Claude Code Templates: Skeleton Projects for Rapid Development

Problem: Every new project means rebuilding the same folder structures, configs, and boilerplate from scratch.

Quick Win: Run /init in any project folder to generate a starter CLAUDE.md with your project conventions:

cd my-new-project
claude
/init

Claude analyzes your codebase structure and creates a CLAUDE.md file with detected patterns, file conventions, and project-specific instructions. Two minutes to a configured project foundation.

How Claude Code Actually Handles Templates

Claude Code does not just find templates - it understands them. When you point Claude at a starter repo, it reads every file, maps the architecture, and explains what each piece does before you change anything.

The real power is customization. Claude can:

• Clone and analyze any GitHub template in your terminal
• Explain the structure so you understand before modifying
• Swap technologies (Prisma to Supabase, REST to tRPC) while preserving patterns
• Store conventions in CLAUDE.md so future sessions remember your setup

This is not generic "AI finds templates" - this is your terminal-based coding partner actually reading and adapting code.

The /init Command: Your Starting Point

Every Claude Code project should start with /init. This built-in command generates a CLAUDE.md file tailored to your specific codebase:

claude
/init

Claude scans your project and creates instructions covering:

• Detected frameworks and their conventions
• Build commands and test patterns
• File structure overview
• Code style preferences it observed

Pro tip: Edit the generated CLAUDE.md to add your preferences. Claude reads this file at session start, so your conventions persist across every future session. Learn more in our CLAUDE.md Mastery guide.

Clone, Analyze, Customize Workflow

Here is the Claude Code-specific workflow for working with any template:

# Step 1: Clone and understand
claude "clone https://github.com/example/nextjs-starter and explain its architecture"
 
# Step 2: Customize for your stack
claude "replace Prisma with Supabase, keep the same data patterns"
 
# Step 3: Save your conventions
claude "update CLAUDE.md with our new database setup and auth patterns"

Claude remembers context within your session, so each step builds on the last. No copy-pasting between tools or losing track of what changed.

Store Template Patterns in CLAUDE.md

Your CLAUDE.md becomes your personal template library. Add sections for patterns you reuse:

## Project Conventions
 
### API Routes
- All API routes in /app/api
- Use Zod for validation
- Return typed responses with ApiResponse<T>
 
### Database
- Supabase client in /lib/supabase
- Row-level security on all tables
- Migrations in /supabase/migrations

Now Claude applies these conventions automatically. Ask it to "add a new API endpoint" and it follows your established patterns without re-explaining them.

When Things Go Wrong

Error: "CLAUDE.md not found" Fix: Run /init or create the file manually in your project root.

Error: Claude ignores your template conventions Fix: Check that your CLAUDE.md is in the project root. Claude only reads it from the current working directory. See context management for more details.

Error: Template has outdated dependencies Fix: Ask Claude directly:

claude "update all dependencies to latest stable versions and fix any breaking changes"

Extract Your Own Templates

Built something good? Turn it into a reusable template:

claude "extract the reusable patterns from this project into a template structure, document what each piece does in CLAUDE.md"

Claude identifies the generalizable parts, strips project-specific code, and documents the template for future use.

What You Can Do Now

You just learned how Claude Code handles templates differently - through understanding and customization, not just discovery.

Next steps:

• Run /init in your current project right now
• Check out Git Integration for version control with Claude
• Master Feedback Loops for rapid iteration
• Explore Efficiency Patterns to speed up your workflow