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Documentation Generation with Claude

5 min read

Automatically generate comprehensive documentation for your codebase including API docs, README files, and inline comments


title: Documentation Generation with Claude description: Automatically generate comprehensive documentation for your codebase including API docs, README files, and inline comments

Good documentation is essential but time-consuming. Claude Code can generate comprehensive documentation from your codebase, saving hours of manual work while ensuring accuracy and consistency.

Types of Documentation

Claude can generate:

| Type | Description | Best For | |------|-------------|----------| | README files | Project overview and setup | Open source projects | | API documentation | Endpoint references | REST/GraphQL APIs | | JSDoc/TSDoc | Inline function docs | Libraries and SDKs | | Architecture docs | System design overview | Complex applications | | User guides | How-to instructions | End-user documentation |

Quick Start: Generate a README

The simplest documentation task:

Text
Generate a comprehensive README.md for this project.
Include:
- Project description
- Features list
- Installation instructions
- Usage examples
- Configuration options
- Contributing guidelines

Claude will analyze your codebase and create a complete README.

Generating API Documentation

REST API Documentation

Text
Generate API documentation for all endpoints in the /api directory.
For each endpoint include:
- HTTP method and path
- Description
- Request parameters
- Request body schema
- Response schema
- Example requests/responses
- Error codes

Example Output:

Markdown
## POST /api/users

Create a new user account.

### Request Body

| Field | Type | Required | Description |
|-------|------|----------|-------------|
| email | string | Yes | User's email address |
| password | string | Yes | Minimum 8 characters |
| name | string | No | Display name |

### Response

**201 Created**
```json
{
  "id": "usr_123",
  "email": "user@example.com",
  "name": "John Doe",
  "createdAt": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"
}

Errors

| Code | Description | |------|-------------| | 400 | Invalid email or password format | | 409 | Email already registered |

Text

### OpenAPI/Swagger Generation

Generate an OpenAPI 3.0 specification for all API routes. Include request/response schemas, authentication requirements, and example values.

Text

## Generating Code Documentation

### JSDoc for JavaScript/TypeScript

Add comprehensive JSDoc comments to all exported functions in the utils directory. Include:

  • Description
  • @param tags with types and descriptions
  • @returns tag with type and description
  • @throws tag for error conditions
  • @example with usage code
Text

**Before:**
```typescript
export function formatCurrency(amount, currency, locale) {
  return new Intl.NumberFormat(locale, {
    style: 'currency',
    currency
  }).format(amount);
}

After:

TypeScript
/**
 * Formats a number as currency according to locale conventions.
 *
 * @param {number} amount - The numeric amount to format
 * @param {string} currency - ISO 4217 currency code (e.g., 'USD', 'EUR')
 * @param {string} [locale='en-US'] - BCP 47 locale identifier
 * @returns {string} Formatted currency string
 * @throws {RangeError} If currency code is invalid
 *
 * @example
 * formatCurrency(1234.56, 'USD', 'en-US')
 * // Returns: '$1,234.56'
 *
 * @example
 * formatCurrency(1234.56, 'EUR', 'de-DE')
 * // Returns: '1.234,56 EUR'
 */
export function formatCurrency(
  amount: number,
  currency: string,
  locale: string = 'en-US'
): string {
  return new Intl.NumberFormat(locale, {
    style: 'currency',
    currency
  }).format(amount);
}

Python Docstrings

Text
Add Google-style docstrings to all functions in the services module.
Include Args, Returns, Raises, and Examples sections.

Example Output:

Python
def calculate_discount(price: float, percentage: float, max_discount: float = None) -> float:
    """Calculate discounted price with optional maximum limit.

    Applies a percentage discount to the original price. If max_discount
    is specified, the discount amount will not exceed this value.

    Args:
        price: Original price in dollars.
        percentage: Discount percentage (0-100).
        max_discount: Maximum discount amount in dollars. Defaults to None.

    Returns:
        The final price after applying the discount.

    Raises:
        ValueError: If price is negative or percentage is outside 0-100.

