What is a .clinerules file?

.clinerules is the project-instructions file the Cline AI coding agent reads to learn how to work in your repository — its stack, key commands, conventions, what not to do, and the definition of done. It can be a single .clinerules file at the repo root, or a .clinerules/ folder containing several Markdown rule files that Cline combines. Cline also supports global rules that apply across all your projects, and a Rules popover to toggle individual rules on and off.

What should go in Cline rules?

A one-line project overview, the stack, the key commands (build/test/lint/deploy), conventions and coding style the agent must follow, explicit don't-dos, and your definition of done. Keep it lean — research found bloated, dump-everything context files lowered task success ~3% and raised cost 20%+, while short curated ones improved success ~4%. Split large rule sets into a .clinerules/ folder, one file per concern.

What is the difference between a .clinerules file and a .clinerules folder?

A single .clinerules file is the simplest setup — one Markdown file at the repo root. A .clinerules/ folder lets you split rules into multiple Markdown files (for example testing.md, style.md, architecture.md); Cline combines them into the active context, and you can enable or disable individual files from the Cline Rules popover. Use the file for small projects and the folder when your rules grow or you want to toggle sets per task.

Are Cline rules the same as CLAUDE.md or a Cursor rules file?

The content is the same; .clinerules is just where Cline looks, CLAUDE.md is where Claude Code looks, .cursor/rules is where Cursor looks, and AGENTS.md is the open standard read by many tools. The clean setup is one source of truth — keep AGENTS.md canonical and generate or mirror the per-tool files from it so the guidance never drifts.

Cline rules (.clinerules)

.clinerules are the project instructions the Cline AI coding agent reads at session start to learn your project — stack, commands, conventions, what not to do, definition of done. Use a single .clinerules file at your repo root, or a .clinerules/ folder of modular rule files; Cline also supports global rules.

Generate your .clinerules free →

What are Cline rules?

Plain-Markdown instructions Cline loads into context automatically when you work in a repo. Their job is to give the agent the context a new teammate would need. It's the Cline-native version of the same idea as AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, and Cursor rules — same content, read from .clinerules.

What goes in a .clinerules file?

Overview — one line on what the project is.
Stack — languages, framework, database, key libraries.
Commands — build, test, lint, dev, deploy.
Conventions — the decisions and coding style the agent must follow.
Don't — explicit anti-patterns and off-limits areas.
Definition of done — what must be true before a change ships.

.clinerules example

# Acme Web

> Senior full-stack engineer. Small, reviewable diffs. Tests with every change.

## Stack
Next.js 15 (App Router) · TypeScript · Tailwind · Drizzle ORM · Postgres

## Commands
- Build: `pnpm build`
- Test: `pnpm test`
- Lint: `pnpm lint && pnpm typecheck`

## Conventions
- Server components by default; "use client" only when needed.
- All DB access through src/db/ (Drizzle) — never raw SQL in routes.

## Don't
- Don't add dependencies without asking.
- Don't commit secrets — use .env.local (see .env.example).

## Definition of done
- Lint + tests pass; new UI works at 375px.

Make one for your project →

Cline-specific: file vs folder, and global rules

Single file. The simplest setup: one .clinerules Markdown file at your repo root. Great for small projects.
.clinerules/ folder. Split rules into several Markdown files — e.g. testing.md, style.md, architecture.md. Cline combines them into the active context, so big rule sets stay organised instead of one giant file.
Toggle rules. Cline's Rules popover lets you enable or disable individual rule files, so you can switch sets on per task without deleting anything.
Global rules. Beyond the project file, Cline supports global rules that apply across all your projects — your personal, cross-project preferences, read in addition to .clinerules.

Best practices

Keep it lean. ETH Zurich's Evaluating AGENTS.md found dump-everything files lowered task success ~3% and raised cost 20%+, while short curated ones improved success ~4%. Split large sets into a .clinerules/ folder rather than one bloated file.
Be specific. "DB access through src/db/" beats "write clean code."
One source of truth. If you also run other agents, keep AGENTS.md canonical and generate or mirror your .clinerules from it — don't maintain copies that drift.
Check it into git so the team shares the project rules; keep personal prefs in Cline's global rules.

.clinerules vs CLAUDE.md vs AGENTS.md

Same guidance, different readers — AGENTS.md is the open standard (many tools), CLAUDE.md is Claude Code's, GEMINI.md is Gemini CLI's, and .clinerules is Cline's (with the file-or-folder format + global rules). The clean setup is one canonical file the rest import or are generated from. Full breakdown: AGENTS.md vs CLAUDE.md →

Generate .clinerules (and AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, GEMINI.md, Cursor, Copilot) — free

Fill in your project's rules once and get every file, correctly formatted, with a token-budget warning so they stay lean. No signup.

Open the Agent Memory Compiler →

Keep it in sync with your work

Generated files drift the moment your project changes. In TaskPrio your rules live in one place and your agents pull them over MCP with get_next_task — the memory and the task queue become one source of truth. Edit once; every agent stays current. See the MCP queue →

FAQ

What is .clinerules?

Cline's project-rules file, auto-loaded at session start — stack, commands, conventions, don't-dos, definition of done. A single .clinerules file or a .clinerules/ folder, plus global rules.

What goes in it?

Overview, stack, commands, conventions, don't-dos, definition of done — kept lean; split big sets into a .clinerules/ folder.

Is it the same as CLAUDE.md or Cursor rules?

Same content, different reader. Keep one source: make AGENTS.md canonical and generate the per-tool files from it.

Generate your .clinerules → AGENTS.md vs CLAUDE.md →