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Accessible documentation is a vital part of LangChain. We welcome both documentation for new features and integrations, as well as community improvements to existing docs.
These are contribution guidelines for our open source documentation, but they also apply to the LangSmith documentation.

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Contribute

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Quick edits

For quick changes like fixing typos or changing a link, you can edit directly on GitHub without setting up a local development environment:
Prerequisites:
  1. At the bottom of the page you want to edit, click the link Edit the source of this page on GitHub.
  2. GitHub will prompt you to fork the repository to your account. Make sure to fork into your .
  3. Make the changes directly in GitHub’s web editor.
  4. Click Commit changes… and give your commit a descriptive title like fix(docs): summary of change. If applicable, add an extended description.
  5. GitHub will redirect you to create a pull request. Give it a title (often the same as the commit) and follow the PR template checklist, if present.
Docs PRs are typically reviewed within a few days. Keep an eye on your PR to address any feedback from maintainers. Do not bump the PR unless you have new information to provide - maintainers will address it as their availability permits.

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Larger edits and additions

For larger changes, additions, or ongoing contributions, it’s important to set up a local development environment on your machine. Our documentation build pipeline offers local preview and live reload as you edit, important for ensuring your changes appear as intended before submitting.

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Set up local environment

  1. Clone this repo. Follow the steps outlined in IDE_SETUP.md.
  2. Install uv (if not already installed)
  3. Install npm (if not already installed)
  4. Create and activate a virtual environment: 
    cd docs
uv venv
source .venv/bin/activate
  5. Install dependencies: 
    uv sync --all-groups

    npm i -g mint
After install, you’ll have access to the docs command: 
docs --help
Common commands:
  • docs dev - Start development mode with file watching and hot reload
  • docs build - Build documentation
See Available commands for more details.

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Edit documentation

Only edit files in src/ - The build/ directory is automatically generated.
  1. Ensure your dev environment is set up and that you have followed the steps in IDE_SETUP.md to configure your IDE/editor to automatically apply the correct settings.
  2. Edit files in src/:
    • Make changes to markdown files and the build system will automatically detect changes and rebuild affected files.
    • If OSS content varies between Python and JavaScript/TypeScript, add content for both in the same file. Otherwise, content will be identical for both languages.
    • Use Mintlify syntax for formatting.
  3. Start development mode to preview changes locally: 
    docs dev
    This starts a development server with hot reload at http://localhost:3000.
  4. Iterate:
    • Continue editing and see changes reflected immediately.
    • The development server rebuilds only changed files for faster feedback.
  5. Run the quality checks to ensure your changes are valid.
  6. Get approval from the relevant reviewers. To generate a preview build, create a sharable preview build (internal team members only).
  7. Publish to production (internal team members only).

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Create a sharable preview build

Only internal team members can create sharable preview builds.
When you create or update a PR, a preview branch/ID is automatically generated for you. A comment will be left on the PR with the ID, which you can then use to generate a preview. You can also run this workflow manually if needed. Previews are useful for sharing work-in-progress changes with others.
  1. Copy the preview branch’s ID from the comment.
  2. In the Mintlify dashboard, click Create preview deployment.
  3. Enter the preview branch’s ID.
  4. Click Create deployment. A Manual update will display in the Previews table.
  5. Select the preview and click Visit to view the preview build.
To redeploy the preview build, click Redeploy on the Mintlify dashboard.

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Run quality checks

Before submitting changes, ensure your code passes formatting and linting checks: 
# Check broken links
make mint-broken-links

# Format code automatically
make format

# Check for linting issues
make lint

# Fix markdown issues
make lint_md_fix

# Run tests to ensure your changes don't break existing functionality
make test
For more details, see the available commands section in the README.

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Publish to prod

Only internal team members can publish to production.
Once your branch has been merged into main, you need to push the changes to prod for them to render on the live docs site. Use the Publish documentation GH action:
  1. Go to Publish documentation.
  2. Click the Run workflow button.
  3. Select the main branch to deploy.
  4. Click Run workflow.

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Documentation types

All documentation falls under one of four categories:

How-to guides

Task-oriented instructions for users who know what they want to accomplish.

Conceptual guides

Explanations that provide deeper understanding and insights.

Reference

Technical descriptions of APIs and implementation details.

Tutorials

Lessons that guide users through practical activities to build understanding.
Where applicable, all documentation must have both Python and JavaScript/TypeScript content. For more details, see the co-locate Python and JavaScript/TypeScript content section.