    Examples:
        >>> calculate_discount(100.0, 20)
        80.0

        >>> calculate_discount(100.0, 50, max_discount=25.0)
        75.0
    """

Generating Architecture Documentation

System Overview

Text
Create architecture documentation for this project including:
1. High-level system diagram description
2. Component responsibilities
3. Data flow between components
4. External dependencies
5. Security boundaries

Database Schema Documentation

Text
Document the database schema including:
- Table descriptions
- Column definitions with types and constraints
- Relationships between tables
- Indexes and their purposes
- Common query patterns

Generating User Documentation

Feature Documentation

Text
Create user documentation for the authentication feature.
Include:
- How to sign up
- How to log in
- Password reset process
- Two-factor authentication setup
- Common troubleshooting

Configuration Reference

Text
Generate a configuration reference document listing all
environment variables, their purposes, default values,
and example values.

Example Output:

Markdown
## Environment Variables

### Required Variables

| Variable | Description | Example |
|----------|-------------|---------|
| `DATABASE_URL` | PostgreSQL connection string | `postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb` |
| `JWT_SECRET` | Secret key for JWT signing | `your-256-bit-secret` |

### Optional Variables

| Variable | Description | Default |
|----------|-------------|---------|
| `PORT` | Server port | `3000` |
| `LOG_LEVEL` | Logging verbosity | `info` |
| `RATE_LIMIT` | Requests per minute | `100` |

Documentation Workflows

Workflow 1: New Project Setup

Text
1. Generate README.md with project overview
2. Create CONTRIBUTING.md with guidelines
3. Generate API.md for endpoint documentation
4. Create CHANGELOG.md template

Workflow 2: Code Documentation Sprint

Text
Day 1: Document all public APIs
Day 2: Add inline comments to complex functions
Day 3: Create architecture overview
Day 4: Write deployment guide
Day 5: Review and refine all docs

Workflow 3: Continuous Documentation

Set up a pre-commit hook:

Bash
# .claude/commands/update-docs.md
Check if any exported functions are missing documentation.
If found, generate appropriate JSDoc/docstrings.

Best Practices

1. Provide Context

Text
This is a payment processing library used by e-commerce sites.
Users are developers integrating payments into their apps.
Generate documentation assuming intermediate JavaScript knowledge.

2. Specify Audience

Text
Generate documentation for:
- Audience: Backend developers
- Experience level: Intermediate
- Primary use case: Building REST APIs

3. Maintain Consistency

Text
Follow these documentation standards:
- Use present tense ("Returns" not "Will return")
- Use active voice ("Call this function" not "This function should be called")
- Include code examples for every function
- Document error conditions

4. Keep It Updated

Text
Review existing documentation and update it to match
the current implementation. Flag any outdated sections.

Documentation Templates

README Template

Text
Generate a README following this structure:
# Project Name
Brief description

## Features
- Feature 1
- Feature 2

## Quick Start
bash commands

## Installation
Step-by-step

## Usage
Code examples

## Configuration
Options table

## API Reference
Link to detailed docs

## Contributing
How to contribute

## License
License info

API Endpoint Template

Text
Document each endpoint with:
## [METHOD] /path

Description paragraph.

### Authentication
Required auth type

### Parameters
Table of params

### Request Body
JSON schema

### Response
Success response

### Errors
Error codes table

### Example
curl command

Generating Documentation Files

All-in-One Command

Text
Generate complete project documentation:

1. README.md - Project overview (main directory)
2. docs/API.md - Full API reference
3. docs/ARCHITECTURE.md - System design
4. docs/DEPLOYMENT.md - Deployment guide
5. docs/CONTRIBUTING.md - Contribution guidelines

Use markdown format with table of contents.

Limitations

Claude cannot:

  • Access private APIs - Document only what's in the codebase
  • Verify accuracy - Review generated docs for correctness
  • Update diagrams - Cannot create visual diagrams (text descriptions only)
  • Know runtime behavior - Documents static code, not runtime state

Next Steps