Frontmatter
{
"name": "go-best-practices",
"license": "MIT",
"metadata": {
"author": "plan-cascade",
"version": "1.0.0"
},
"description": "Go coding best practices. Use when writing or reviewing Go code. Covers error handling, concurrency, and idiomatic patterns."
}
Go Best Practices
Code Style
| Rule |
Guideline |
| Formatter |
gofmt or goimports |
| Linter |
golangci-lint |
| Naming |
Short, clear; avoid stuttering |
| Comments |
Godoc for exported items |
Error Handling
| Rule |
Guideline |
| Always check |
Never ignore errors |
| Wrap context |
fmt.Errorf("ctx: %w", err) |
| Sentinel errors |
var ErrNotFound = errors.New(...) |
func Load(path string) (*Config, error) {
data, err := os.ReadFile(path)
if err != nil {
return nil, fmt.Errorf("load config %s: %w", path, err)
}
// ...
}
Project Structure
cmd/appname/main.go
internal/config/
internal/service/
go.mod
Concurrency
| Pattern |
Usage |
context.Context |
Cancellation, timeouts |
sync.WaitGroup |
Wait for goroutines |
errgroup.Group |
Goroutines with errors |
func Process(ctx context.Context, items []Item) error {
for _, item := range items {
select {
case <-ctx.Done():
return ctx.Err()
default:
if err := process(item); err != nil { return err }
}
}
return nil
}
Anti-Patterns
| Avoid |
Use Instead |
| Naked returns |
Explicit returns |
panic for errors |
Return errors |
| Large interfaces |
Small, focused |
init() |
Explicit init |
Testing (Table-Driven)
func TestParse(t *testing.T) {
tests := []struct{ name, input string; want int; wantErr bool }{
{"valid", "42", 42, false},
{"invalid", "abc", 0, true},
}
for _, tt := range tests {
t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
got, err := Parse(tt.input)
if (err != nil) != tt.wantErr { t.Errorf("err=%v, want=%v", err, tt.wantErr) }
if got != tt.want { t.Errorf("got=%v, want=%v", got, tt.want) }
})
}
}
