diff --git a/codex-lens/benchmarks/compare_semantic_methods.py b/codex-lens/benchmarks/compare_semantic_methods.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..23837103
--- /dev/null
+++ b/codex-lens/benchmarks/compare_semantic_methods.py
@@ -0,0 +1,489 @@
+"""Compare Binary Cascade, SPLADE, and Vector semantic search methods.
+
+This script compares the three semantic retrieval approaches:
+1. Binary Cascade: 256-bit binary vectors for coarse ranking
+2. SPLADE: Sparse learned representations with inverted index
+3. Vector Dense: Full semantic embeddings with cosine similarity
+"""
+
+import sys
+import time
+from pathlib import Path
+
+# Add src to path
+sys.path.insert(0, str(Path(__file__).parent.parent / "src"))
+
+from codexlens.storage.dir_index import DirIndexStore
+from codexlens.storage.splade_index import SpladeIndex
+from codexlens.semantic.vector_store import VectorStore
+
+
+def get_filename(path: str) -> str:
+    """Extract filename from path."""
+    if "\\" in path:
+        return path.split("\\")[-1]
+    elif "/" in path:
+        return path.split("/")[-1]
+    return path
+
+
+def find_splade_db(index_root: Path) -> Path:
+    """Find SPLADE database by searching directory tree."""
+    # Check root first
+    if (index_root / "_splade.db").exists():
+        return index_root / "_splade.db"
+
+    # Search in subdirectories
+    for splade_db in index_root.rglob("_splade.db"):
+        return splade_db
+
+    return None
+
+
+def find_binary_indexes(index_root: Path):
+    """Find all binary index files."""
+    return list(index_root.rglob("_index_binary_vectors.bin"))
+
+
+# Test queries for semantic search comparison
+TEST_QUERIES = [
+    "how to search code semantically",
+    "embedding generation for files",
+    "hybrid search with multiple backends",
+    "parse python source code",
+    "database storage for vectors",
+]
+
+# Index paths
+INDEX_ROOT = Path(r"C:\Users\dyw\.codexlens\indexes\D\Claude_dms3\codex-lens")
+
+
+def test_vector_search(query: str, limit: int = 10):
+    """Test dense vector search."""
+    try:
+        from codexlens.semantic.factory import get_embedder
+
+        # Find an index with embeddings
+        all_results = []
+        total_time = 0
+
+        for index_db in INDEX_ROOT.rglob("_index.db"):
+            vector_store = VectorStore(index_db)
+
+            if vector_store.count_chunks() == 0:
+                continue
+
+            # Get embedder based on stored config
+            model_config = vector_store.get_model_config()
+            if model_config:
+                backend = model_config.get("backend", "fastembed")
+                model_name = model_config["model_name"]
+                model_profile = model_config["model_profile"]
+                if backend == "litellm":
+                    embedder = get_embedder(backend="litellm", model=model_name)
+                else:
+                    embedder = get_embedder(backend="fastembed", profile=model_profile)
+            else:
+                embedder = get_embedder(backend="fastembed", profile="code")
+
+            start = time.perf_counter()
+            query_embedding = embedder.embed_single(query)
+            results = vector_store.search_similar(
+                query_embedding=query_embedding,
+                top_k=limit,
+                min_score=0.0,
+                return_full_content=True,
+            )
+            total_time += (time.perf_counter() - start) * 1000
+            all_results.extend(results)
+
+            # Only need one successful search to get embedder initialized
+            if results:
+                break
+
+        # Sort by score and limit
+        all_results.sort(key=lambda x: x.score, reverse=True)
+        return all_results[:limit], total_time, None
+    except Exception as e:
+        return [], 0, str(e)
+
+
+def test_splade_search(query: str, limit: int = 10):
+    """Test SPLADE sparse search."""
