kyuna0312/Optimize Claude.md

Optimize Claude.md

Read, analyze, and rewrite claude.md (or CLAUDE.md) to reduce token cost while preserving all meaningful constraints. Target: under 300 tokens.

Step 1: Find and Read the File

Check these locations in order:

1. ./CLAUDE.md (project root)
2. ./claude.md
3. ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md (global)
4. ~/.claude/claude.md

Read the file. Count approximate word count.

Step 2: Analyze Content

Categorize each section:

| Category | Keep? | Action | |----------|-------|--------| | Coding style rules | Yes | Compress to bullets | | Project structure | Yes | One-line per item | | Important constraints | Yes | Keep verbatim | | Pleasantries / tone instructions | Maybe | Cut if not essential | | Repeated instructions | No | Remove duplicates | | Obvious defaults | No | Remove ("always use git" etc.) | | Long explanations | No | Replace with one-line rule | | Examples longer than 3 lines | No | Remove or move to references/ |

Step 3: Rewrite

Apply these compression rules:

1. Bullets over prose — Replace paragraphs with bullet lists
2. Imperative tense — "Use TypeScript strict mode" not "You should use TypeScript strict mode"
3. No justifications — Remove "because X" explanations
4. Merge related rules — Combine similar rules into one line
5. Cut obvious defaults — Remove anything Claude does by default anyway

Target structure:

# Project: [NAME]
Stack: [tech stack, one line]

## Code Style
- [rule 1]
- [rule 2]

## Constraints
- [hard constraint 1]
- [hard constraint 2]

## Structure
- [key path 1]: [purpose]
- [key path 2]: [purpose]

Step 4: Show Diff and Confirm

Present:

BEFORE: ~[N] words (~[N*1.3] tokens)
AFTER:  ~[N] words (~[N*1.3] tokens)
Reduction: [%]%

Show the optimized version. Ask user to confirm before writing.

Step 5: Write File

On confirmation, overwrite the file with the optimized version.

Additional Resources

• references/claudemd-templates.md — Optimized claude.md templates for common project types