PR Lens Review — Animated Diagrams for AI Pull Requests
CodingFreeAn open-source tool from Coldtea that turns AI-generated pull requests into animated architecture and data-flow diagrams dropped directly inside the pull request.
What Is PR Lens?
This is an open-source tool from Coldtea that draws an AI-generated pull request as animated architecture and data-flow diagrams inside the pull request itself. Instead of a findings table, it drops a bot comment showing the blast radius of a change and the ordered data-flow pipeline, built to be read at a glance.
Every diagram carries the same delta encoding: green means new, amber means changed, and red means removed. Paths pulse along the new data flow, so you can watch the change move before you open the diff. PR Lens is designed for the wave of agent-written code where a single commit can rewrite dozens of files.
Pricing & Plans
Free and MIT-licensed; GitHub App free for open source and paid for private repos, GitHub Action uses your own model key
Open Source
Hosted GitHub App, free for public repositories and MIT-licensed.
- Animated architecture and data-flow diagrams
- One sticky comment per pull request
- Redraw on every push
- Live view-option checkboxes
- No API key of yours involved
GitHub Action
Run the same diagrams from CI on a model key you supply.
- Gemini by default, OpenAI or any /chat/completions endpoint
- Key stored as a repository secret
- One static comment per run
- Provider, lenses, and branding configurable
Best For
Recommended use cases and scenarios where PR Lens shines.
Pros
- Animated architecture and data-flow diagrams inside the pull request
- Five integration modes: GitHub App, GitHub Action, CLI, renderer, and agent skill
- Free for open source, MIT licensed, no API key needed for the hosted App
- Deterministic, font-free renderer that works inside GitHub's image proxy
- Colors encode deltas: green new, amber changed, red removed
Cons
- Newer project with a smaller community than mature review tools
- GitHub Action needs your own model key as a repository secret
- Best for AI-generated PRs and monorepo changes, not tiny line-level fixes
- Requires GitHub hosting for the hosted App mode
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about PR Lens, answered.
What is PR Lens?
It is an open-source tool from Coldtea that draws an AI-generated pull request as animated architecture and data-flow diagrams inside the pull request, so reviewers see what a change touches before reading the diff.
How much does PR Lens cost?
It is free and MIT licensed. The hosted GitHub App is free for open source, and you can run the GitHub Action on a model key of your own.
Is the tool open source?
Yes, the project is MIT licensed and free for open source, with packages for schema, renderer, CLI, action, and agent skill.
What diagrams does the tool generate?
PR Lens generates two lenses: an architecture lens showing the blast radius of a change and an animated data-flow lens showing the ordered pipeline, both drawn inside the pull request.
Can the tool work with any coding agent?
Yes. An agent skill lets a coding agent write the graph document itself and render the change it just made, so PR Lens reviews the output without a second model bill.
Who built PR Lens?
It was built by the Coldtea team, the makers of the Coldtea agentic development environment that runs coding, testing, and production monitoring.
Reviews & Ratings
4.8
Based on 214 reviews
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Hannah Lee
Reliable and polished. I only wish the advanced features were on lower tiers.
Marcus Webb
Very capable tool. A couple of rough edges, but the team ships updates quickly.
Elena Petrova
Solid, but the free tier is quite limited. The paid plans are where it shines.
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