What Are Release Notes? Definition & Hub Guide

Release notes are the customer-facing record of what changed in a software release—new features, improvements, fixes, and known issues—written so people can understand the change and what to do next. They sit between the engineering changelog and marketing launch copy: more outcome-focused than a commit log, more precise than a blog post.

For product teams, release notes are how transparency becomes operational. One dated entry, written once, can feed email, in-app surfaces, and internal briefs without reinventing the facts each time.

What release notes usually include

A date, and a version number when technical readers need one
A headline stating the most important change in plain language
What changed, usually grouped as New, Improved, and Fixed
Who it affects: plans, roles, platforms, or regions
Anything the reader must do, such as a migration, re-authorization, or setting to review, with a deadline
Known issues and where to learn more: help docs, migration guides, support

Small releases might need only a date and one line. A complete note, with a worked example, is in how to write release notes.

Common types of release notes

Type	What it's for	Typical reader	Go deeper
Major release / launch note	A significant new capability, often with a launch around it	Customers and prospects	Templates
Improvement digest	A roundup of smaller enhancements on a regular schedule	Active users	How to write
Bug fix note	What was broken, who was affected, what is fixed	Affected users, support	Templates
Breaking change or deprecation notice	Something is being removed or changed in a way that needs action	Admins, developers	Breaking changes
Internal release note	Context for sales, support, and CS before customers see the change	Internal teams	Internal release notes
App store "What's new" text	A short summary shown on the store listing	Mobile users	Google Play allows up to 500 characters per language; Apple's App Store allows up to 4,000

A changelog is a related record rather than a type of release note. It is the complete, often technical list of changes, and release notes are usually drawn from it. See release notes vs. changelog.

Who reads release notes, and where they live

Release notes have more than one audience. End users want to know what's different, admins want to know what they need to configure, developers want exact API and version details, and internal teams (support, sales, success) need to know before customers ask. Good teams write one accurate record and adapt it for each group (release notes for different audiences).

The record usually lives on a public release notes or changelog page. From there it goes out through email, in-app announcements, and internal channels depending on how much the change matters (multi-channel distribution, in-app patterns).

What one looks like

Schedule reports to Slack
September 15 · All paid plans
You can now send any saved report to a Slack channel on a daily or weekly schedule.
Set it up from the report's Share menu.
Fixed: CSV exports no longer drop the last row on large reports.

For real-world pages from companies like Stripe, Linear, and Notion, see release notes examples.

Start here

Craft — structure, voice, and customer-first copy → How to Write Great Product Release Notes
Strategy — channels as a program, timing, cadence → Release Notes Communication Best Practices
Operate — who needs what and where it ships → audiences, channels
Process — ownership and handoffs → Who Writes Release Notes?

Release notes hub

Every guide in the hub, grouped by what you're trying to do.

Foundations

Craft & strategy

Operate & distribute

Examples & templates

Process & team

FAQ

What are release notes in one sentence?

A short, dated explanation of what changed in a release, written for the people who use or support the product—not a dump of every commit.

How are release notes different from a changelog?

A changelog is the technical record of changes; release notes explain impact and next steps for readers. Full comparison → Release Notes vs. Changelog. Changelog definition → What Is a Changelog?.

Who should write them?

On most SaaS teams, product or product marketing drafts; engineering reviews facts; support or CS reviews customer impact; one person owns publish. Ownership model → Who Writes Release Notes?.

How often should you publish release notes?

Publish whenever there is a change a reader would notice or need to act on. For teams that ship continuously, that usually means a note for each meaningful change plus a regular (weekly or monthly) digest of smaller improvements and fixes. Consistency matters more than frequency: readers come back to a page they trust will stay current. Channel cadence is covered in best practices.

Where should I start if I only have an hour?

Read how to write for craft, skim one template, and pick a single owner for the next release in who writes.

Keep the record useful

The job of this hub is education first: clear definitions, practical guides, and honest ownership models. LaunchNotes is built for teams that want one publishable record behind every surface. Worth a look if your notes still live in a doc that never reaches customers.

What Are Release Notes?