diff --git a/docs/configuration.md b/docs/configuration.md
index 23c0035e..9edd760d 100644
--- a/docs/configuration.md
+++ b/docs/configuration.md
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ Config:
 
 List of target branches the user can select interactively. The array can contain branch names as strings or objects that also contains the field `checked` which indicates whether the branch should be pre-selected. It is useful to pre-select branches you often backport to.
 
-CLI: `--branch 6.1 --branch 6.0`
+CLI: `target-branch-choice <branch>`
 
 Config:
 
@@ -117,13 +117,15 @@ Config:
 
 Default: `false`
 
-CLI: `--all`
+CLI: `--all`, `-a`
 
 #### `branchLabelMapping`
 
 Pre-select target branch choices based on the source PR labels.
 
-Example:
+CLI: N/A
+
+Config:
 
 ```json
 {
@@ -211,6 +213,22 @@ When backporting a merge commit the parent id must be specified. This is directl
 - Defaults to 1 when no parent id is given: `backport --mainline`
 - Specifying parent id: `backport --mainline 2`
 
+#### maxNumber
+
+Number of commits that will be listed for the user to choose from.
+
+Default: 10
+
+CLI: `--max-number <number>`, `--number <number>`, `-n <number>`
+
+Config:
+
+```json
+{
+  "maxNumber": 20
+}
+```
+
 #### `multipleCommits`
 
 `true`: you will be able to select multiple commits to backport. You will use `<space>` to select, and `<enter>` to confirm you selection.
@@ -227,17 +245,31 @@ Default: `false`
 
 Default: `true`
 
+#### path
+
+Only list commits touching files under the specified path
+
+CLI: `--path <path>`, `-p <path>`
+
+Config:
+
+```json
+{
+  "path": "my/folder"
+}
+```
+
 #### `prTitle`
 
-Pull request title pattern.
+Title for the target pull request
 Template values:
 
 - `{targetBranch}`: Branch the backport PR will be targeting
-- `{commitMessages}`: Multiple commits will be concatenated and separated by pipes (`|`).
+- `{commitMessages}`: Message of backported commit. For multiple commits the messages will be separated by pipes (`|`).
 
 Default: `"[{targetBranch}] {commitMessages}"`
 
-CLI: `--pr-title "{commitMessages} backport for {targetBranch}"`
+CLI: `--pr-title "<title>"`, `--title "<title>"`
 
 Config:
 
@@ -249,7 +281,7 @@ Config:
 
 #### `prDescription`
 
-Text that will be appended to the pull request description.
+Text that will be appended to the description of the target pull request
 
 For people who often need to add the same description to PRs they can create a bash alias:
 
@@ -257,7 +289,7 @@ For people who often need to add the same description to PRs they can create a b
 alias backport-skip-ci='backport --prDescription "[skip-ci]"'
 ```
 
-CLI: `--pr-description "skip-ci"`
+CLI: `--pr-description "<text>"`, `--description "<text>"`
 
 Config:
 
@@ -267,6 +299,38 @@ Config:
 }
 ```
 
+#### `prFilter`
+
+Filter source pull requests by any [Github query](https://help.github.com/en/github/searching-for-information-on-github/understanding-the-search-syntax). Text with whitespace [must contain escaped quotes](https://help.github.com/en/github/searching-for-information-on-github/understanding-the-search-syntax#use-quotation-marks-for-queries-with-whitespace).
+
+CLI: `--pr-filter "<query>"`
+
+Config:
+
+```json
+{
+  "prFilter": "label: \"Backport Needed\""
+}
+```
+
+#### `pullNumber`
+
+Backport a pull request by specifying its number
+
+CLI: `--pull-number "<number>"`, `--pr "<number>"`
+
+#### `resetAuthor`
+
+Change the author of the backported commit to the current user
+
+CLI: `--reset-author`
+
+#### `sha`
+
+Backport a commit by specifying its commit sha
+
+CLI: `--sha "<sha>"`, `--commit "<sha>"`
+
 #### `sourceBranch`
 
 By default the list of commits will be sourced from the repository's default branch (mostly "master"). Use `sourceBranch` to list and backport commits from other branches than the default.
@@ -287,7 +351,7 @@ Config:
 
 Labels that will be added to the source (original) pull request. This can be useful if you, at a later time, want to find the PRs that were already backported.
 
-CLI: `--source-pr-labels was-backported`
+CLI: `--source-pr-labels <label>`
 
 Config:
 
@@ -297,11 +361,25 @@ Config:
 }
 ```
 
+#### `targetBranches`
+
+Overrides `targetBranchChoices` so instead of displaying a prompt with target branches to choose from, the selected commit(s) will be backported directly to the branches defined in `targetBranches`
+
+CLI: `--target-branches <branch>`, `--branch <branch>`, `-b <branch>`
+
+Config:
+
+```json
+{
+  "targetBranches": ["7.x", "7.7"]
+}
+```
+
 #### `targetPRLabels`
 
 Labels that will be added to the target (backport) pull request. This can be useful if you, at a later time, want to find the backport PRs.
 
