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Learn Cursor

AI code editor built on VS Code: Tab, inline edits, agents and rules

24 lessons · 4 hours · 4 levels · covers Cursor 3.x (Cursor IDE 3.24, Oct 2026)

Cursor is an AI-first code editor forked from VS Code. It combines predictive Tab completion, inline edits on selected code and an Agent that searches, edits and runs commands across a project, plus rules, codebase indexing, MCP integrations and Cloud Agents that open pull requests. Learning it well means choosing the right level of AI help and reviewing what it produces.

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Before you start

Cursor builds on these; the tree links to the exact lessons you need.

AI & LLM fundamentalsPractical levelGitEssentials level

How deep do you want to go?

1. EssentialsRead and write simple code, do the everyday basics8 lessons · 1 hour in total
2. PracticalUse it productively at work, with the usual idioms15 lessons · 2 hours in total
3. AdvancedThe less common features, performance and trade-offs20 lessons · 3 hours in total
4. ExpertInternals and the edge cases experts know24 lessons · 4 hours in total

The Cursor tree

CursorWhat Cursor isWhat Cursor isInstalling and importing VS CodeInstalling andimporting VS CodeTab completionTab completionInline Edit (Cmd/Ctrl+K)Inline Edit(Cmd/Ctrl+K)Working with AgentWorking with AgentReviewing the agent's changesReviewing theagent's changesCheckpoints and revertingCheckpoints andrevertingGiving context with @ and imagesGiving context with @and imagesPlan ModePlan ModeCodebase indexingCodebase indexingProject rulesProject rulesUser rules, team rules and AGENTS.mdUser rules, teamrules and AGENTS.…Choosing modelsChoosing modelsManaging chat contextManaging chatcontextTerminal commands and run modesTerminal commandsand run modesWhat an AI agent isWhat an AI agent isInspecting changes: status and diffInspecting changes:status and diffThe context windowThe context windowEmbeddings and semantic similarityEmbeddings andsemantic similarityReasoning and thinking modelsReasoning andthinking models
Essentials and Practical shown (15 of 24 lessons); the full list is below. Click a lesson to read it.

All 24 lessons, in order

Getting started

  1. What Cursor is · Essentials · 6 min

    Cursor is a code editor built from VS Code with AI throughout: Tab completion, inline edits and an Agent that works across your project.

  2. Installing and importing VS Code · Essentials · 8 min

    Install Cursor, sign in, and bring over your VS Code extensions, themes, settings and keybindings in one click.

AI in the editor

  1. Tab completion · Essentials · 8 min

    Accept Cursor's predicted edits with Tab, reject with Esc, take them word by word, and jump to the next predicted edit.

  2. Inline Edit (Cmd/Ctrl+K) · Essentials · 8 min

    Select code, press Cmd/Ctrl+K, describe a change and review the in-place diff, or ask a quick question about the selection.

Working with Agent

  1. Working with Agent · Essentials · 12 min

    Open Agent with Cmd/Ctrl+I, describe a task, watch it search, edit and run commands, and steer it with queued or immediate messages.

  2. Reviewing the agent's changes · Essentials · 10 min

    Read the agent's diffs file by file, run your checks, and use Agent Review or git before accepting the work.

  3. Checkpoints and reverting · Essentials · 8 min

    Roll back an agent's file changes by restoring a checkpoint from the chat timeline, and know why git is still your real undo.

  4. Plan Mode · Practical · 10 min

    Toggle Plan Mode with Shift+Tab so the agent researches, asks questions and writes a plan you approve before any code changes.

  5. Choosing models · Practical · 10 min

    Pick Auto or a specific model in the model picker, switch with Cmd/Ctrl+/, set a default, and match model strength to the task.

Context and indexing

  1. Giving context with @ and images · Essentials · 10 min

    Point the agent at exact files, folders, terminal output, past chats or git diffs with @, and paste screenshots.

  2. Codebase indexing · Practical · 10 min

    Cursor indexes your project so the agent can search it by meaning, not just exact text; know how to check, refresh and trim the index.

  3. Managing chat context · Practical · 10 min

    Watch the context ring, start new chats per task, reference earlier chats instead of dragging them along, and use side chats.

Rules

  1. Project rules · Practical · 14 min

    Write .mdc rule files in .cursor/rules with description, globs and alwaysApply to give the agent your project's conventions.

  2. User rules, team rules and AGENTS.md · Practical · 10 min

    Combine personal user rules, organization team rules and a plain AGENTS.md, and know which wins when they conflict.

Safety and privacy

  1. Terminal commands and run modes · Practical · 12 min

    Decide how the agent's shell, MCP and fetch calls get approved: Auto-review, Allowlist or Run Everything.

  2. Ignore files (.cursorignore) · Advanced · 10 min

    Keep files away from Tab, Inline Edit, Agent and @-mentions with .cursorignore, and understand why it's not a complete guarantee.

  3. Privacy Mode and data handling · Advanced · 10 min

    Understand what Privacy Mode promises about storage and training, what happens with it off, and what still leaves your machine.

  4. Sandbox, Auto-review and prompt injection · Expert · 16 min

    Tune the sandbox's network and file access, steer the Auto-review classifier, and defend against instructions hidden in content the agent reads.

MCP, hooks and skills

  1. MCP servers in Cursor · Advanced · 14 min

    Connect outside tools such as issue trackers, databases or docs through MCP servers configured in .cursor/mcp.json.

  2. Hooks and skills · Expert · 14 min

    Run scripts at agent events with .cursor/hooks.json to format, audit or block actions, and package workflows as skills invoked with /.

Workflows and automation

  1. Cloud Agents · Advanced · 12 min

    Run agents on remote VMs that work on a branch and open pull requests, started from the editor, the web, Slack or GitHub.

  2. An effective Cursor workflow · Advanced · 14 min

    Combine the features into a loop: explore, plan, build with tests as targets, review, commit, and keep rules up to date.

  3. The Cursor CLI and headless runs · Expert · 12 min

    Use Cursor's agent from the terminal and in CI with agent -p, choose output formats, and control when it may write files.

  4. Limits and failure modes · Expert · 12 min

    Recognize how AI coding goes wrong (invented APIs, stale context, test tampering, scope creep) and the habits that catch each.