You Are Right — You Don't Need CLAUDE.md You don't need it the same way you don't need types in your JavaScript, comments in your code, or tests in your repo. It will work without them. Until it doesn't. I've been watching the "you don't need CLAUDE.md" takes pile up this week, and most of them have a point. A bad CLAUDE.md is worse than no CLAUDE.md. Vague instructions, conflicting rules, 200 lines of motivational filler — all of that turns Claude into a confused intern instead of a focused engineer. But the real problem isn't the file. It's the rules. The case for skipping it The skeptics are right about three things: Most CLAUDE.md files are bloated. "Be concise. Be helpful. Use clean code." Claude already knows. You're burning context for nothing. Rules drift. You write a rule on Monday, the codebase moves on Tuesday, the rule lies to the model on Wednesday. The default model is already strong. For toy projects, throwaway scripts, one-off prototypes — you genuinely do not need CLAUDE.md.…