Setting Up CI/CD Pipelines with GitHub Actions

GitHub Actions integrates CI/CD directly into your repository. For full stack teams, automating test, build, and deploy on every pull request catches regressions early.

A Basic Node.js Workflow

name: CI
on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: '20'
          cache: 'npm'
      - run: npm ci
      - run: npm test
      - run: npm run build

Deploying to Production

Add a deploy job that runs only on main after tests pass. Use environment secrets for API keys. Deploy to Vercel, AWS, or Docker registries with official actions.

Caching and Matrix Builds

Cache node_modules and Docker layers. Use matrix strategies to test on multiple Node versions or operating systems.

Conclusion

GitHub Actions removes the need for a separate CI server for most projects. Start with lint and test on PRs, then add deploy gates and preview environments as your team matures.