Not authorized"

Cause: Not authenticated or no repository access
Solution: Run gh auth login or request access

Error: "GraphQL error"

Cause: API rate limit or network issue
Solution: Check gh auth status and wait/retry

Best Practices

Check before working: Always view issue before starting work
Read all comments: Understand full context and discussion
Note dependencies: Check for blocking or related issues
Review labels: Understand priority and categorization
Check assignees: Coordinate if already assigned
Look for PRs: See if work is already in progress
Note milestones: Understand release timeline
Export for records: Save issue details before closing
Use web view for complex issues: Browser better for long discussions
Monitor stale issues: Check update timestamps

Output Examples

Basic View

Fix login button on Safari #123
Open • alice opened 3 days ago • 5 comments

Users cannot log in when using Safari browser on iOS.
Login button doesn't respond when clicked.

Labels: bug, priority-high, mobile
Assignees: alice, bob
Milestone: v2.1

View this issue on GitHub: https://github.com/org/repo/issues/123

With Comments

Fix login button on Safari #123
Open • alice opened 3 days ago • 5 comments

[Issue body...]

---

alice commented 2 days ago
I can reproduce this on iOS 17. Investigating the event handlers.

bob commented 1 day ago
Found the root cause - addEventListener not working in strict mode.
Working on a fix in PR #234.

---

View this issue on GitHub: https://github.com/org/repo/issues/123

List View

Showing 5 of 23 open issues in owner/repo

#123  Fix login button on Safari                  bug, priority-high
#122  Add export to CSV feature                   enhancement
#121  Update dependencies                         maintenance
#120  Memory leak in auth module                  bug, performance
#119  Documentation for API endpoints             docs

Related Skills

gh-issue-create - Create new issues
gh-issue-comment - Add comments to issues
gh-issue-edit - Update issue metadata
gh-issue-close - Close/resolve issues
gh-issue-develop - Start working on issue

Limitations

Large result sets may be paginated (use --limit to control)
Comments may be truncated in terminal output
Timeline data requires JSON output to access
Reactions and detailed events not available in simple view
No real-time updates (must re-run command)

Install Skill

SKILL.md