diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
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+# Contributing to forgit
+
+Thanks for your interest in contributing to `forgit`.
+
+This document covers the repository-specific workflow for reporting issues and opening pull requests. For installation, usage, commands, and configuration, see [README.md](README.md).
+
+## Before You Start
+
+Before opening an issue or pull request, please make sure that you:
+
+- read through [README.md](README.md)
+- use the latest released version of `forgit`
+- search existing issues and pull requests for duplicates
+
+## Repository Map
+
+These are the main places you will usually need to touch:
+
+- [`bin/git-forgit`](bin/git-forgit): core command implementations
+- [`forgit.plugin.zsh`](forgit.plugin.zsh): shared shell plugin for zsh and bash
+- [`conf.d/forgit.plugin.fish`](conf.d/forgit.plugin.fish): fish plugin integration
+- [`completions/`](completions): tab completions for zsh, bash, and fish
+- [`tests/`](tests): [bashunit](https://bashunit.typeddevs.com/) test suite
+
+## Making Changes
+
+When changing or adding behavior, prefer to follow existing command patterns already used in the repository.
+
+If you add a new command or rename an existing one, update all affected layers together:
+
+- the core implementation in `bin/git-forgit`
+- shell wrappers, aliases, or abbreviations in [`forgit.plugin.zsh`](forgit.plugin.zsh) and [`forgit.plugin.fish`](conf.d/forgit.plugin.fish)
+- completions for zsh, bash, and fish
+- user-facing documentation in [README.md](README.md)
+
+Please keep changes focused. Small pull requests are easier to review and usually get merged faster.
+
+When possible, keep core logic testable by sourcing `bin/git-forgit` directly and calling helper functions from unit tests.
+
+## Development Dependencies
+
+To run the same checks as CI, make sure these tools are available locally:
+
+- `bash`, `zsh`, and `fish`
+- `shellcheck`
+- `curl`
+- `bashunit` as `lib/bashunit`
+
+If `lib/bashunit` is not available yet, install it once with:
+
+```sh
+curl -s https://bashunit.typeddevs.com/install.sh | bash -s 0.31.0
+```
+
+## Local Validation
+
+Before opening a pull request, run the checks that match the current CI workflow:
+
+```sh
+shellcheck forgit.plugin.sh bin/git-forgit
+lib/bashunit .
+bash forgit.plugin.sh
+zsh forgit.plugin.zsh
+fish conf.d/forgit.plugin.fish
+```
+
+In your pull request, report which shells and operating systems you tested.
+
+## Commit Messages
+
+This repository uses [Conventional Commits](https://www.conventionalcommits.org), and pull requests are checked accordingly in CI.
+
+Common examples include:
+
+- `feat`: new features
+- `fix`: bug fixes
+- `docs`: documentation changes
+- `style`: formatting-only changes
+- `refactor`: code changes that neither fix a bug nor add a feature
+- `test`: test additions or updates
+- `chore`: maintenance work
+- `perf`: performance improvements
+- `ci`: CI or automation changes
+
+Scopes can optionally clarify which part of the project changed (e.g., `fix(diff)`); keep them short and relevant.
+
+Use commit messages to explain:
+
+- what changed
+- why the change is needed
+
+Do not focus the commit message on implementation mechanics unless that detail is important to understand the change.
+
+Good examples:
+
+```text
+fix: keep worktree add rooted at the main worktree
+
+Adding from a linked worktree created nested .wt directories in the current
+worktree. Keep new worktrees rooted at the main worktree so the default target
+location stays consistent.
+```
+
+```text
+docs: add contributor workflow guide
+
+Document the repository-specific review, testing, and completion update
+expectations so new contributors do not have to infer them from old issues.
+```
+
+## Pull Requests
+
+Before submitting a pull request, make sure that you:
+
+- perform a self-review
+- add comments where the code is hard to understand
+- add or update unit tests when behavior changes
+- update documentation when the change is user-visible
+- summarize the pull request in terms of what changed and why
+
+Please use the pull request description to give reviewers the context they need. A short explanation of the approach is useful, but the main focus should be the behavior change and its motivation.
+
+## Maintainers
+
+- [@wfxr](https://github.com/wfxr)
+- [@cjappl](https://github.com/cjappl)
+- [@carlfriedrich](https://github.com/carlfriedrich)
+- [@sandr01d](https://github.com/sandr01d)
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
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--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -396,6 +396,12 @@ For Linux users `FORGIT_COPY_CMD` should be set to make copy work. Example: `FOR
 - `gd` supports specifying revision (e.g., `gd HEAD~`, `gd v1.0 README.md`).
 - Call `gi` or `gat` with arguments to get the wanted `.gitignore`/`.gitattributes` contents directly (e.g., `gi cmake c++`).
 
+Contributing
+-----------
+
+Contributions are welcome.
+For the repository-specific contribution workflow, local validation steps, and commit message guidelines, see [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md).
+
 📃 License
 -----------