+    try:
+        from codexlens.semantic.splade_encoder import get_splade_encoder, check_splade_available
+
+        ok, err = check_splade_available()
+        if not ok:
+            return [], 0, f"SPLADE not available: {err}"
+
+        splade_db_path = find_splade_db(INDEX_ROOT)
+        if not splade_db_path:
+            return [], 0, "SPLADE database not found"
+
+        splade_index = SpladeIndex(splade_db_path)
+        if not splade_index.has_index():
+            return [], 0, "SPLADE index not initialized"
+
+        start = time.perf_counter()
+        encoder = get_splade_encoder()
+        query_sparse = encoder.encode_text(query)
+        raw_results = splade_index.search(query_sparse, limit=limit, min_score=0.0)
+
+        if not raw_results:
+            elapsed = (time.perf_counter() - start) * 1000
+            return [], elapsed, None
+
+        # Get chunk details
+        chunk_ids = [chunk_id for chunk_id, _ in raw_results]
+        score_map = {chunk_id: score for chunk_id, score in raw_results}
+        rows = splade_index.get_chunks_by_ids(chunk_ids)
+
+        elapsed = (time.perf_counter() - start) * 1000
+
+        # Build result objects
+        results = []
+        for row in rows:
+            chunk_id = row["id"]
+            results.append({
+                "path": row["file_path"],
+                "score": score_map.get(chunk_id, 0.0),
+                "content": row["content"][:200] + "..." if len(row["content"]) > 200 else row["content"],
+            })
+
+        # Sort by score
+        results.sort(key=lambda x: x["score"], reverse=True)
+        return results, elapsed, None
+    except Exception as e:
+        return [], 0, str(e)
+
+
+def test_binary_cascade_search(query: str, limit: int = 10):
+    """Test binary cascade search (binary coarse + dense fine ranking)."""
+    try:
+        from codexlens.semantic.ann_index import BinaryANNIndex
+        from codexlens.indexing.embedding import CascadeEmbeddingBackend
+        import numpy as np
+        import sqlite3
+
+        # Find binary indexes
+        binary_indexes = find_binary_indexes(INDEX_ROOT)
+        if not binary_indexes:
+            return [], 0, "No binary indexes found. Run 'codexlens cascade-index' first."
+
+        start = time.perf_counter()
+
+        # Initialize cascade backend for query encoding
+        cascade_backend = CascadeEmbeddingBackend()
+
+        # Encode query to binary and dense
+        binary_embeddings, dense_embeddings = cascade_backend.encode_cascade([query], batch_size=1)
+        query_binary = binary_embeddings[0]
+        query_dense = dense_embeddings[0]
+
+        all_results = []
+
+        for binary_index_path in binary_indexes:
+            # Find corresponding index.db
+            index_db = binary_index_path.parent / "_index.db"
+            if not index_db.exists():
+                continue
+
+            # Check if cascade embeddings exist
+            conn = sqlite3.connect(index_db)
+            conn.row_factory = sqlite3.Row
+            try:
+                cursor = conn.execute(
+                    "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM semantic_chunks WHERE embedding_binary IS NOT NULL"
+                )
+                binary_count = cursor.fetchone()[0]
+                if binary_count == 0:
+                    conn.close()
+                    continue
+            except Exception:
+                conn.close()
+                continue
+
+            # Stage 1: Binary coarse search
+            binary_index = BinaryANNIndex(index_db, dim=256)
+            try:
+                binary_index.load()
+            except Exception:
+                conn.close()
+                continue
+
+            # Pack query for binary search
+            from codexlens.indexing.embedding import pack_binary_embedding
+            query_binary_packed = pack_binary_embedding(query_binary)
+
+            # Get top candidates
+            coarse_limit = min(limit * 10, 100)
+            # search returns (ids, distances) tuple
+            coarse_ids, coarse_distances = binary_index.search(query_binary_packed, top_k=coarse_limit)
+
+            if not coarse_ids:
+                conn.close()
+                continue
+
+            # Stage 2: Dense reranking