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How-to guides

How-to guides are task-oriented instructions for users who know what they want to accomplish. Examples of how-to guides are on the LangChain and LangGraph tabs.
  • Task-focused: Focus on a specific task or problem
  • Step-by-step: Break down the task into smaller steps
  • Hands-on: Provide concrete examples and code snippets
  • Focus on the how rather than the why
  • Use concrete examples and code snippets
  • Break down the task into smaller steps
  • Link to related conceptual guides and references

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Conceptual guides

Conceptual guide cover core concepts abstractly, providing deep understanding.
  • Understanding-focused: Explain why things work as they do
  • Broad perspective: Higher and wider view than other types
  • Design-oriented: Explain decisions and trade-offs
  • Context-rich: Use analogies and comparisons
  • Focus on the “why” rather than the “how”
  • Provides supplementary information not necessarily required for feature usage
  • Can use analogies and reference alternatives
  • Avoid blending in too much reference content
  • Link to related tutorials and how-to guides

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Reference

Reference documentation contains detailed, low-level information describing exactly what functionality exists and how to use it.

Python reference

JavaScript/TypeScript reference

A good reference should:
  • Describe what exists (all parameters, options, return values)
  • Be comprehensive and structured for easy lookup
  • Serve as the authoritative source for technical details
See the contributing guide for JavaScript/TypeScript reference docs.
  • Be consistent; follow existing patterns for provider-specific documentation
  • Include both basic usage (code snippets) and common edge cases/failure modes
  • Note when features require specific versions
  • New integrations or providers need dedicated reference pages
  • Complex configuration options require detailed explanation
  • API changes introduce new parameters or behavior
  • Community frequently asks questions about specific functionality

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Tutorials

Tutorials are longer form step-by-step guides that builds upon itself and takes users through a specific practical activity to build understanding. Tutorials are typically found on the Learn tab.
We generally do not merge new tutorials from outside contributors without an acute need. If you feel that a certain topic is missing from docs or is not sufficiently covered, please open a new issue.
  • Practical: Focus on practical activities to build understanding.
  • Step-by-step: Break down the activity into smaller steps.
  • Hands-on: Provide sequential, working code snippets.
  • Supplementary: Provide additional context and information not necessarily required for feature usage.
  • Code snippets should be sequential and working if the user follows the steps in order.
  • Provide some context for the activity, but link to related conceptual guides and references for more detailed information.

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Writing standards

Reference documentation has different standards - see the reference docs contributing guide for details.

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Mintlify components

Use Mintlify components to enhance readability:
  • Callouts
  • Structure
  • Code
  • <Note> for helpful supplementary information
  • <Warning> for important cautions and breaking changes
  • <Tip> for best practices and advice
  • <Info> for neutral contextual information
  • <Check> for success confirmations

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Page structure

Every documentation page must begin with YAML frontmatter: 
---
title: "Clear, specific title"
sidebarTitle: "Short title for the sidebar (optional)"
---

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Co-locate Python and JavaScript/TypeScript content

All documentation must be written in both Python and JavaScript/TypeScript when possible. To do so, we use a custom in-line syntax to differentiate between sections that should appear in one or both languages: 
:::python
Python-specific content. In real docs, the preceding backslash (before `python`) is omitted.
:::

:::js
JavaScript/TypeScript-specific content. In real docs, the preceding backslash (before `js`) is omitted.
:::

Content for both languages (not wrapped)
This will generate two outputs (one for each language) at /oss/python/concepts/foo.mdx and /oss/javascript/concepts/foo.mdx. Each outputted page will need to be added to the /src/docs.json file to be included in the navigation.
We don’t want a lack of parity to block contributions. If a feature is only available in one language, it’s okay to have documentation only in that language until the other language catches up. In such cases, please include a note indicating that the feature is not yet available in the other language.If you need help translating content between Python and JavaScript/TypeScript, please ask in the community slack or tag a maintainer in your PR.

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Quality standards

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General guidelines

Multiple pages covering the same material are difficult to maintain and cause confusion. There should be only one canonical page for each concept or feature. Link to other guides instead of re-explaining.
Take a less-is-more approach. If another section with a good explanation exists, link to it rather than re-explain, unless your content presents a new angle.

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Accessibility requirements

Ensure documentation is accessible to all users:
  • Structure content for easy scanning with headers and lists
  • Use specific, actionable link text instead of “click here”
  • Include descriptive alt text for all images and diagrams

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Get help

Our goal is to have the simplest developer setup possible. Should you experience any difficulty getting setup, please ask in the community slack or open a forum post. Internal team members can reach out in the #documentation Slack channel.
Edit the source of this page on GitHub.
Connect these docs programmatically to Claude, VSCode, and more via MCP for real-time answers.