Awesome AI Skills & Rules | Skill Files and Rule Sets for AI IDEs
Where this stops working: this is a list, not a review. Inclusion means someone uses it in a cross-border e-commerce context, not that each was tested. AI IDEs iterate fast and entries go stale — check the vendor’s own docs before relying on one.
Skills, steering files, and rules for AI IDEs (Kiro/Cursor/Windsurf/Claude Code). Make AI work to your standards instead of re-explaining them every session. Last updated: 2026-03-15
Contents
- What are AI Skills / Rules
- External awesome lists and resources
- Kiro Skills & Steering Files
- Cursor Rules
- Claude Code SKILL.md
- Recommended skills for e-commerce development
What are AI Skills / Rules
AI skills are persistent instructions for an AI assistant. Written once, followed automatically — no repeating yourself in every chat.
| Platform | File | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kiro | *.md | .kiro/skills/ or .kiro/steering/ | Steering files persist project conventions |
| Cursor | .cursorrules or .mdc | project root | Custom AI code-generation rules |
| Claude Code | SKILL.md | project root | Reusable AI coding instructions |
| Windsurf | .windsurfrules | project root | Similar to Cursor Rules |
External Awesome Lists and Resources
Cursor Rules collections
| Name | Stars | Description | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| awesome-cursorrules (PatrickJS) | 23.6K | The largest Cursor Rules collection, by language/framework | GitHub |
| awesome-cursor-rules (blefnk) | popular | Frontend-optimized (Next.js/React/TypeScript/Tailwind) | GitHub |
| awesome-cursor-rules-mdc (sanjeed5) | curated | Cursor Rules in .mdc format | GitHub |
| Cursor-Rules (UltraInstinct0x) | practical | Focused on rules that produce runnable code | GitHub |
Directory sites
| Site | Description | Link |
|---|---|---|
| ExtMC | Searchable Cursor Rules directory, filter by framework/stack | extmc.com |
| PromptGenius | Cross-IDE AI rules guide (Cursor/Windsurf/Copilot) | promptgenius.net |
| GitHub Topics: cursorrules | Every cursorrules project on GitHub | GitHub Topics |
In-depth guides
| Article | Source | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| How To Write Rules for AI Coding Tools | VirtusLab | Best practices for writing AI rules |
| How to Develop SKILL.md for AI Coding Agents | MTechZilla | Production-grade SKILL.md guide |
| How to Guide AI With Rules and Tests | freeCodeCamp | Steering AI with rules and tests |
| Beyond the Vibes: A Rigorous Guide | tedivm | A rigorous guide to AI coding assistants |
Sources: VirtusLab, MTechZilla, freeCodeCamp, tedivm.
Kiro Skills & Steering Files
Kiro uses steering files to provide persistent project knowledge (Kiro Docs).
| Type | Location | Trigger | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Always-on | .kiro/steering/*.md | loaded on every conversation | Project conventions, coding standards |
| File-match | .kiro/steering/*.md + frontmatter | loaded when matching files are read | Rules for specific file types |
| Manual | .kiro/steering/*.md + inclusion: manual | referenced manually with # | On-demand reference docs |
| Skills | .kiro/skills/*.md | activated on demand | Reusable task instructions |
E-commerce steering example
Steering files used by this project (CBEC-AI-Hub):
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
product.md | Project context (Amazon account management, cross-border e-commerce) |
structure.md | Project structure (file organization, naming conventions) |
tech.md | Tech stack (Python/TypeScript/Chart.js) |
Cursor Rules
Cursor Rules define custom rules for AI code generation (PatrickJS).
Recommended rules for e-commerce development
| Rule | Fits | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Python Projects Guide | Python e-commerce scripting | PatrickJS |
| Python Flask JSON | Flask API development | PatrickJS |
| React TypeScript shadcn/ui | Shopify frontend / dashboards | PatrickJS |
| Security Rules | Secure AI coding | GitHub Topics |
Claude Code SKILL.md
SKILL.md is a structured instruction file for AI coding agents such as Claude Code, Roo Code, OpenAI Codex, and Cursor. Write it once; the agent reads and applies it automatically (MTechZilla).
SKILL.md structure
# Skill Name
## Context
Project background and tech stack
## Instructions
Concrete coding rules and constraints
## Examples
Good code examples vs. bad ones
## Constraints
Hard limits (security/performance/style)
Recommended Skills for E-Commerce Development
By role
| Role | Recommended tools | Recommended skills/rules |
|---|---|---|
| Python developer | Kiro + Claude Code | Steering files (tech.md) + SKILL.md (Python conventions) |
| Frontend developer | Cursor | React/TypeScript rules + Shopify Liquid rules |
| Full-stack | Kiro | Steering + MCP config + skills |
Quick start
# Kiro: create steering files
mkdir -p .kiro/steering
echo "# Project conventions\nYour coding rules..." > .kiro/steering/rules.md
# Cursor: create rules
echo "You are a Python e-commerce development expert..." > .cursorrules