What is a healthy pull request lifecycle time for my team?

A healthy pull request (PR) lifecycle for mid-market and enterprise teams should target a median under 24 hours, with time to first review under 4 business hours (ideally under 2). Small PRs should merge the same day; medium PRs within 1–2 days. Large PRs taking over 4 days are usually a workflow issue.

Focus on median and P75/P90 cycle time, not averages, to detect bottlenecks and variance. Key health indicators include fast first review, low re-review counts, and size-adjusted cycle time.

Warning signs include PRs sitting over 3 days, high variability, and long review delays.

A strong benchmark:

• 50% merged within 24 hours
• 90% within 48 hours