rpkgkit

Overview

rpkgkit provides utilities for creating and maintaining R packages. The functions support common development tasks such as managing standalone scripts, maintaining NEWS.md, modernizing R source, configuring package infrastructure, and maintaining README files.

Most functions detect the active file context in RStudio and Positron (2026.10.1 or later), so a file path can often be omitted.

Installation

Install the released version from CRAN:

install.packages("rpkgkit")

Install the development version from r-universe:

install.packages(
  "rpkgkit",
  repos = c("https://wanglabcsu.r-universe.dev", "https://cloud.r-project.org")
)

Or install from GitHub (recommended):

pak::pak("WangLabCSU/rpkgkit")

Guides

Detailed, copy-ready examples are organized by task in the package website:

• rpkgkit standalone scripts: import standalone helpers, manage their metadata, and discover or create standalone files.
• Code Convertion: qualify package calls, check source code, modernize syntax, and convert integer or non-ASCII literals.
• Edit NEWS: create, update, display, and validate NEWS.md entries.
• Package Setup & Maintenace: configure package infrastructure, vendor permissively licensed code, and manage ignore files.
• Tools for README & Documentation: create README translations and insert or generate badges.

It’s recommended to use following packages together with rpkgkit:

• pkgdown / pkgdown.offline: generate package website.
• pkgload: load package source code.
• flir / jarl / lintr: lint and fix source code.
• air: format source code.
• usethis: manage package metadata.
• devtools: build and check package.

Cheat sheet

Convert and check code

Function	Quick usage	Purpose
add_double_colons()	add_double_colons(code)	Add pkg:: qualifiers to calls in a code string
make_func_call_explicit()	make_func_call_explicit("R/foo.R")	Add pkg:: qualifiers to every call in one file
package_func_call_explicit()	package_func_call_explicit()	Same, for every file under R/
make_func_arg_explicit()	make_func_arg_explicit("R/foo.R")	Add argument names to calls in one file
package_func_arg_explicit()	package_func_arg_explicit()	Same, for every file under R/
rename_func()	rename_func("R/foo.R", style = "snake_case")	Rename function definitions to a naming style
convert_func_syntax()	convert_func_syntax("R/foo.R", direction = "to_lambda")	Switch between function() and \() syntax
convert_pipe()	convert_pipe("R/foo.R", direction = "to_base")	Switch between the magrittr and base pipes in one file
package_convert_pipe()	package_convert_pipe(direction = "to_base")	Same, for every file under R/
convert_int_literals()	convert_int_literals("R/foo.R")	Add the integer L suffix in one file
package_convert_int_literals()	package_convert_int_literals()	Same, for every file under R/
convert_nonascii_code()	convert_nonascii_code(code, reverse = FALSE)	Escape non-ASCII characters (or restore them)
convert_knitr_chunk_header()	convert_knitr_chunk_header()	Modernize knitr chunk headers in .Rmd files
optimize_rmd_yaml()	optimize_rmd_yaml("README.Rmd")	Fill one YAML header from the package DESCRIPTION
package_optimize_rmd_yaml()	package_optimize_rmd_yaml()	Same, for README.Rmd and all vignettes
detect_print_and_cat()	detect_print_and_cat("R/foo.R", fix = TRUE)	Find (and fix) CRAN-unsafe print() and cat() calls
package_print_and_cat()	package_print_and_cat(fix = TRUE)	Same, across R/ and tests/testthat/
detect_lost_glue_brace()	detect_lost_glue_brace("R/foo.R")	Find lost braces in glue and cli strings
package_lost_glue_brace()	package_lost_glue_brace()	Same, across R/ and tests/testthat/
detect_unmatched_nocov_marker()	detect_unmatched_nocov_marker("R/foo.R")	Find unmatched # nocov markers in one file
package_unmatched_nocov_marker()	package_unmatched_nocov_marker()	Same, across R/
detect_fn_arg_path()	detect_fn_arg_path("R/foo.R")	Find default path or file arguments in exported functions
package_fn_arg_path()	package_fn_arg_path()	Same, across exported functions of the package
check_pkgdown_reference()	check_pkgdown_reference()	Check that every export appears in _pkgdown.yml
check_sysdeps()	check_sysdeps(c("libpng-dev"))	Check whether system libraries are installed
check_air_installed()	check_air_installed()	Check that the air formatter is on the PATH
flir_fix()	flir_fix("R/foo.R")	Fix R code with flir
use_air_table()	use_air_table("R/foo.R", ncol = 3)	Lay out long c() and list() calls as aligned tables with air
air_format()	air_format("R/foo.R")	Deprecated; format R code with air

