logo

Should you ever hand-format code?

When saving time is not the goal

Joel Clermont
Joel Clermont
2025-12-15

Ever feel like you're wasting your time tweaking a section of code to get it just right? We have tools for that, don't we?

In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we discuss when to trust auto-formatters and when to nudge code by hand.

Aaron makes the case that a few mindful minutes of "prettying up" can unblock harder thinking, without surrendering judgment to tools.

We set limits on this approach, share a tiered break strategy, and make it clear why you still own what the formatter changes.

  • 00:00 Auto-formatters vs subjective style choices
  • 01:15 Edge cases tools miss and human tweaks
  • 03:15 Using light formatting to unlock hard problems
  • 05:15 A tiered break strategy for focus
  • 07:00 Silly bit

Listen Now (8 min)

And after listening, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast, so you don't miss future episodes.

Here to help,

Joel

P.S. Want two Laravel experts to review your code? Explore our code review options.

Toss a coin in the jar if you found this helpful.
Want a tip like this in your inbox every weekday? Sign up below 👇🏼
email
No spam. Only real-world advice.