---
title: "GitHub: vacation mode"
url: https://perrotta.dev/2025/04/github-vacation-mode/
last_updated: 2025-04-13
---


[Since 2019](https://github.blog/changelog/2019-01-08-set-your-status/) GitHub
allows setting a status on your profile page:

> You can now set your status on GitHub! Use your status to share specific
> information with only your organization, or share a status with all of GitHub!
> Optionally, you can indicate that you're busy so your collaborators can
> determine whether to mention someone else for a quicker response.

[Documentation](https://docs.github.com/en/account-and-profile/setting-up-and-managing-your-github-profile/customizing-your-profile/personalizing-your-profile#setting-a-status).
**TL;DR**: The most practical use case is to set your profile to "Busy" whenever
you take time off (whether it's vacation or sick leave).

It's possible to limit the status visibility to a single organization, so that
it is not publicly visible.

It's also possible to automatically clear the status after a given period (e.g.
one week).

Why is this useful?

- signal to your teammates that you're OOO, without leaving then wondering why
  you're taking forever to review their PRs
- prevent team assignments in PR reviews to automatically select you when you're
  OOO:

> If you select the "Busy" option, when people @mention your username, assign
> you an issue or pull request, or request a pull request review from you, a
> note next to your username will show that you're busy. You will also be
> excluded from automatic review assignment for pull requests assigned to any
> teams you belong to. For more information, see Managing code review settings
> for your team.