Configure pull request limit for users without write access

[trivikr]

The open pull request count on nodejs/node has grown beyond 1000+. A portion of these are from individual contributors who have a high number of open PRs at the same time, which places demands on finite collaborator review capacity.

GitHub provides a setting to limit the number of open pull requests from users without write access. This helps balance the need for open contribution with the reality of limited human review resources.

Proposal

Should we set a pull request limit for users without write access?

This idea was discussed among collaborators, and 5 was suggested as a reasonable starting point.
We'd like to hear broader community input before making a decision.

Rationale

• Every open PR requires collaborator time for review, feedback, and follow-up. A high volume of open PRs from a single contributor can reduce the time available to review contributions from others.
• With the rise of AI-assisted tooling, it is now easier than ever to generate pull requests at a higher frequency, which can outpace the capacity of human reviewers.
• A limit encourages contributors to prioritize their most impactful changes and work with collaborators to get existing PRs merged or closed before opening new ones.
• It also serves as a backstop against automated spamming attacks that open multiple PRs.
• Contributors who are consistently engaged at a level that requires more open PRs would be candidates for collaborator status, which is not subject to the limit.

Notes

• The limit applies only to users without write access. Collaborators are not affected.
• We can start with 5 (or some other number based on consensus) and re-evaluate based on feedback.
• GitHub also provides a "bypass list" but we propose not using it to avoid the overhead of managing additions and removals.

[aduh95]

FWIW here's the evolution of number of open PRs on nodejs/node:

[mcollina]

I've implemented the 30 PR limits for Node.js due to a pressing need. We can revise it in the next meeting.

[jasnell]

I'd be happy with half that.

[bmuenzenmeyer]

Thanks @mcollina - I appreciate the bias for action here - there were calls for the moderation team to have some say in implementing that limit, which I think is inappropriate unless this is a new written part of the team's scope.

[MikeMcC399]

According to https://github.com/nodejs/node/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md#pull-requests we have a documentation-type limit of open PRs set to 10

https://github.com/nodejs/node/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md#pull-requests

Contributors who are not Collaborators may have no more than 10 pull requests open at a time.

---

and a run-time limit in the GitHub https://github.com/nodejs/node settings of 30 open active PRs

[trivikr]

The value was set to 30 as an immediate response for moderation in #1084 (comment)

This issue has a tsc-agenda, so it's likely going to be discussed during the TSC Meeting on 2026-08-19.
If any TSC member reads this message before the meeting, consider lowering the limit to 10 to align with the documentation.

[MikeMcC399]

If any TSC member reads this message before the meeting, consider lowering the limit to 10 to align with the documentation.

Ultimately I would expect that the runtime and documentation limit for open PRs would be identical.

Given the possibility that a discussion in the next TSC meeting may result in a different value for the limit, I would suggest to wait for the discussion before changing anything.

[RafaelGSS]

We discussed it briefly on today's TSC call. We didn't have a quorum to make a decision today. I have shared my thoughts on this, but it needs to be discussed:

• Set the limit to 10
• nodejs/collaborators should not fall under this policy
• We should have a separate action that would close (even draft PRs) that pass the limit (from people outside nodejs/collaborators).

These are my thoughts on this, not the TSC discussion result.

[MikeMcC399]

Thanks for getting the limit set to 10 in the GitHub UI, so that is now consistent!

[MikeMcC399]

We should have a separate action that would close (even draft PRs) that pass the limit (from people outside nodejs/collaborators).

If it is possible to enforce a limit using tools prepared by Node.js, there is another limit implied by https://github.com/nodejs/node/blob/main/doc/contributing/first-contributions.md#what-not-to-do-for-your-first-contributions which says for First-time contributors:

Refrain from opening new Pull Requests before the first one has been approved.

Setting such a limit is not an option available from GitHub, and it may be better to handle it under a different topic. It is however all part of ensuring that reviewer capacity can focus on meaningful work, and not get distracted, overworked and overwhelmed by high volumes.