-CLI: `--labels backport --labels apm-team`
+CLI: `--target-pr-labels <label>`, `-l <label>`
 
 Config:
 
diff --git a/jest.config.js b/jest.config.js
index 61ba171e..c89f5710 100644
--- a/jest.config.js
+++ b/jest.config.js
@@ -3,6 +3,10 @@ module.exports = {
   setupFiles: ['./src/test/setupFiles/automatic-mocks.ts'],
   preset: 'ts-jest',
   testRegex: '(test|src)/.*test.ts$',
+
+  // exclude private tests that requires credentials and can therefore not run on CI for external contributors
+  modulePathIgnorePatterns: ['.*.private.test.ts$'],
+
   moduleFileExtensions: ['ts', 'js', 'json'],
   globals: {
     'ts-jest': {
diff --git a/jest.config.private.js b/jest.config.private.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d8abf3b4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/jest.config.private.js
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-var-requires
+const config = require('./jest.config');
+
+module.exports = {
+  ...config,
+
+  // only include (private) tests that cannot run on CI because they require credentials and thus exclude external contributors
+  testRegex: ['.*.private.test.ts$'],
+  modulePathIgnorePatterns: [],
+};
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 488bf899..e32037d9 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -31,6 +31,8 @@
     "postinstall": "test -f ./dist/scripts/runPostinstall.js && node ./dist/scripts/runPostinstall.js || echo 'Dist folder missing'",
     "prepublishOnly": "tsc --project ./tsconfig.prod.json",
     "test": "jest",
+    "test-private": "jest --config ./jest.config.private.js",
+    "test-all": "yarn test && yarn test-private",
     "start": "ts-node --transpile-only ./src/index.ts"
   },
   "lint-staged": {
diff --git a/src/options/cliArgs.test.ts b/src/options/cliArgs.test.ts
index b2dab8d1..7f2f5cc0 100644
--- a/src/options/cliArgs.test.ts
+++ b/src/options/cliArgs.test.ts
@@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ describe('getOptionsFromCliArgs', () => {
       githubApiBaseUrlV3: 'https://api.github.com',
       githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
       maxNumber: 10,
-      multiple: false,
       multipleBranches: true,
       multipleCommits: false,
       noVerify: true,
@@ -46,7 +45,6 @@ describe('getOptionsFromCliArgs', () => {
       githubApiBaseUrlV3: 'https://api.github.com',
       githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
       maxNumber: 10,
-      multiple: false,
       multipleBranches: true,
       multipleCommits: false,
       noVerify: true,
diff --git a/src/options/cliArgs.ts b/src/options/cliArgs.ts
index 43acce9a..bfccab04 100644
--- a/src/options/cliArgs.ts
+++ b/src/options/cliArgs.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,15 @@
+import isString from 'lodash.isstring';
 import yargs from 'yargs';
 import { OptionsFromConfigFiles } from './config/config';
 
