What is the difference between a pull request and a merge request in Git?

The terms pull request and merge request essentially refer to the same thing — a request to merge changes from one branch into another in the Git version control system. The difference is that:

• Pull request — a term used in GitHub and Bitbucket.
• Merge request — a term used in GitLab.

Both mechanisms allow developers to propose changes, discuss them, conduct code reviews, and then merge the changes into the main branch.

Thus, the difference lies in the name and platform, but functionally they are identical.