Coding

Architecture

Design systems and evaluate trade-offs before writing code.

Knowledge cards
Knowledge card
Write the Decision Record Before the Code
A pattern where, before implementing a significant choice, you have Claude draft a short Architecture Decision Record — the context, the decision, the alternatives rejected, and the consequences — so the reasoning is written down and durable.
L3 · Workflows
Knowledge card
Design the Interface With Claude Before Writing Any Code
A planning move: use Claude to nail down the public interface, data shapes, and boundaries of a component before a single line of implementation is written.
L3 · Workflows
Knowledge card
Make Claude Name the Trade-offs, Not Just the Winner
A decision pattern where you make Claude lay out the trade-offs of a design as an explicit table — options as rows, the criteria you care about as columns — instead of just handing you a recommendation.
L3 · Workflows
Knowledge card
Ask for Three Designs Before You Pick One
A design pattern where you ask Claude to propose three distinct approaches to a problem — with their trade-offs — before it writes any code or commits to one, then you choose and only then build.
L3 · Workflows
Claude for architecture

Design before you code

The most expensive mistakes happen before a line is written, which is exactly where Claude can help. Use it to think through the design first: describe the problem, the constraints, and the forces at play, and ask it to propose approaches with their trade-offs rather than jumping to an implementation. A good architecture conversation surfaces the decisions — data model, boundaries, failure modes — while they are still cheap to change. Getting these right up front saves far more time than any amount of fast coding later.

Make it argue the trade-offs

Do not let Claude hand you a single design as if it were the only option. Ask for two or three approaches and an honest comparison — what each optimises for, what it costs, where it breaks under load or change. Push it to name the assumptions behind each. This turns Claude from a code generator into a design partner, and it gives you a decision you can defend rather than a default you accepted. Then take the chosen design into implementation one layer at a time.

Frequently asked
Can Claude help with software architecture?

Yes. Describe the problem, constraints, and forces, and have Claude propose approaches with trade-offs before any code. Getting the design right up front is where the biggest savings are.

How do I get honest trade-offs from Claude?

Ask for two or three approaches and a comparison of what each optimises for and costs, plus the assumptions behind them — rather than accepting a single proposed design.

When should I involve Claude in design?

Before writing code, when decisions about data model, boundaries, and failure modes are still cheap to change. Design conversations prevent expensive rework later.