+type Maybe<T> = T | undefined;
+type BranchLabelMapping = Record<string, string> | undefined;
+type BranchChoiceRaw = string | BranchChoice;
+export interface BranchChoice {
+  name: string;
+  checked?: boolean;
+}
+
 export type OptionsFromCliArgs = ReturnType<typeof getOptionsFromCliArgs>;
 export function getOptionsFromCliArgs(
   configOptions: OptionsFromConfigFiles,
@@ -14,61 +23,70 @@ export function getOptionsFromCliArgs(
     })
     .usage('$0 [args]')
     .wrap(Math.max(100, Math.min(120, yargs.terminalWidth())))
+
     .option('accessToken', {
+      default: configOptions.accessToken as Maybe<string>,
       alias: 'accesstoken',
       description: 'Github access token',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
+    // show users own commits
     .option('all', {
-      default: configOptions.all,
+      default: (configOptions.all ?? false) as boolean,
       description: 'List all commits',
       alias: 'a',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
+
     .option('author', {
-      default: configOptions.author,
+      default: configOptions.author as Maybe<string>,
       description: 'Show commits by specific author',
       type: 'string',
     })
-    .option('maxNumber', {
-      default: configOptions.maxNumber,
-      description: 'Number of commits to choose from',
-      alias: ['number', 'n'],
-      type: 'number',
-    })
+
     .option('dryRun', {
       default: false,
       description: 'Perform backport without pushing to Github',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
+
     .option('editor', {
-      default: configOptions.editor,
+      default: configOptions.editor as Maybe<string>,
       description: 'Editor to be opened during conflict resolution',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
+    // push target branch to {username}/{repoName}
     .option('fork', {
-      default: configOptions.fork,
+      default: (configOptions.fork ?? true) as boolean,
       description: 'Create backports in fork or origin repo',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
+
     .option('gitHostname', {
       hidden: true,
-      default: configOptions.gitHostname,
+      default: (configOptions.gitHostname ?? 'github.com') as string,
       description: 'Hostname for Github',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('githubApiBaseUrlV3', {
       hidden: true,
-      default: configOptions.githubApiBaseUrlV3,
+      default: (configOptions.githubApiBaseUrlV3 ??
+        'https://api.github.com') as string,
       description: `Base url for Github's REST (v3) API`,
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('githubApiBaseUrlV4', {
       hidden: true,
-      default: configOptions.githubApiBaseUrlV4,
+      default: (configOptions.githubApiBaseUrlV4 ??
+        'https://api.github.com/graphql') as string,
       description: `Base url for Github's GraphQL (v4) API`,
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('mainline', {
       description:
         'Parent id of merge commit. Defaults to 1 when supplied without arguments',
@@ -88,107 +106,153 @@ export function getOptionsFromCliArgs(
         throw new Error(`--mainline must be an integer. Received: ${mainline}`);
       },
     })
+
+    // display 10 commits to pick from
+    .option('maxNumber', {
+      default: (configOptions.maxNumber ?? 10) as number,
+      description: 'Number of commits to choose from',
+      alias: ['number', 'n'],
+      type: 'number',
+    })
+
+    // cli-only
     .option('multiple', {
-      default: configOptions.multiple,
       description: 'Select multiple branches/commits',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
-    .option('multipleCommits', {
-      default: configOptions.multipleCommits,
-      description: 'Backport multiple commits',
-      type: 'boolean',
-    })
+
+    // allow picking multiple target branches
     .option('multipleBranches', {
-      default: configOptions.multipleBranches,
+      default: (configOptions.multipleBranches ?? true) as boolean,
       description: 'Backport to multiple branches',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
+
+    // allow picking multiple commits
+    .option('multipleCommits', {
+      default: (configOptions.multipleCommits ?? false) as boolean,
+      description: 'Backport multiple commits',
+      type: 'boolean',
+    })
+
     .option('noVerify', {
-      default: configOptions.noVerify,
+      default: (configOptions.noVerify ?? true) as boolean,
