Where to keep Claude Code repos when syncing two Macs via iCloud?
A who uses Claude Code as their main coding setup on macOS, building web apps, mobile apps, and , ran into trouble after turning on 's Desktop and Documents sync across a MacBook Air and a MacBook Pro. Their ject lived inside the Documents folder, and some files ended up existing only on one Mac while others existed only in iCloud. iCloud itself got stuck showing tens of thousands of items uploading or downloading for days, and Claude Code was operating on top of this half-local, half-cloud mess.
Three approaches are being weighed. One option keeps repos strictly local in a folder outside iCloud's reach, such as ~/Code, treating GitHub or another remote plus external backups as the real , so Claude Code only ever touches fully local files. A second option keeps repos inside the iCloud-synced Desktop or Documents folders so both Macs stay in sync automatically, letting Claude Code work directly on those iCloud-managed folders and accepting iCloud's quirks in exchange for having projects available everywhere.
A third, hybrid option keeps only docs and notes in iCloud while all active Claude Code repos sit in a local-only folder that syncs across machines via git.
Key points
- Enabling Desktop and Documents sync across two Macs led to Claude Code repos having files that existed only locally or only in iCloud
- iCloud got stuck uploading/downloading tens of thousands of items for days while Claude Code kept working on the half-synced folders
- Option 1: keep repos in a purely local folder like ~/Code, with GitHub plus external backups as the real
- Option 2: keep repos inside iCloud-synced Desktop/Documents so both Macs stay in sync automatically, accepting iCloud's quirks
- Option 3: a hybrid setup — only docs/notes in iCloud, all active repos local-only and synced via git