New Code Metric

Definition

The New Code Metric is the percentage of code in a PR that is new (not modified or deleted).

Why is This Metric Useful?

• Highlights the proportion of work dedicated to creating new functionality.

How to Use it?

• Balance efforts between new code, refactoring, and rework.

Examples for Context

• Teams focusing on new code saw increased feature delivery rates.

Data Sources

• Repository diff data.

Calculation

• (Lines added / Total lines changed) * 100.

Tunable Configurations

• Thresholds for line counts to exclude trivial changes.

Benchmarking Guidance

• New code typically constitutes 60-80% of PR changes for feature teams.

Error Margins and Limitations

• May overestimate impact if trivial lines are added.

Stakeholder Use Cases

• Developers: Monitor time spent on innovation.
• Managers: Ensure a balance between innovation and maintenance.