       description: 'Bypasses the pre-commit and commit-msg hooks',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
+
     .option('path', {
-      default: configOptions.path,
+      default: configOptions.path as Maybe<string>,
       description: 'Only list commits touching files under the specified path',
       alias: 'p',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('prTitle', {
-      default: configOptions.prTitle,
+      default: (configOptions.prTitle ??
+        '[{targetBranch}] {commitMessages}') as string,
       description: 'Title of pull request',
       alias: 'title',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('prDescription', {
-      default: configOptions.prDescription,
+      default: configOptions.prDescription as Maybe<string>,
       description: 'Description to be added to pull request',
       alias: 'description',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
+    .option('prFilter', {
+      default: configOptions.prFilter as Maybe<string>,
+      conflicts: ['pullNumber', 'sha'],
+      description: `Filter source pull requests by a query`,
+      type: 'string',
+    })
+
+    // cli-only
     .option('pullNumber', {
-      conflicts: ['sha', 'sourcePRsFilter'],
+      conflicts: ['sha', 'prFilter'],
       description: 'Pull request to backport',
-      type: 'number',
       alias: 'pr',
+      type: 'number',
     })
+
+    // cli-only
     .option('resetAuthor', {
       default: false,
       description: 'Set yourself as commit author',
       type: 'boolean',
     })
+
+    // cli-only
     .option('sha', {
-      conflicts: ['pullNumber', 'sourcePRsFilter'],
+      conflicts: ['pullNumber', 'prFilter'],
       description: 'Commit sha to backport',
-      type: 'string',
       alias: 'commit',
-    })
-    .option('sourcePRLabels', {
-      default: configOptions.sourcePRLabels,
-      description: 'Add labels to the source (original) PR',
-      type: 'array',
-      alias: 'sourcePRLabel',
-    })
-    .option('sourcePRsFilter', {
-      conflicts: ['pullNumber', 'sha'],
-      // default: configOptions.githubApiBaseUrlV4,
-      description: `Filter source pull requests by a query`,
-      alias: 'pr-filter',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('sourceBranch', {
-      default: configOptions.sourceBranch,
+      default: configOptions.sourceBranch as Maybe<string>,
       description: `List commits to backport from another branch than master`,
       type: 'string',
     })
-    .option('verify', {
-      description: `Opposite of no-verify`,
-      type: 'boolean',
+
+    .option('sourcePRLabels', {
+      default: (configOptions.sourcePRLabels ?? []) as string[],
+      description: 'Add labels to the source (original) PR',
+      alias: 'sourcePRLabel',
+      type: 'array',
     })
+
     .option('targetBranches', {
-      default: [] as string[],
+      default: (configOptions.targetBranches || []) as string[],
       description: 'Branch(es) to backport to',
-      type: 'array',
       alias: ['targetBranch', 'branch', 'b'],
+      type: 'array',
       string: true, // ensure `6.0` is not coerced to `6`
     })
+
+    .option('targetBranchChoices', {
+      // backwards-compatability: `branches` was renamed `targetBranchChoices`
+      default: (configOptions.targetBranchChoices ??
+        configOptions.branches ??
+        []) as BranchChoiceRaw[],
+      description: 'List branches to backport to',
+      alias: 'targetBranchChoice',
+      type: 'array',
+    })
+
     .option('targetPRLabels', {
-      default: configOptions.targetPRLabels,
+      // backwards-compatability: `labels` was renamed `targetPRLabels`
+      default: (configOptions.targetPRLabels ??
+        configOptions.labels ??
+        []) as string[],
       description: 'Add labels to the target (backport) PR',
       alias: ['labels', 'label', 'l'],
       type: 'array',
     })
+
+    // cli-only
+    .option('verify', {
+      description: `Opposite of no-verify`,
+      type: 'boolean',
+    })
+
     .option('upstream', {
-      default: configOptions.upstream,
+      default: configOptions.upstream as Maybe<string>,
       description: 'Name of repository',
       alias: 'up',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('username', {
-      default: configOptions.username,
+      default: configOptions.username as Maybe<string>,
       description: 'Github username',
       type: 'string',
     })
+
     .option('verbose', {
       default: false,
       description: 'Show additional debug information',
@@ -202,15 +266,41 @@ export function getOptionsFromCliArgs(
     ).argv;
 
   // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-unused-vars, no-unused-vars
-  const { $0, _, verify, ...rest } = cliArgs;
+  const { $0, _, verify, multiple, ...rest } = cliArgs;
 
   return {
     ...rest,
-    accessToken: cliArgs.accessToken || configOptions.accessToken, // accessToken should not be displayed in yargs help menu
-    branchLabelMapping: configOptions.branchLabelMapping, // not available as cli argument
-    multipleBranches: cliArgs.multipleBranches || cliArgs.multiple,
-    multipleCommits: cliArgs.multipleCommits || cliArgs.multiple,
-    noVerify: verify ?? rest.noVerify, // `verify` is a cli-only flag to flip the default of `no-verify`
-    targetBranchChoices: configOptions.targetBranchChoices, // not available as cli argument
+
+    // `branchLabelMapping` is not available as cli argument
+    branchLabelMapping: configOptions.branchLabelMapping as BranchLabelMapping,
+
+    // `multiple` is a cli-only flag to override `multipleBranches` and `multipleCommits`
+    multipleBranches: multiple ?? cliArgs.multipleBranches,
+    multipleCommits: multiple ?? cliArgs.multipleCommits,
+
+    // `verify` is a cli-only flag to flip the default of `no-verify`
+    noVerify: verify ?? rest.noVerify,
+
+    // convert from array of primitives to array of object
+    targetBranchChoices: getTargetBranchChoicesAsObject(
+      rest.targetBranchChoices
+    ),
   };
 }
+
+// in the config `branches` can either be a string or an object.
+// We need to transform it so that it is always treated as an object troughout the application
+function getTargetBranchChoicesAsObject(
+  targetBranchChoices: BranchChoiceRaw[]
+): BranchChoice[] {
+  return targetBranchChoices.map((choice) => {
+    if (isString(choice)) {
+      return {
+        name: choice,
+        checked: false,
+      };
+    }
+
+    return choice;
+  });
+}
diff --git a/src/options/config/config.test.ts b/src/options/config/config.test.ts
index 2cc0ee93..78715d78 100644
--- a/src/options/config/config.test.ts
+++ b/src/options/config/config.test.ts
@@ -11,23 +11,7 @@ describe('getOptionsFromConfigFiles', () => {
   it('should return default config values', () => {
     expect(res).toEqual({
       accessToken: 'myAccessToken',
-      all: false,
-      fork: true,
-      gitHostname: 'github.com',
-      githubApiBaseUrlV3: 'https://api.github.com',
-      githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
-      maxNumber: 10,
-      multiple: false,
-      multipleBranches: true,
-      multipleCommits: false,
-      noVerify: true,
-      prTitle: '[{targetBranch}] {commitMessages}',
-      sourcePRLabels: [],
-      targetBranchChoices: [
-        { checked: false, name: '6.0' },
-        { checked: false, name: '5.9' },
-      ],
-      targetPRLabels: [],
+      targetBranchChoices: ['6.0', '5.9'],
       upstream: 'elastic/backport-demo',
       username: 'sqren',
     });
diff --git a/src/options/config/config.ts b/src/options/config/config.ts
index d33174c9..49ade51a 100644
--- a/src/options/config/config.ts
+++ b/src/options/config/config.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,3 @@
-import isString from 'lodash.isstring';
-import { Config } from '../../types/Config';
 import { PromiseReturnType } from '../../types/PromiseReturnType';
 import { getGlobalConfig } from './globalConfig';
 import { getProjectConfig } from './projectConfig';
@@ -12,67 +10,6 @@ export async function getOptionsFromConfigFiles() {
     getProjectConfig(),
     getGlobalConfig(),
   ]);
-
-  const {
-    // backwards-compatability: `branches` was renamed `targetBranchChoices`
-    targetBranchChoices,
-    branches,
-
-    // backwards-compatability: `labels` was renamed `targetPRLabels`
-    targetPRLabels,
-    labels,
-
-    // global and project config combined
-    ...combinedConfig
-  } = {
-    ...globalConfig,
-    ...projectConfig,
-  };
-
-  return {
-    // defaults
-    all: false, // show users own commits
-    fork: true, // push target branch to {username}/{repoName}
-    gitHostname: 'github.com',
-    githubApiBaseUrlV3: 'https://api.github.com',
-    githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
-    maxNumber: 10, // display 10 commits to pick from
-    multiple: false,
-    multipleBranches: true, // allow user to pick multiple target branches
-    multipleCommits: false, // only let user pick a single commit
-    noVerify: true,
-    prTitle: '[{targetBranch}] {commitMessages}',
-    sourcePRLabels: [] as string[] | never[],
-    targetBranchChoices: getTargetBranchChoicesAsObject(
-      // backwards-compatability: `branches` was renamed `targetBranchChoices`
-      targetBranchChoices || branches
-    ),
-
-    // backwards-compatability: `labels` was renamed `targetPRLabels`
-    targetPRLabels: targetPRLabels || labels || ([] as string[]),
-
-    // merge defaults with config values
-    ...combinedConfig,
-  };
-}
-
-// in the config `branches` can either be a string or an object.
-// We need to transform it so that it is always treated as an object troughout the application
-function getTargetBranchChoicesAsObject(
-  targetBranchChoices?: Config['targetBranchChoices']
-) {
-  if (!targetBranchChoices) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  return targetBranchChoices.map((choice) => {
-    if (isString(choice)) {
-      return {
-        name: choice,
-        checked: false,
-      };
-    }
-
-    return choice;
-  });
+  // global and project config combined
+  return { ...globalConfig, ...projectConfig };
 }
diff --git a/src/options/config/readConfigFile.ts b/src/options/config/readConfigFile.ts
index efeeea77..d3aa3fa7 100644
--- a/src/options/config/readConfigFile.ts
+++ b/src/options/config/readConfigFile.ts
@@ -1,14 +1,13 @@
 import stripJsonComments from 'strip-json-comments';
 import { HandledError } from '../../services/HandledError';
 import { readFile } from '../../services/fs-promisified';
-import { Config } from '../../types/Config';
 
