# Plan-first workflow

**Source:** https://promtable.com/glossary/plan-first

> Plan-first workflow is the agent pattern of explicitly drafting and (sometimes) confirming the plan before executing — catching misunderstandings before code is changed, instead of after.

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Plan-first workflow is the agent pattern of explicitly drafting and (sometimes) confirming the plan before executing — catching misunderstandings before code is changed, instead of after.

Plan-first workflow is the production default for coding agents in 2026. The agent: receives the task, outlines what files will change and how, optionally pauses for human approval, then executes. The cost: a small upfront latency for the plan. The win: most agent failures stem from misunderstood requirements, and plan-first catches those before code changes happen. Claude Code, Cline, Cursor agent mode, OpenAI Codex all default to plan-first. Best practice: keep plans short and concrete — long plans are skimmed by humans and miss the point.

## When to use

- Any agent doing non-trivial code changes.
- Multi-file or multi-step engineering tasks.

## Common mistakes

- Skipping plan-first on simple tasks — usually still worth a 1-line plan to catch misunderstandings.
- Plans too long — keep them concrete and short.

## Related terms

- [agent](https://promtable.com/glossary/agent)
- [agent-loop](https://promtable.com/glossary/agent-loop)
- [ide-agent](https://promtable.com/glossary/ide-agent)
- [terminal-agent](https://promtable.com/glossary/terminal-agent)

*Last updated: 2026-06-01*
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Original page: https://promtable.com/glossary/plan-first
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