Automated Release Notes Generator
Automated release notes are release notes generated from what actually merged. Shipstar's AI release notes generator reads the commits and pull requests in your GitHub repository for a release window, writes notes that explain what changed and why it matters, and queues them for your review. Approve, and the notes go out to your hosted changelog page and embed widget, your mailing lists, your Slack, and X. Most release notes software solves one piece: an editor, a hosted page, or an email tool. Shipstar covers the whole lifecycle, from merge to inbox. It is built for developers and small product teams who ship from GitHub and would rather not write release notes by hand. Release notes are the last task before shipping, and the first one cut when time runs short. The Free plan is the price floor: $0, no card, 1,000 credits a month. A release-notes generation costs 100 credits, so about ten a month are free. Solo is $25/month or $240/year.
Release Notes Written from Real Changes
Shipstar doesn't ask you to describe your release. It reads it. The generator analyzes the commits and pull requests since your last release, identifies the user-facing changes, and writes notes that lead with the benefit instead of the implementation. Breaking changes and fixes are called out clearly. Because the source is your actual Git history, the notes are accurate by construction, not by someone's memory of the sprint.
How to generate release notes from git commits with Shipstar
Five steps, and no commit convention required. First, install the Shipstar GitHub App on your organization and pick the repositories to track. Second, start a run from the dashboard, the REST API, or an MCP tool called by your coding agent, or set a schedule and let it run on its own. Third, the generator reads the commits and merged pull requests in the window and writes a draft in your project's voice. Fourth, the draft lands in the review queue, where you edit and approve it. Fifth, approval publishes it to every connected destination. The generation costs 100 credits. Everything after it, including review, publishing and email, is free.
Free and open-source release notes generators — and what an AI generator adds
The free options are real and worth knowing. semantic-release's release-notes-generator and git-cliff generate release notes or a CHANGELOG.md from your commit history. GitHub's "Generate release notes" button rolls the merged pull request titles since the last tag into a GitHub Release. They are deterministic, free, and good at exactly that. An AI release notes generator starts from the same raw material and does the next step. It reads the changes and the pull request descriptions and writes prose for users: what is new, what is better, what to watch out for. It does this in your project's configured voice, from ordinary commit messages, with no commit convention required. Shipstar then routes that draft through review and, on approval, to the channels your users actually read. It is a hosted service, not open source. The Free plan is the free way to generate release notes from git commits with it.
What a release notes tool should include
Four jobs, in order: produce the notes, run them past a reviewer, publish them where users actually look, and deliver them to the users who asked for updates. Most release notes tools cover one or two of those and leave you to wire up the rest. Call it a release notes app, a release notes platform or release notes software: the checklist is the same. Shipstar covers all four from a single GitHub connection. The generator drafts from the commits and merged pull requests in the release window. The review queue is where your team edits and approves. Publication lands on a hosted release-notes page, an embeddable widget you add with one script tag, and an RSS feed. Delivery goes to your project's mailing lists: up to 20 lists per project and 500 active recipients per list, with a one-click unsubscribe link on every message. Reviewing, publishing and sending are unmetered. Only generation costs credits.
What good automated release notes contain
Good release notes tell a user what changed for them, not what changed in the code. The generator groups changes into new features, improvements and fixes, and calls out breaking changes and anything that needs action, such as a new setting or a retired endpoint. Each item leads with the benefit and names the feature the way your users know it, not the way the branch was named. It focuses on user-facing changes rather than internal plumbing. You can steer that with focus and exclusions in plain text, such as "lead with the API changes" or "skip the mobile app", and set the voice to technical, business or mixed. The pull request descriptions matter most: the better your PRs explain why a change was made, the better the draft reads.
Automatic on Your Release Cadence
Generate release notes on demand when you cut a release, or schedule recurring generation and let Shipstar match your rhythm: weekly, biweekly, or every merge to main. Scheduled content is drafted ahead of time and lands in your review queue. The notes are ready when the release is, not three days after users started asking what changed.
Which sources the generator reads
Shipstar reads GitHub, through the Shipstar GitHub App installed on your organization (read-only, scoped to the repositories you pick) or a legacy OAuth connection. Each run can be limited to named repositories. A run covers a seven-day window by default, and a scheduled run covers the gap to its previous occurrence, up to 31 days. GitHub is the only live source today. GitLab and Bitbucket are coming soon. Azure DevOps and Jira are not supported. If your releases live there, the Azure DevOps marketplace extension "Generate Release Notes (Crossplatform)" builds a Markdown release-notes file from the work items and commits between builds. That is the honest recommendation for that stack.