 export async function readConfigFile(filepath: string) {
   const fileContents = await readFile(filepath, 'utf8');
   const configWithoutComments = stripJsonComments(fileContents);
 
   try {
-    return JSON.parse(configWithoutComments) as Config;
+    return JSON.parse(configWithoutComments) as Record<string, unknown>;
   } catch (e) {
     throw new HandledError(
       `"${filepath}" contains invalid JSON:\n\n${fileContents}\n\nTry validating the file on https://jsonlint.com/`
diff --git a/src/options/options.test.ts b/src/options/options.test.ts
index b086293a..ccb9844b 100644
--- a/src/options/options.test.ts
+++ b/src/options/options.test.ts
@@ -81,7 +81,6 @@ describe('getOptions', () => {
       githubApiBaseUrlV3: 'https://api.github.com',
       githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
       maxNumber: 10,
-      multiple: false,
       multipleBranches: true,
       multipleCommits: false,
       noVerify: true,
@@ -117,7 +116,6 @@ describe('validateRequiredOptions', () => {
     githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
     mainline: undefined,
     maxNumber: 10,
-    multiple: false,
     multipleBranches: true,
     multipleCommits: false,
     noVerify: true,
@@ -129,7 +127,7 @@ describe('validateRequiredOptions', () => {
     sha: undefined,
     sourceBranch: 'mySourceBranch',
     sourcePRLabels: [],
-    sourcePRsFilter: undefined,
+    prFilter: undefined,
     targetBranchChoices: [],
     targetBranches: ['branchA'],
     targetPRLabels: [],
diff --git a/src/runWithOptions.test.ts b/src/runWithOptions.test.ts
index 99c252cb..642f2a5a 100644
--- a/src/runWithOptions.test.ts
+++ b/src/runWithOptions.test.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,6 @@ describe('runWithOptions', () => {
       githubApiBaseUrlV4: 'https://api.github.com/graphql',
       mainline: undefined,
       maxNumber: 10,
-      multiple: false,
       multipleBranches: false,
       multipleCommits: false,
       noVerify: true,
@@ -46,7 +45,7 @@ describe('runWithOptions', () => {
       sha: undefined,
       sourceBranch: 'mySourceBranch',
       sourcePRLabels: [],
-      sourcePRsFilter: undefined,
+      prFilter: undefined,
       targetBranches: [],
       targetBranchChoices: [
         { name: '6.x' },
diff --git a/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.test.ts b/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.test.ts
index f43793c9..68b4b52e 100644
--- a/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.test.ts
+++ b/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.test.ts
@@ -1,15 +1,19 @@
 import axios from 'axios';
 import { BackportOptions } from '../../../options/options';
+import { PromiseReturnType } from '../../../types/PromiseReturnType';
+import { SpyHelper } from '../../../types/SpyHelper';
 import { fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery } from './fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery';
 import { fetchPullRequestBySearchQueryMock } from './mocks/fetchPullRequestBySearchQueryMock';
 
 describe('fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery', () => {
-  it('s', async () => {
-    const spy = jest.spyOn(axios, 'post').mockResolvedValueOnce({
+  let spy: SpyHelper<typeof axios.post>;
+  let res: PromiseReturnType<typeof fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery>;
+  beforeEach(async () => {
+    spy = jest.spyOn(axios, 'post').mockResolvedValueOnce({
       data: fetchPullRequestBySearchQueryMock,
     });
 
-    const res = await fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery({
+    res = await fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery({
       accessToken: 'myAccessToken',
       all: false,
       author: 'sqren',
@@ -18,10 +22,20 @@ describe('fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery', () => {
       repoName: 'kibana',
       repoOwner: 'elastic',
       sourceBranch: 'master',
-      sourcePRsFilter: 'label:Team:apm',
+      prFilter: 'label:Team:apm',
     } as BackportOptions);
+  });
 
