Claude Code vs JulesComparisonUpdated 2026-03-16
SUMMARY
Claude Code (CLI) uses markdown configuration while Jules (Agent) uses markdown. They differ on 4 of 11 compared features. Both tools provide AI-assisted development but take different approaches to project configuration.
FEATURE COMPARISON
| Feature | Claude Code | Jules |
|---|---|---|
| Config format | markdown | markdown |
| Hierarchy support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Global config | ✓ | ✗ |
| Project config | ✓ | ✓ |
| Subdirectory scoping | ✓ | ✓ |
| File inclusion / imports | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ignore file | .claudeignore | ✗ |
| IDE integration | CLI | Agent |
| Schema / structure | Free-form (Markdown) | Free-form (Markdown) |
| Git committed | ✓ | ✓ |
| Encoding | UTF-8 | UTF-8 |
FILE MAPPING
SIDE-BY-SIDE CODE SAMPLES
Claude Code
CLAUDE.md
markdown
# Project Name
> TypeScript + React monorepo. Deployed on Vercel.
## Code Style
- TypeScript strict mode — no `any`, no `ts-ignore`
- Named exports only (no default exports)
- Prefer functional patterns: map/filter/reduce over for-loops
- Error handling: use Result<T, E> from `src/lib/result.ts`
## Architecture
- `src/routes/` — Route handlers (thin layer, delegates to services)
- `src/services/` — Business logic, one file per domain entity
- `src/db/` — Drizzle ORM schema and query helpers
- `src/lib/` — Shared utilities (logger, result type, validation)
## Commands
```bash
pnpm install # Install dependencies
pnpm dev # Start dev server (port 3000)
pnpm test # Run Vitest suite
pnpm test:e2e # Run Playwright tests
pnpm lint # ESLint + Prettier check
pnpm db:migrate # Run pending Drizzle migrations
```
## Git Conventions
- Conventional Commits: `feat:`, `fix:`, `chore:`, `docs:`
- Branch naming: `feat/short-description`, `fix/issue-number`
- Squash merge to main; delete branches after merge
## Notes
- The `src/legacy/` directory is being migrated. Do not add new code there.
- All dates are stored as UTC. Never use local time.
@docs/api-patterns.md
@docs/database-conventions.md
Jules
AGENTS.md
markdown
# Agent Instructions
## Project
A Django REST API serving a React frontend.
## Setup
- Python 3.12 with Poetry
- PostgreSQL 15
- Redis for caching and Celery broker
## Key Commands
- poetry run python manage.py runserver
- poetry run pytest
- poetry run mypy .
## Pull Request Guidelines
- Keep PRs focused on a single issue
- Add tests for all new functionality
- Update API docs in docs/api/ if endpoints change
- Run the linter: poetry run ruff check .
## Architecture Notes
- apps/core/ — shared models and utilities
- apps/api/v2/ — current API version
- apps/tasks/ — Celery background tasks
KEY DIFFERENCES
Claude Code: Supported. Jules: Not supported.
Claude Code: Supported. Jules: Not supported.
Claude Code: .claudeignore. Jules: Not supported.
Claude Code: CLI. Jules: Agent.
WHICH SHOULD I USE?
Choose based on your IDE/CLI preference. If you use Claude Code, configure CLAUDE.md. If you use Jules, configure AGENTS.md. Many projects include config files for multiple tools so each team member can use their preferred editor.
PORTABILITY TIP
sync-instructions.sh
bash
# Maintain a single source of truth:
cp AI-INSTRUCTIONS.md CLAUDE.md
cp AI-INSTRUCTIONS.md .cursorrules
cp AI-INSTRUCTIONS.md AGENTS.md
SEE ALSO
Tool pages:
agentconfig.ing2026-03-16COMPARE(1)