Reading every line of someone else's code (or your own every few weeks), understanding the context, spotting potential errors, and suggesting improvements—all of this requires intense focus and a solid understanding of the entire codebase. Cursor , the AI code editor used daily by over 1 million programmers, can help you do this significantly faster and more accurately. Below is a complete guide to leveraging Cursor in your code review process.
What is a cursor and why is it suitable for code review?
Cursor is an IDE built on Visual Studio Code, integrating AI directly into every layer of the programming experience. What sets Cursor apart from other AI-powered tools is its ability to understand the entire codebase, rather than just seeing the currently open file.
When you ask Cursor to review a piece of code, it doesn't just analyze the selected lines; it also understands the context—where the function is called from, where the input data comes from, where the output goes—to provide a much more in-depth review than a typical error checker.
Steps to perform code review with Cursor
Step 1: Open Cursor and log in to your account.
Launch Cursor IDE. If you're not already logged in, click the login button in the corner of the screen and complete the authentication process. You can use your Google or GitHub account .
Step 2: Open the project folder.
Go to the File menu → select Open Folder or Open File , then navigate to the folder containing your project or file.
Cursor will begin indexing the codebase immediately after opening the directory – this is a crucial step for Cursor to understand the structure and relationships within your project.
Step 3: Wait for the Cursor to finish reading the codebase.
Cursor needs some time to analyze all the files, folders, dependencies, and README of the project. For small to medium-sized projects, this process usually completes in a few seconds to a few minutes. When the status bar no longer displays "Indexing," you're ready.
Step 4: Select the code segment to review.
Open the file you want to check, then use your mouse or keyboard to highlight the section of code you want Cursor to analyze. You can choose from a small function to an entire file, depending on your review needs.
Press the Cmd+L key combination (Mac) or Ctrl+L ( Windows / Linux ) to open the AI chat panel in the right-hand sidebar. Then type your request, for example:
- "Review this code and let me know any potential performance issues."
- "Is there any point in this code that could cause an error when the input data is null?"
- "Suggest ways to refactor this section to make it more readable and maintainable."
Press Enter and the Cursor will analyze the context, providing specific comments for each issue.
Things Cursor can do when reviewing your code
In addition to answering specific questions, Cursor supports many other review tasks within the same environment. You can ask Cursor to find all places in the codebase that use a specific function, check if the error handling logic is complete, or compare the current implementation with a best practice.
One particularly useful feature is inline editing : after Cursor points out a problem, you can highlight the code, press Cmd+K , type your modification request, and Cursor will suggest direct diffs for you to review and accept or reject – no need to copy and paste back and forth between chat and editor.
For larger projects, Cursor's Agent Mode allows you to delegate a complex review task—for example, "check the entire authentication module and report all insecurity points"—and let Cursor automatically browse through multiple related files before compiling the results.
Some practical considerations when using Cursor code review.
Cursors are excellent at detecting structural issues, simple logic, error handling, and code readability. However, for complex business logic—such as payment processing, user authorization, or handling sensitive data—programmers still need to perform their own checks and shouldn't rely entirely on AI results.
A tip from long-time Cursor users: always read and understand what Cursor suggests instead of accepting everything without reviewing it. Cursor is a very quick and intelligent junior colleague, but you are ultimately responsible for the code that goes into production.
Cursors can't replace programmer skills, but they eliminate the most manual, repetitive, and time-consuming part of the review process. As a result, you can focus more on the truly important issues and make decisions faster in each review round.