1 min lesson
The actual file mechanics (so you're not hand-waving)
Use "Cursor writes an .mdc file under .cursor/rules" to say what you would do next.
Step 1 of 3
The actual file mechanics (so you're not hand-waving)where these live and how they fire
Create a Project Rule in Settings > Rules, Skills, and Sub Agents > project > Rules > New > Project rule. Cursor writes an .mdc file under .cursor/rules; Always Apply attaches it to every prompt, Apply Intelligently uses its description, Apply to Specific Files follows a glob such as **/handlers/*.ts and Apply Manually waits for an @ mention, so pick the narrowest setting that reliably reaches the work.
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Advanced table
Apply to Specific Files is the workhorse
- Apply setting
- Always Apply
- When it fires
- Attached to every single prompt
- Use it for
- One-sentence basics only (tech stack, what you're building, key constraints)
- Apply setting
- Apply Intelligently
- When it fires
- Agent reads your description and pulls it in when it judges it relevant
- Use it for
- Conditional guidance (a skill is now usually the better tool here)
- Apply setting
- Apply to Specific Files
- When it fires
- Auto-attached only when a file matching its glob (e.g.
**/handlers/*.ts) is touched - Use it for
- Path-scoped conventions - the workhorse
- Apply setting
- Apply Manually
- When it fires
- Only when you
@-mention it while prompting - Use it for
- Large content like a full style guide, run as a post-feature audit
| Apply setting | When it fires | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Always Apply | Attached to every single prompt | One-sentence basics only (tech stack, what you're building, key constraints) |
| Apply Intelligently | Agent reads your description and pulls it in when it judges it relevant | Conditional guidance (a skill is now usually the better tool here) |
| Apply to Specific Files | Auto-attached only when a file matching its glob (e.g. **/handlers/*.ts) is touched | Path-scoped conventions - the workhorse |
| Apply Manually | Only when you @-mention it while prompting | Large content like a full style guide, run as a post-feature audit |
Apply to Specific Files is the workhorse. The setting decides when a rule enters context, never what it says - so scope it before you lengthen it.
Don't confuse the apply setting with the rule type. There are four of those too: Project RulesVersion-controlled instructions in the repo that every Cursor agent interaction inherits, so standards are encoded once. Press Enter for the full definition. (the .mdc files above), User Rules (your personal preferences, not the repo's), Team RulesRules promoted to apply across a whole organisation and shared consistently between the Cursor IDE, Agent and Bugbot. Press Enter for the full definition. (free-form text an admin sets centrally, with glob support and an Enforce this rule toggle that members can't switch off in Customize) and AGENTS.md. When guidance conflicts, precedence runs Team Rules → Project Rules → User Rules. Team Rules are the only layer an admin can genuinely enforce, which is why they come up early in an enterprise conversation.