Manage NEWS.md

Function	Quick usage	Purpose
news_md_add_entry()	news_md_add_entry("Added a new feature.", category = "NEW FEATURES")	Add an entry, creating the version section when needed
news_md_show()	news_md_show(version = "latest")	Print NEWS.md, optionally filtered to one version
news_md_check()	news_md_check()	Deprecated; validate the NEWS.md format

Set up and maintain packages

Function	Quick usage	Purpose
use_zzz()	use_zzz()	Create R/<pkg>-package.R from a template
use_r_v4.1.0()	use_r_v4.1.0()	Add R (>= 4.1.0) to Depends
use_url()	use_url()	Set URL from the git remote, plus an optional pkgdown URL
use_bugreports()	use_bugreports()	Set BugReports from the git remote
use_vendor()	use_vendor("wurli/pedant", "R/utils.R")	Vendor permissively licensed code from GitHub
add_global_rbuildignore()	add_global_rbuildignore()	Add the global .Rbuildignore patterns
add_global_gitgnore()	add_global_gitgnore()	Add a GitHub-style global .gitignore
use_jarl()	use_jarl()	Create a jarl.toml configuration
use_clangd()	use_clangd()	Create a .clangd configuration with Rcpp include paths
use_tidy_addin()	use_tidy_addin("my_addin", "Open my gadget")	Register an exported function in the RStudio Addins menu
use_workflow_version_update()	use_workflow_version_update()	Add the version-bumper GitHub Actions workflow
use_workflow_test_branch()	use_workflow_test_branch()	Add a workflow that syncs main to the test branch
use_workflow_rust_compatible_check()	use_workflow_rust_compatible_check()	Add a Rust-compatible R-CMD-check workflow
open_cffinit()	open_cffinit()	Open the cffinit CITATION.cff generator in the browser

README and documentation

Function	Quick usage	Purpose
badge_to_readme()	badge_to_readme(badge)	Insert a badge into the README badges block
badge_translated_by_ai()	badge_translated_by_ai(lang = "zh-cn")	Generate an AI-translation disclaimer badge
use_multilanguage_readme()	use_multilanguage_readme("zh-cn")	Create translated README files and their badges
render_rmd()	render_rmd("README.Rmd")	Render an .Rmd or .R file to Markdown
use_hexsticker()	use_hexsticker("man/figures/logo.png")	Deprecated; add a hex sticker to the README title

Standalone files

Function	Quick usage	Purpose
create_standalone()	create_standalone("my_utils")	Create a standalone file with a YAML header
check_standalone()	check_standalone("R/standalone-my_utils.R")	Check the format of a standalone file
update_time_in_standalone()	update_time_in_standalone()	Refresh the last-updated field of standalone files
add_changelog_in_standalone()	add_changelog_in_standalone("R/standalone-my_utils.R", "Fix a bug")	Add or update a changelog entry
inquire_standalone()	inquire_standalone("r-lib", "rlang")	List the standalone files of a GitHub repository
browse_standalone()	browse_standalone()	Search GitHub for standalone files shipped by R packages

Utilities

Function	Quick usage	Purpose
current_packages()	current_packages()	Packages whose calls should be qualified
imported_functions()	imported_functions()	Function names imported in NAMESPACE
is_dev_context()	is_dev_context()	Whether the working directory is package development
get_positron_version()	get_positron_version()	Version of the running Positron IDE

Addin

After v0.1.23, rpkgkit ships an addin that can be used in RStudio. It’s available in the Addins menu, and can be accessed by pressing Ctrl+Shift+P (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+P (macOS).

If you want to use addins in Positron, you can use Positron R Wizard extension.

AI skills

rpkgkit ships an agent skill that tells coding agents when to reach for rpkgkit and how to call it. It follows the Agent Skills layout, so it works with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Positron, and other compatible agents:

npx skills add WangLabCSU/rpkgkit --skill rpkgkit

Add -g to install it for every project, and -a <agent> to skip the agent prompt. The skill source lives in skills/rpkgkit/.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the following people and projects:

• The authors of the pedant package — Jacob Scott, Christopher T. Kenny, and Sebastian Lammers — whose code is included (under MIT license) in R/vendor-pedant.R.
• The authors of the pkgdev package — Diego Hernangómez — whose code is included (under MIT license) in R/vendor-pkgdev.R.
• All contributors and users who have reported issues, suggested features, or helped improve the package.