Your Review, Your Voice
Automated doesn't mean off-brand. Configure the tone and voice for your project, and every draft follows it. Edit anything in the review step and approve when it's right. If you schedule notes, approved ones can publish themselves when their date arrives. Teams that want a human in the loop keep one. Teams that trust the pipeline can go hands-off.
Publish release notes where users look
Approval is the switch. Approved notes go live on a hosted page with a permanent link and in the embed widget on your own site. An RSS/Atom feed keeps readers and aggregators current, and the same content is served by the public API, so a docs site or an in-app panel can render it however you like. Schedule a release train and approved notes publish themselves when their date arrives. Shipstar can also generate the companion pieces from the same commits: a changelog entry, an X thread that posts on publish, a Slack update for the team, and help-center articles for Intercom or Featurebase. Each is a separate draft with its own review, so nothing goes out that a person has not approved.
Why teams choose Shipstar
- Generate accurate release notes from commits and PRs — no memory, no meetings
- Match any release cadence with on-demand or scheduled generation
- Keep full editorial control with review, custom voice, and approval gates
- Deliver notes by email, changelog, Slack, and X from a single approval
Frequently asked questions
How does the AI release notes generator know what changed?
Shipstar connects to your GitHub repositories and reads the commits and merged pull requests in the release window. The AI identifies user-facing changes, groups them, and writes structured notes (features, improvements, and fixes) from what actually merged.
Can release notes be sent to customers by email automatically?
Yes. Shipstar supports release-notes emails to project mailing lists, with per-recipient one-click unsubscribe links, lists you sync from your own user base over the API or import as CSV, and a double-opt-in subscribe flow for the hosted changelog. Approve the notes once and email delivery happens as part of publication.
What's the difference between release notes and a changelog in Shipstar?
They're separate content types with different framing: changelogs are running lists of changes, release notes are narrative summaries of a release. Shipstar generates both from the same Git activity, so you can maintain either or both without duplicate work.
Can I automate release notes without giving up editorial review?
Yes. Review is the default. Every generated draft waits for approval, and you can edit freely before publishing. Automation applies to the writing and the distribution; the editorial decision stays yours.
Is there a free AI release notes generator?
Yes. Shipstar's Free plan is $0 with no card: one project and 1,000 credits a month. A release-notes generation costs 100 credits, so roughly ten AI-generated release notes a month are free, and reviewing, publishing and emailing them costs nothing. Solo is $25/month or $240/year for 50,000 credits and up to three projects.
What does release notes software actually need to do?
Four things: produce the notes, run them through review, publish them somewhere users can find, and deliver them to users who want updates. Shipstar covers all four: AI generation from GitHub, an approval queue, a hosted page plus embed widget, and built-in email delivery.
Can I control how the AI writes the release notes?
Yes. Each project has a voice preset (technical, business or mixed) and a free-text focus and exclusions field, and both can be overridden for a single run. An ideal-customer profile adds context on who reads the notes. If a draft misses the point, regenerate it with different guidelines or edit it in the review queue before approving.
Does the release notes generator work with Azure DevOps or Jira?
No. GitHub is the only source Shipstar reads today, through the Shipstar GitHub App or a legacy OAuth connection; GitLab and Bitbucket are coming soon. Azure DevOps and Jira are not supported. For Azure DevOps, the marketplace extension "Generate Release Notes (Crossplatform)" produces a Markdown release-notes file from the work items and commits between builds, a good fit if your releases live there.
Is there an open-source release notes tool?
For generating the text, yes: git-cliff, semantic-release's release-notes-generator and GitHub's own "Generate release notes" button all produce notes from commits or pull request titles at no cost. None of them host a release-notes page, run a review step or email subscribers. Shipstar covers those and is a hosted service rather than open source. Its Free plan (no card, 1,000 credits a month) is the free option for the whole workflow.
How much does release notes software cost?
Shipstar's Free plan is $0 with no card: one project and 1,000 credits a month, and a release-notes generation costs 100 credits. Solo is $25/month or $240/year ($20/month equivalent) for up to three projects and 50,000 credits. Team is $29 per seat/month or $288 per seat/year with a two-seat minimum and pooled credits. Credits meter generation only. Publishing, email delivery and the API are free on every plan.
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