claude-code-best-practice/README.md

claude-code-best-practice

practice makes claude perfect

Click on this badge to show the latest best practice
Click on this badge to show implementation in this repo
Click on this badge to see the Command → Agent → Skills orchestration workflow

CONCEPTS

Feature	Location	Description
Skills	.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md	Reusable knowledge, workflows, and slash commands — load on-demand or invoke with /skill-name
Commands	.claude/commands/<name>.md	Entry-point prompts for workflows — invoke with /command-name
Sub-Agents	.claude/agents/<name>.md	Custom agents with their own name, color, tools, permissions, and model — usable as main agent or isolated subagents via the Task tool
Memory	CLAUDE.md	Persistent context via CLAUDE.md files and @path imports that Claude sees every session
Rules	.claude/rules/*.md	Modular topic-specific instructions with optional path-scoping via frontmatter
Hooks	.claude/hooks/	Deterministic scripts that run outside the agentic loop on specific events
MCP Servers	.claude/settings.json	Model Context Protocol connections to external tools, databases, and APIs
Plugins	distributable packages	Bundles of skills, subagents, hooks, and MCP servers
Marketplaces	plugin registries	Host and discover plugin collections
Sandboxing	runtime config	File and network isolation that improves safety while reducing permission prompts
Output Styles	.claude/settings.json	Configurable response tone and format — Explanatory, Learning, or Custom
Settings	.claude/settings.json	Hierarchical configuration system for Claude Code behavior (37 settings, 84 env vars)
Permissions	.claude/settings.json	Fine-grained access control for tools and operations with wildcard syntax

Note: Custom slash commands have been merged into skills. Files in .claude/commands/ still work, but skills (.claude/skills/) are recommended as they support additional features like supporting files, invocation control, and subagent execution.

💎 HIDDEN GEMS

Reports that are frequently updated as Claude Code evolves.

Report	Description
Claude Code Commands Reference	Complete reference of all slash commands, keyboard shortcuts, and input modes
Claude Code Settings Reference	Comprehensive guide to all settings.json configuration options
Subagents Reference	Complete reference for Claude Code subagents — built-in agents, custom agents, and frontmatter fields
Commands Frontmatter Reference	Complete reference of all command (.claude/commands/) frontmatter fields
Skills Frontmatter Reference	Complete reference of all skill (.claude/skills/) frontmatter fields

MY EXPERIENCE

■ Workflows

• Claude.md should not exceed 150+ lines. (still not 100% guaranteed)
• use commands for your workflows instead of agents
• have feature specific subagents (extra context) with skills (progressive disclosure) instead of general qa, backend engineer.
• /memory, /rules, constitution.md does not guarantee anything
• do manual /compact at max 50%
• always start with plan mode
• subtasks should be so small that it can be completed in less than 50% context
• vanilla cc is better than any workflows with smaller tasks
• commit often, as soon as task is completed, commit.

■ Utilities

• iTerm terminal instead of IDE (crash issue)
• Wispr Flow for voice prompting (10x productivity)
• claude-code-voice-hooks for claude feedback
• status line for context awareness and fast compacting
• git worktrees for parallel development
• /permissions with wildcard syntax (Bash(npm run *), Edit(/docs/**)) instead of dangerously-skip-permissions
• /sandbox to reduce permission prompts with file and network isolation
• output styles: use Explanatory when learning a new codebase, Learning for coaching
• /keybindings to remap any key, settings live reload

■ Debugging

• /doctor
• always ask claude to run the terminal (you want to see logs of) as a background task for better debugging
• use mcp (claude in chrome, playwright, chrome dev tool) to let claude see chrome console logs on its own
• provide screenshots of the issue

TIPS FROM BORIS CHERNY (CREATOR OF CLAUDE CODE)

• Feb 2026 - 12 Tips (Reddit thread)

CONTEXT ENGINEERING

• Humanlayer - Writing a good Claude.md
• Claude.md for larger monorepos - Boris Cherny on X

WORKFLOWS

• RPI
• Boris Feb26 workflow
• Ralph plugin with sandbox
• Human Layer RPI - Research Plan Implement
• AgentOs - 2026 its overkill (Brian Casel)
• Github Speckit
• GSD - Get Shit Done
• OpenSpec OPSX
• Superpower
• Andrej Karpathy Workflow
• Creator of Clawd Bot Workflow

CLAUDE CODE FEATURES INSPIRATION

• Claude Code Tasks - inspired by beats Inspiration
• Ralph Plugin

Multi-step workflows using the Command → Agent → Skills architecture pattern.

