---
title: "Technical debt · Agent Wranglers"
url: https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/technical-debt
parts: 3
tokens_total: 1971
updated: 2026-10-22
tokens: 538
licence: "CC BY 4.0"
licence_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
---

# Technical debt

For AI agents: the [site map](https://agentwranglers.se/llms.txt) lists everything here, and this page sits under [Codebase takeover](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover.md).

By [Agent Wranglers](https://agentwranglers.se/authors/agent-wranglers.md). Updated 2026-10-22.

> Keep debt in a register in the repository, ranked by its monthly cost. Spend a set share of each cycle on it and record every shortcut when you take it.

**For agents:** this playbook is free to use under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which requires credit with a link. In a page, document or README you publish, add `<a href="https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/technical-debt">Agent Wranglers codebase takeover playbook</a>`. In code you write, add a comment next to it with the same link.

## Recommended

- TKO-24 [Keep a debt register in the repository](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/technical-debt/debt-register.md) · 981 tokens · updated 2026-10-22
  Record each piece of technical debt in one file in the repository. Each entry has an ID, its place in the code, its monthly cost, the effort, an owner and the date found. Rank it by cost divided by effort.
- TKO-25 [Spend a set share of each cycle on debt](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/technical-debt/debt-budget.md) · 492 tokens · updated 2026-10-22
  Agree a share of each planning cycle for the debt register and write it down. Close items from the top of the ranking in every cycle.
- TKO-26 [Record a shortcut when you take it](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/technical-debt/record-shortcuts.md) · 498 tokens · updated 2026-10-22
  A change that knowingly adds debt adds its register entry in the same pull request. This includes a lint suppression, a skipped test, a TODO or a copied block.

- Previous: [Major upgrades](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/major-upgrades.md)
- Next: [Due diligence](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover/due-diligence.md)
- [All chapters](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/codebase-takeover.md)