Cursor AI — Advanced Tips and Tricks

@package.json Fix the dependencies
@api.js Refactor to use async/await

@updateUser Add authentication check to this function
Cursor finds and analyzes the function

1. Select multiple lines
2. Ctrl+K
3. Ask about selection
4. Cursor provides focused response

1. Write comprehensive tests
   function test_user_creation() { ... }

2. Select test file
3. Ctrl+K > "Implement code to pass these tests"
4. Cursor generates implementation
5. Run tests to verify

1. Identify pattern to refactor
2. Ctrl+K > "Find all places using old pattern"
3. Review findings
4. Ctrl+K > "Refactor all to use new approach"
5. Cursor applies changes across codebase

1. Select function
2. Ctrl+K > "Is this function performant? Suggest optimizations"
3. Cursor analyzes complexity
4. Apply suggestions
5. Measure improvement

1. Select entire file
2. Ctrl+K > "Add TypeScript type annotations"
3. Cursor adds complete type safety
4. Review and test

1. Hit breakpoint
2. Cursor shows variable values
3. Select expression
4. Ctrl+K > "Explain this value"
5. Cursor explains why value is what it is

1. Select function
2. Ctrl+Shift+K > "Generate OpenAPI docs"
3. Cursor creates specification
4. Export for API gateway

Select function
Ctrl+K > "Generate tests using: TDD, BDD, Property-based"
Cursor provides examples of each

1. Exclude unnecessary files from index
2. Use @filename to explicitly include relevant files
3. Chat considers included context
4. More focused responses

1. Ctrl+H (Find and Replace)
2. Use regex for complex patterns
3. Preview all changes
4. Ask Cursor: "Are these replacements correct?"

1. Stage changes
2. Ctrl+K > "Write commit message explaining these changes"
3. Cursor generates detailed message
4. Commit

Or: Compare branches
1. View git diff
2. Ask: "What's different between these branches?"

1. Open file with issues
2. Ctrl+K > "Fix all linting errors"
3. Cursor applies fixes
4. Maintain code style consistency

1. Select code section
2. Ctrl+K > "Identify security vulnerabilities"
3. Cursor highlights risks
4. Suggest fixes

Create .cursor/rules.txt

Add project guidelines:
- Code style preferences
- Naming conventions
- Architecture patterns
- Technology choices

Cursor learns and applies consistently

{
  "indexIncludes": ["src/", "lib/"],
  "indexExcludes": ["node_modules", "build", "dist", "test"]
}

{
  "languages": {
    "python": {
      "linter": "pylint",
      "formatter": "black",
      "typeChecker": "mypy"
    }
  }
}

1. Create template file: src/templates/Component.tsx.template
2. Use placeholders: {{componentName}}, {{props}}
3. Ctrl+K > "Generate component from template"
4. Cursor fills in template with appropriate values

1. Paste SQL query
2. Ctrl+K > "Translate to ORM (SQLAlchemy/Prisma)"
3. Get typed ORM code
4. Or: "Optimize this query"

[
  {
    "key": "cmd+shift+d",
    "command": "cursor.generateDocs"
  },
  {
    "key": "cmd+shift+t",
    "command": "cursor.generateTests"
  }
]

1. Select multiple related files
2. Ctrl+K > "Update authentication across these files"
3. Cursor makes consistent changes

1. Paste pull request diff
2. Ctrl+K > "Review this code for: security, performance, best practices"
3. Get comprehensive review

1. Select package.json
2. Ctrl+K > "Update all dependencies safely"
3. Or: "What are breaking changes in these updates?"
4. Or: "Remove unused dependencies"

1. Have build log open
2. Ctrl+K > "Why is build failing?"
3. Cursor analyzes logs
4. Suggests fixes
5. Applies changes and rebuilds

Hover over code you're reading
Ctrl+K > "Explain this pattern"
Cursor explains the code in context
Accelerates learning on unfamiliar codebases

Create team-specific prompts:
- Common refactoring patterns
- Architecture decisions
- Code review standards
- Performance benchmarks

Use Cursor to generate:
- Performance monitoring code
- Logging statements
- Metrics collection code
- Health checks