Component	Role	Example
Command	Entry point, user interaction	/weather-orchestrator
Agent	Orchestrates workflow with preloaded skills	weather agent
Skills	Domain knowledge injected at startup	weather-fetcher, weather-transformer

When to use: Multi-step workflows • Domain-specific knowledge injection • Sequential tasks • Reusable components

Why it works: Progressive disclosure • Single execution context • Clean separation • Reusability

See orchestration-workflow for implementation details.

AI TERMS

Agentic Engineering	AI Slop	Context Bloat	Context Engineering	Context Rot
Dumb Zone	Hallucination	Scaffolding	Orchestration	Vibe Coding

See Complete List →

CLI STARTUP FLAGS

--dangerously-skip-permissions	--model	--print	--resume	--continue
--system-prompt	--verbose	--debug	--init	--max-turns

See Complete List →

CLAUDE COMMANDS

/compact	/context	/model	/plan	/config
/clear	/cost	/memory	/doctor	/rewind

See Complete List →

CLAUDE SETTINGS

Claude Settings	Global vs Project Settings

MCP SERVERS FOR DAILY USE

"Went overboard with 15 MCP servers thinking more = better. Ended up using only 4 daily." — r/mcp (682 upvotes)

MCP Server	What It Does	Resources
Context7	Fetches up-to-date library docs into context. Prevents hallucinated APIs from outdated training data	Reddit: "by far the best MCP for coding" · npm
Playwright	Browser automation — implement, test, and verify UI features autonomously. Screenshots, navigation, form testing	Reddit: essential for frontend · Docs
Claude in Chrome	Connects Claude to your real Chrome browser — inspect console, network, DOM. Debug what users actually see	Reddit: "game changer" for debugging · Comparison Report
DeepWiki	Fetches structured wiki-style documentation for any GitHub repo — architecture, API surface, relationships	Reddit: "put it behind a gateway with Context7"
Excalidraw	Generate architecture diagrams, flowcharts, and system designs as hand-drawn Excalidraw sketches from prompts	GitHub

Research (Context7/DeepWiki) -> Debug (Playwright/Chrome) -> Document (Excalidraw)

REPORTS

Report	Description
Agent SDK vs CLI System Prompts	Why Claude CLI and Agent SDK outputs may differ—system prompt architecture and determinism
Browser Automation MCP Comparison	Comparison of Playwright, Chrome DevTools, and Claude in Chrome for automated testing
Claude Code CLI Startup Flags	Complete reference of all CLI flags, subcommands, and environment variables
CLAUDE.md Loading in Monorepos	Understanding ancestor vs descendant loading behavior for CLAUDE.md files
Global vs Project Settings	Which features are global-only (~/.claude/) vs dual-scope, including Tasks and Agent Teams
Skills Discovery in Monorepos	How skills are discovered and loaded in large monorepo projects
Agent Memory Frontmatter	Persistent memory scopes (user, project, local) for subagents — enabling agents to learn across sessions
Boris Cherny's 12 Customization Tips	12 ways to customize Claude Code — from terminal config to plugins, agents, hooks, and output styles
Advanced Tool Use Patterns	Programmatic Tool Calling (PTC), Tool Search, and Tool Use Examples
Usage, Rate Limits & Extra Usage	Usage commands (/usage, /extra-usage, /cost), rate limits, and pay-as-you-go overflow billing
Claude Code Commands Reference	Complete reference of all slash commands, keyboard shortcuts, and input modes
Claude Code Settings Reference	Comprehensive guide to all settings.json configuration options
Subagents Reference	Complete reference for Claude Code subagents — built-in agents, custom agents, and frontmatter fields
Commands Frontmatter Reference	Complete reference of all command (.claude/commands/) frontmatter fields
Skills Frontmatter Reference	Complete reference of all skill (.claude/skills/) frontmatter fields