Catches Squash & Rebase Merges
Tower matches your local branches against merged pull requests on GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Azure DevOps — reliably identifying merges that plain Git can never see.
Pro Feature
PR-Based Merge Detection
Detects branches merged via squash or rebase by checking your service's closed PRs — beyond what local Git can see. Clean them up with a single click.
Why you'll want it
Never Guess Whether a Branch Is Safe to Delete.
Squash and rebase merges rewrite history, so Git alone can't tell a merged branch from an active one. Tower closes that gap by checking your hosting service directly.
Four Independent Checks
Git's own merge detection, matched pull requests, merge-commit analysis, and deleted remote-tracking branches all run together, so a single false negative never puts real work at risk.
Verify Before You Delete
The "Fully Merged" hint shows exactly which checks matched, with direct links to the merge commit or pull request — confirm everything with one click before hitting delete.
Clean Up in Bulk
Pair it with Automatic Branch Management to archive squash- and rebase-merged branches in bulk, keeping your sidebar tidy without second-guessing.
How it works
Delete Branches with Confidence, Every Time.
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01
Tower Checks Your Hosting Service
Alongside Git's own merge detection, Tower matches your local branches against closed pull requests from GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Azure DevOps — catching squash and rebase merges Git can't see on its own.
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02
The Branch Gets Its "Fully Merged" Badge
As soon as a match is found, the branch is flagged as fully merged in the sidebar, with a hint view listing exactly which of the four checks matched.
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03
Verify, Then Delete or Archive
Follow the direct link to the merge commit or pull request to double-check, then delete the branch on the spot — or let Automatic Branch Management archive it in bulk for you.
Need to know
Frequently Asked Questions
What is PR-Based Merge Detection?
It's a smarter "Fully Merged" check that matches your local branches against merged pull requests from your hosting service — reliably catching squash and rebase merges that Git's own history can't detect.
Which hosting services are supported?
GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Azure DevOps, including self-hosted editions.
How does this differ from Git's built-in merge detection?
Squash and rebase merges rewrite commits, so the commits on your branch never literally appear on the base branch — Git alone will always say the branch wasn't merged. Tower closes that gap by checking your hosting service's pull request history directly, alongside three other independent checks.
What are the four checks, exactly?
(1) Git's own merge detection, (2) merged pull requests matched via your hosting service, (3) merge-commit analysis for the branch's name and timestamp, and (4) deleted remote-tracking branches — the typical leftover after a merged pull request.
Can I stop Tower from flagging a specific branch as merged?
Yes. Enable "Hides Fully Merged Hint" from the branch's context menu, and Tower will stop flagging that specific branch.