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Overview

Use CodeRabbit with Google’s Gemini CLI in a full agentic loop. Code with Gemini, review the changes with CodeRabbit, and fix the issues with Gemini. In this quick guide, you’ll learn how to prompt Gemini, what CodeRabbit commands to run, and what to add to your Gemini.md file.

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Video demo

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Prerequisites

1

Install the Gemini CLI

Install the Gemini CLI following the platform-specific instructions. Login in, and check that you can launch Gemini from your terminal.
2

Install CodeRabbit CLI

Install the CodeRabbit CLI globally on your system:
Terminal command
curl -fsSL https://cli.coderabbit.ai/install.sh | sh
Restart your shell:
Terminal command
source ~/.zshrc
3

Log into CodeRabbit

Log into CodeRabbit by running the following command in your terminal:
coderabbit auth login
Authentication persists across Gemini instances - you only need to do this once per machine.
4

Verify authentication

Test that login was successful by running the following command in your terminal:
Terminal command
coderabbit auth status
Success shows your login status and confirms you’re logged into CodeRabbit.

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Use CodeRabbit as part of building new features

1

CodeRabbit usage instructions for Gemini CLI

Add the following to your Gemini.md file:
Prompt for Gemini.md file
Run the CodeRabbit CLI by running the command: `coderabbit --prompt-only -t uncommitted`. It's a long running task and may take up to 30 minutes. Check every 2 minutes if it's complete and once it's done review and validate critical fixes and recommended fixes, while ignoring nits or unecessary changes. Then fix those and run CodeRabbit again. You can run this loop up to 3 times. Let the user know the outcomes.
Feel free to customize the prompt to your needs. In general you want to convey:
  • How to run CodeRabbit, i.e. using the --prompt-only flag and that it’s a CLI tool already installed.
  • That it’s a long running task and may take a while. Otherwise it may time out.
  • Any guidelines for how you want Gemini to review and implement the changes. i.e. fix only critical issues.
  • Some agents run CodeRabbit multiple times, so let them know the total number of times it should run.
2

Request implementation + review

Ask Gemini to implement a feature and run CodeRabbit analysis with issue fixes:
Prompt for Gemini
Please implement phase 7.3 of the planning doc and then run CodeRabbit
Because we added how to run CodeRabbit to your Gemini.md file, Gemini should run it correctly, but it’s non-deterministic, so you may need to remind it to reference the Gemini.md file for the instructions.
3

Agentic step: Gemini implements feature and runs CodeRabbit

Gemini: 1. Implements the requested feature 2. Runs coderabbit --prompt-only 3. Checks CodeRabbit’s progress periodically
4

Agentic step: CodeRabbit analysis and task creation

When CodeRabbit completes, Gemini:
  1. Reads the --prompt-only output
  2. Reviews the issues CodeRabbit surfaced
  3. Implements the fixes
5

Agentic step: Loops to stop or resolution

Gemini will run CodeRabbit again to verify the fixes and to make sure no other issues were introduced. This loop will continue until all critical issues are resolved or the loop limit is reached.

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Optimization tips

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Use prompt-only mode for efficiency

When running CodeRabbit manually before Gemini, use --prompt-only for optimal AI agent integration: 
coderabbit --prompt-only
This mode:
  • Provides succinct issue context
  • Uses token-efficient formatting
  • Includes specific file locations and line numbers
  • Suggests fix approaches without overwhelming detail

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Configure CodeRabbit for Gemini

CodeRabbit automatically reads your gemini.md file. Add context on how code reviews should run, your coding standards, and architectural preferences. Note this feature is only available on the Pro paid plan.

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Troubleshooting

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CodeRabbit not finding issues

If CodeRabbit isn’t detecting expected issues:
  1. Check authentication status: Run coderabbit auth status (authentication improves review quality but isn’t required)
  2. Verify git status: CodeRabbit analyzes tracked changes - check git status
  3. Consider review type: Use the --type flag to specify what to review:
    • coderabbit --type uncommitted - only uncommitted changes
    • coderabbit --type committed - only committed changes
    • coderabbit --type all - both committed and uncommitted (default)
  4. Specify base branch: If your main branch isn’t main, use --base:
    • coderabbit --base develop
    • coderabbit --base master
  5. Review file types: CodeRabbit focuses on code files, not docs or configuration

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Managing review duration

CodeRabbit reviews may take 7 to 30+ minutes depending on the scope of changes:
  1. Ensure background execution: Configure Gemini to run CodeRabbit in the background so you can continue working
  2. Review smaller changesets: Adjust what you’re reviewing to reduce analysis time:
    • Use --type uncommitted to review only uncommitted changes
    • Work on smaller feature branches compared to main
    • Break large features into smaller, reviewable chunks
  3. Configure the diff scope: Control what changes are analyzed:
    • Review uncommitted changes only: Use --type uncommitted to analyze just working directory changes
    • Configure base branch: Use --base develop or --base main to set the comparison point
    • Use feature branches: Work on focused feature branches instead of large staging branches