Comment by pwython

> Because it's all very clearly spelled out within the code itself.

You're probably burning tokens. A markdown file with a summary, structure of your project, rules, and even goals prevents Claude from hunting for and reading files over and over. Each new session (or after compact) would be starting from scratch. I take it a step further and create a HANDOFF.md file between compacting that gives the next session full context of what was done and how to continue.

Also:

"Treat CLAUDE.md as the place you write down what you’d otherwise re-explain. Add to it when:

Claude makes the same mistake a second time

A code review catches something Claude should have known about this codebase

You type the same correction or clarification into chat that you typed last session"

https://code.claude.com/docs/en/memory#claude-md-files