diff --git a/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md b/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 8f67908e8..fcfd96891 100644
--- a/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -57,6 +57,13 @@ We welcome ideas for improvements and new features. To suggest an enhancement, o
 5. Push your branch to your fork on GitHub.
 6. Open a new pull request against the `main` branch of the axolotl repository. Include a clear and concise description of your changes, referencing any related issues.
 
+#### Skipping CI Checks
+
+You can skip certain CI checks by including specific keywords in your commit messages:
+
+- `[skip ci]` or `skip ci` - Skips all CI checks for that commit
+- `[skip-e2e]` or `skip-e2e` - Skips only end-to-end tests while running other CI checks. You may also include this in the title of your PR to disable end-to-end tests for the entire PR.
+
 ## Style Guidelines
 
 ### Code Style
diff --git a/.github/workflows/tests.yml b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
index 912b3f1d6..fe63aa313 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
@@ -188,13 +188,44 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           find "$(pip cache dir)/http-v2" -type f -mtime +14 -exec rm {} \;
 
+  gate-skip-e2e:
+    needs: [pre-commit, pytest, pytest-sdist]
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    outputs:
+      skip: ${{ steps.compute.outputs.skip }}
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/github-script@v7
+        id: compute
+        with:
+          script: |
+            const token = /\[skip-e2e\]/i;
+            let msg = '';
+            if (context.eventName === 'push') {
+              msg = context.payload.head_commit?.message || '';
+            } else if (context.eventName === 'pull_request') {
+              const { owner, repo } = context.repo;
+              const prNumber = context.payload.pull_request.number;
+              const commits = await github.paginate(
+                github.rest.pulls.listCommits,
+                { owner, repo, pull_number: prNumber, per_page: 100 }
+              );
+              msg = commits.at(-1)?.commit?.message || '';
+            }
+            const title = context.payload.pull_request?.title || '';
+            const body  = context.payload.pull_request?.body  || '';
+            const skip = token.test(msg) || token.test(title) || token.test(body);
+            core.setOutput('skip', String(skip));
+
   docker-e2e-tests-1st:
     # Run this job first as a gate for running the remainder of the test matrix
-    if: ${{ ! contains(github.event.commits[0].message, '[skip e2e]') && github.repository_owner == 'axolotl-ai-cloud' && !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
+    if: >
+      github.repository_owner == 'axolotl-ai-cloud' &&
+      (github.event_name != 'pull_request' || !github.event.pull_request.draft) &&
+      needs.gate-skip-e2e.outputs.skip != 'true'
     # this job needs to be run on self-hosted GPU runners...
     runs-on: [self-hosted, modal]
     timeout-minutes: 120
-    needs: [pre-commit, pytest, pytest-sdist]
+    needs: [pre-commit, pytest, pytest-sdist, gate-skip-e2e]
 
     strategy:
       fail-fast: false
@@ -240,13 +271,16 @@ jobs:
           modal run cicd.e2e_tests
 
   docker-e2e-tests:
-    if: ${{ github.repository_owner == 'axolotl-ai-cloud' && !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
+    if: >
+      github.repository_owner == 'axolotl-ai-cloud' &&
+      (github.event_name != 'pull_request' || !github.event.pull_request.draft) &&
+      needs.gate-skip-e2e.outputs.skip != 'true'
     # this job needs to be run on self-hosted GPU runners...
     runs-on: [self-hosted, modal]
     timeout-minutes: 120
     # Only run the remainder of the matrix if the first e2e check passed;
     # this is to save on wasted compute costs for known failures that get caught in the first run
-    needs: [pre-commit, pytest, docker-e2e-tests-1st]
+    needs: [pre-commit, pytest, gate-skip-e2e, docker-e2e-tests-1st]
 
     strategy:
       fail-fast: false