IT Glossary
What is code review?
The four-eyes rule applied to programming: code written by one developer is read and approved by another before it enters the product.
In accounting, nobody is surprised that large payments require two signatures; software’s equivalent is called code review: no change enters the product until a second programmer has read and approved it. The reviewer hunts for logic errors, security holes, forgotten edge cases and deviations from team standards — and statistically finds them: industry studies show review catches a consistent share of defects before they get expensive. For you as a buyer, the practice has three effects visible in money: fewer bugs reach users, the code stays intelligible (so the next change costs less), and knowledge of the project lives in at least two heads — one person leaving doesn’t bury the know-how. That is why “do you review every change?” is one of the short questions separating disciplined vendors from those who deliver fast now and expensive forever. On critical projects you can also commission an external code audit — a review by eyes completely foreign to the project.
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Message us on WhatsApp or send an email — you talk directly to a developer.
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Why it matters for your business
Defects caught at the source
An error spotted while reading costs minutes; the same error found by customers in production costs hours, data and reputation.
Code that doesn’t age badly
Standards enforced through review keep the code clean and readable — every future modification lands faster and cheaper.
No irreplaceable key person
At least two people understand every piece of code — vacations, departures and the proverbial bus stop being existential project risks.
Frequently asked questions
Doesn’t code review slow down and inflate development?
It adds hours to each delivery and saves more than it adds: defects caught early, code that stays modifiable and distributed know-how all cost less than their alternatives. On projects with a real lifespan, review hours are among the best-yielding ones you pay for.
How do I verify a vendor actually reviews code rather than just claiming to?
Ask to see the process: pull requests with comments and approvals in GitHub or GitLab, and branch rules blocking integration without an approval. The repository history doesn’t lie — a project with no review traces was written on trust alone.
What is a code audit, and when is it worth paying for separately?
A broad review by an independent team across the entire project: quality, security, dependencies, risks. It pays off before taking over an inherited application, during due diligence, or when you want a second opinion on what your current vendor delivers.
Let’s talk about your project
Message us on WhatsApp or send an email — you talk directly to a developer.
office@northdan.com · +40 752 070 247