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Health Score Methodology

Understanding how RepoPulse calculates repository health scores

What is the Health Score?

The RepoPulse Health Score is a comprehensive metric (0-100) that evaluates the overall health and sustainability of a GitHub repository. It combines multiple factors including activity levels, community responsiveness, growth trends, maintenance quality, and contributor diversity.

Unlike simple metrics like star counts, the health score provides a holistic view of project vitality and helps identify repositories that are actively maintained versus those that may be abandoned or struggling.

Key Insight: A high health score indicates a project that is likely to be reliable, well-maintained, and responsive to its community. A low score suggests potential risks or areas needing attention.

Score Ranges & Interpretations

90-100
Excellent
Outstanding health with strong activity, responsiveness, and maintenance
80-89
Very Good
Strong performance across most health indicators
70-79
Good
Solid health with room for minor improvements
60-69
Fair
Adequate health but some areas need attention
50-59
Concerning
Multiple health indicators showing weakness
40-49
Poor
Significant health issues requiring action
30-39
Critical
Major health problems that threaten project viability
0-29
Abandoned
Project appears inactive or abandoned

Score Components

The health score is calculated using a weighted combination of five key components:

Activity

25% weight

Recent commit frequency and project updates

Metrics Considered

  • • Commits in last 30/90 days
  • • Last commit age
  • • Update frequency

✅ Good Indicators

Regular commits, recent updates

❌ Poor Indicators

No commits for 90+ days

Responsiveness

25% weight

How quickly the project responds to community contributions

Metrics Considered

  • • Issue response time
  • • PR merge velocity
  • • Community engagement

✅ Good Indicators

Issues resolved within 24 hours, PRs merged quickly

❌ Poor Indicators

Issues unanswered for weeks, PRs ignored

Growth

20% weight

Community adoption and project popularity

Metrics Considered

  • • Star growth rate
  • • Fork growth rate
  • • Community size

✅ Good Indicators

Consistent star/fork increases

❌ Poor Indicators

No growth despite project age

Maintenance

20% weight

Code quality and issue management

Metrics Considered

  • • Issue resolution rate
  • • Open issue age
  • • Issue backlog

✅ Good Indicators

Most issues resolved, manageable backlog

❌ Poor Indicators

High open issue count, unresolved problems

Diversity

10% weight

Contributor base and project resilience

Metrics Considered

  • • Unique contributors
  • • Contributor diversity
  • • Maintenance burden

✅ Good Indicators

Multiple active contributors

❌ Poor Indicators

Single maintainer, high risk

Calculation Example

Activity Score: 85/100 × 0.25 = 21.25
Responsiveness Score: 90/100 × 0.25 = 22.5
Growth Score: 75/100 × 0.20 = 15
Maintenance Score: 80/100 × 0.20 = 16
Diversity Score: 70/100 × 0.10 = 7
Total Health Score: 81.75 → 82/100

Each component is scored individually (0-100), then weighted and summed to produce the final health score.

Important Limitations

GitHub API Limitations: Health scores are based on publicly available data and may not reflect private repository activity or internal development practices.

Project Type Variations: Different types of projects (libraries, frameworks, documentation sites) may have naturally different activity patterns.

Seasonal Variations: Some projects may have burst activity patterns that don't follow consistent schedules.

Quality vs. Quantity: The score focuses on measurable activity metrics but cannot assess code quality or architectural decisions.

How to Use Health Scores

✅ Good Use Cases

  • • Evaluating dependency health
  • • Finding active projects to contribute to
  • • Identifying projects needing help
  • • Comparing similar projects
  • • Monitoring project health over time

❌ Avoid These Uses

  • • Judging project quality or code
  • • Making investment decisions
  • • Discarding projects under 50
  • • Ignoring high scores without review
  • • Comparing unrelated project types

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