+  it('should make request with correct variables', () => {
     expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    expect(spy.mock.calls[0][1].variables).toEqual({
+      first: 10,
+      query:
+        'type:pr is:merged sort:updated-desc repo:elastic/kibana author:sqren label:Team:apm base:master',
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('should return correct response', async () => {
     expect(res).toMatchInlineSnapshot(`
       Array [
         Object {
diff --git a/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.ts b/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.ts
index e29fb824..dc75cf2f 100644
--- a/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.ts
+++ b/src/services/github/v4/fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery.ts
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ export async function fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery(
     repoName,
     repoOwner,
     sourceBranch,
-    sourcePRsFilter,
+    prFilter,
   } = options;
   const query = /* GraphQL */ `
     query getPulLRequestBySearchQuery($query: String!, $first: Int!) {
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ export async function fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery(
   `;
 
   const authorFilter = all ? '' : `author:${author}`;
-  const searchQuery = `type:pr is:merged sort:updated-desc repo:${repoOwner}/${repoName} ${authorFilter} ${sourcePRsFilter} base:${sourceBranch}`;
+  const searchQuery = `type:pr is:merged sort:updated-desc repo:${repoOwner}/${repoName} ${authorFilter} ${prFilter} base:${sourceBranch}`;
   const spinner = ora('Loading pull requests...').start();
   let res: DataResponse;
   try {
@@ -93,8 +93,8 @@ export async function fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery(
   // terminate if not commits were found
   if (isEmpty(commits)) {
     const errorText = options.all
-      ? `There are no pull requests matching the filter "${sourcePRsFilter}"`
-      : `There are no commits by "${options.author}" matching the filter "${sourcePRsFilter}". Try with \`--all\` for commits by all users or \`--author=<username>\` for commits from a specific user`;
+      ? `There are no pull requests matching the filter "${prFilter}"`
+      : `There are no commits by "${options.author}" matching the filter "${prFilter}". Try with \`--all\` for commits by all users or \`--author=<username>\` for commits from a specific user`;
 
     throw new HandledError(errorText);
   }
diff --git a/src/services/prompts.ts b/src/services/prompts.ts
index 25de1002..881d883e 100644
--- a/src/services/prompts.ts
+++ b/src/services/prompts.ts
@@ -5,8 +5,8 @@ import inquirer, {
   ConfirmQuestion,
 } from 'inquirer';
 import isEmpty from 'lodash.isempty';
+import { BranchChoice } from '../options/cliArgs';
 import { CommitChoice } from '../types/Commit';
-import { BranchChoice } from '../types/Config';
 import { getShortSha } from './github/commitFormatters';
 
 type Question = CheckboxQuestion | ListQuestion | ConfirmQuestion;
diff --git a/src/test/integration/__snapshots__/integration.test.ts.snap b/src/test/integration/__snapshots__/integration.test.ts.snap
index 3bd73a89..661d8548 100644
--- a/src/test/integration/__snapshots__/integration.test.ts.snap
+++ b/src/test/integration/__snapshots__/integration.test.ts.snap
@@ -185,12 +185,12 @@ Array [
       "githubApiBaseUrlV3": "https://api.github.com",
       "githubApiBaseUrlV4": "https://api.github.com/graphql",
       "maxNumber": 10,
-      "multiple": false,
       "multipleBranches": true,
       "multipleCommits": false,
       "noVerify": true,
       "path": undefined,
       "prDescription": undefined,
+      "prFilter": undefined,
       "prTitle": "[{targetBranch}] {commitMessages}",
       "repoName": "backport-demo",
       "repoOwner": "elastic",
diff --git a/src/test/yargs.test.ts b/src/test/yargs.private.test.ts
similarity index 97%
rename from src/test/yargs.test.ts
rename to src/test/yargs.private.test.ts
index 1159f9af..681561e6 100644
--- a/src/test/yargs.test.ts
+++ b/src/test/yargs.private.test.ts
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ describe('yargs', () => {
 
   it('should return error when branch is missing', () => {
     const res = runBackport(
-      `--upstream foo  --username ${username} --accessToken ${accessToken}`
+      `--upstream foo --username ${username} --accessToken ${accessToken}`
     );
     expect(res).toMatchInlineSnapshot(`
       "You must specify a target branch
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ describe('yargs', () => {
 
   it('should return error when upstream is missing', () => {
     const res = runBackport(
-      `--branch foo  --username ${username} --accessToken ${accessToken}`
+      `--branch foo --username ${username} --accessToken ${accessToken}`
     );
     expect(res).toMatchInlineSnapshot(`
       "You must specify a valid Github repository
diff --git a/src/types/Config.d.ts b/src/types/Config.d.ts
deleted file mode 100644
index f88abe8c..00000000
--- a/src/types/Config.d.ts
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,39 +0,0 @@
-export interface BranchChoice {
-  name: string;
-  checked?: boolean;
-}
-
-export interface Config {
-  // global config
-  accessToken?: string;
-  username?: string;
-  editor?: string;
-
-  // project config
-  branchLabelMapping?: Record<string, string>;
-  fork?: boolean;
-  noVerify?: boolean;
-  targetBranchChoices?: (string | BranchChoice)[];
-  upstream?: string;
-
-  // both
-  all?: boolean;
-  author?: string;
-  gitHostname?: string;
-  githubApiBaseUrlV3?: string;
-  githubApiBaseUrlV4?: string;
-  maxNumber?: number;
-  multiple?: boolean;
-  multipleBranches?: boolean;
-  multipleCommits?: boolean;
-  path?: string;
-  prDescription?: string;
-  prTitle?: string;
-  sourceBranch?: string;
-  sourcePRLabels?: string[];
-  targetPRLabels?: string[];
-
-  // deprecated - kept for backwards compatability
-  branches?: (string | BranchChoice)[];
-  labels?: string[];
-}
diff --git a/src/ui/cherrypickAndCreatePullRequest.test.ts b/src/ui/cherrypickAndCreatePullRequest.test.ts
index c69d23ce..72f16d1c 100644
--- a/src/ui/cherrypickAndCreatePullRequest.test.ts
+++ b/src/ui/cherrypickAndCreatePullRequest.test.ts
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ describe('cherrypickAndCreateTargetPullRequest', () => {
         repoOwner: 'elastic',
         username: 'sqren',
         sourceBranch: 'myDefaultSourceBranch',
-        sourcePRLabels: [],
+        sourcePRLabels: [] as string[],
       } as BackportOptions;
 
       const commits: CommitSelected[] = [
@@ -149,7 +149,7 @@ describe('cherrypickAndCreateTargetPullRequest', () => {
         repoName: 'kibana',
         repoOwner: 'elastic',
         username: 'sqren',
-        sourcePRLabels: [],
+        sourcePRLabels: [] as string[],
       } as BackportOptions;
 
       await cherrypickAndCreateTargetPullRequest({
@@ -209,7 +209,7 @@ describe('cherrypickAndCreateTargetPullRequest', () => {
         repoOwner: 'elastic',
         username: 'sqren',
         sourceBranch: 'myDefaultSourceBranch',
-        sourcePRLabels: [],
+        sourcePRLabels: [] as string[],
       } as BackportOptions;
 
       const res = await runTimersUntilResolved(() =>
diff --git a/src/ui/getCommits.ts b/src/ui/getCommits.ts
index 65b34681..ac17a415 100644
--- a/src/ui/getCommits.ts
+++ b/src/ui/getCommits.ts
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ export async function getCommits(options: BackportOptions) {
     ];
   }
 
-  if (options.sourcePRsFilter) {
+  if (options.prFilter) {
     const commitChoices = await fetchPullRequestBySearchQuery(options);
 
     return promptForCommits({
diff --git a/src/ui/getTargetBranches.test.ts b/src/ui/getTargetBranches.test.ts
index ef847521..fd2bf52a 100644
--- a/src/ui/getTargetBranches.test.ts
+++ b/src/ui/getTargetBranches.test.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
+import { BranchChoice } from '../options/cliArgs';
 import { BackportOptions } from '../options/options';
 import * as prompts from '../services/prompts';
-import { BranchChoice } from '../types/Config';
 import { SpyHelper } from '../types/SpyHelper';
 import { getTargetBranches } from './getTargetBranches';
 
diff --git a/src/ui/getTargetBranches.ts b/src/ui/getTargetBranches.ts
index f3079858..f65dcb24 100644
--- a/src/ui/getTargetBranches.ts
+++ b/src/ui/getTargetBranches.ts
@@ -10,17 +10,18 @@ export function getTargetBranches(
   options: BackportOptions,
   commits: CommitSelected[]
 ) {
-  // target branches specified via cli
+  // target branches already specified (in contrast to letting the user choose from a list)
   if (!isEmpty(options.targetBranches)) {
     return options.targetBranches;
   }
 
-  // combine target branches from all commits
+  // combine target branches from commits that were selected for backporting
   const selectedTargetBranches = flatMap(
     commits,
     (commit) => commit.selectedTargetBranches
   ).filter(filterEmpty);
 
+  // list the target branch choices (in contrast to automatically backporting to specific branches)
   return promptForTargetBranches({
     targetBranchChoices: getTargetBranchChoices(
       options,