+            chunk_ids = coarse_ids
+            placeholders = ",".join("?" * len(chunk_ids))
+
+            cursor = conn.execute(
+                f"""
+                SELECT id, file_path, content, embedding_dense
+                FROM semantic_chunks
+                WHERE id IN ({placeholders}) AND embedding_dense IS NOT NULL
+                """,
+                chunk_ids
+            )
+            rows = cursor.fetchall()
+
+            # Compute dense scores
+            for row in rows:
+                chunk_id = row["id"]
+                file_path = row["file_path"]
+                content = row["content"]
+                dense_blob = row["embedding_dense"]
+
+                if dense_blob:
+                    dense_vec = np.frombuffer(dense_blob, dtype=np.float32)
+                    # Cosine similarity
+                    score = float(np.dot(query_dense, dense_vec) / (
+                        np.linalg.norm(query_dense) * np.linalg.norm(dense_vec) + 1e-8
+                    ))
+                else:
+                    score = 0.0
+
+                all_results.append({
+                    "path": file_path,
+                    "score": score,
+                    "content": content[:200] + "..." if len(content) > 200 else content,
+                })
+
+            conn.close()
+
+        # Sort by dense score and limit
+        all_results.sort(key=lambda x: x["score"], reverse=True)
+        final_results = all_results[:limit]
+
+        elapsed = (time.perf_counter() - start) * 1000
+
+        return final_results, elapsed, None
+    except ImportError as e:
+        return [], 0, f"Import error: {e}"
+    except Exception as e:
+        import traceback
+        return [], 0, f"{str(e)}\n{traceback.format_exc()}"
+
+
+def print_results(method_name: str, results, elapsed: float, error: str = None):
+    """Print search results in a formatted way."""
+    print(f"\n{'='*60}")
+    print(f"Method: {method_name}")
+    print(f"{'='*60}")
+
+    if error:
+        print(f"ERROR: {error}")
+        return
+
+    print(f"Results: {len(results)}, Time: {elapsed:.1f}ms")
+    print("-" * 60)
+
+    for i, r in enumerate(results[:5], 1):
+        if isinstance(r, dict):
+            path = r.get("path", "?")
+            score = r.get("score", 0)
+            content = r.get("content", "")[:80]
+        else:
+            path = getattr(r, "path", "?")
+            score = getattr(r, "score", 0)
+            content = getattr(r, "content", "")[:80] if hasattr(r, "content") else ""
+
+        filename = get_filename(path)
+        print(f"  {i}. [{score:.4f}] {filename}")
+        if content:
+            # Sanitize content for console output
+            safe_content = content.encode('ascii', 'replace').decode('ascii')
+            print(f"     {safe_content}...")
+
+
+def compare_overlap(results1, results2, name1: str, name2: str):
+    """Compare result overlap between two methods."""
+    def get_paths(results):
+        paths = set()
+        for r in results[:10]:
+            if isinstance(r, dict):
+                paths.add(r.get("path", ""))
+            else:
+                paths.add(getattr(r, "path", ""))
+        return paths
+
+    paths1 = get_paths(results1)
+    paths2 = get_paths(results2)
+
+    if not paths1 or not paths2:
+        return 0.0
+
+    overlap = len(paths1 & paths2)
+    union = len(paths1 | paths2)
+    jaccard = overlap / union if union > 0 else 0.0
+
+    print(f"  {name1} vs {name2}: {overlap} common files (Jaccard: {jaccard:.2f})")
+    return jaccard
+
+
+def main():
+    print("=" * 70)
+    print("SEMANTIC SEARCH METHODS COMPARISON")
+    print("Binary Cascade vs SPLADE vs Vector Dense")
+    print("=" * 70)
+
+    # Check prerequisites
+    print("\n[Prerequisites Check]")
+    print(f"  Index Root: {INDEX_ROOT}")
+
+    splade_db = find_splade_db(INDEX_ROOT)
+    print(f"  SPLADE DB: {splade_db} - {'EXISTS' if splade_db else 'NOT FOUND'}")
+
+    binary_indexes = find_binary_indexes(INDEX_ROOT)
+    print(f"  Binary Indexes: {len(binary_indexes)} found")
+    for bi in binary_indexes[:3]:
+        print(f"    - {bi.parent.name}/{bi.name}")
+    if len(binary_indexes) > 3:
+        print(f"    ... and {len(binary_indexes) - 3} more")
+
+    # Aggregate statistics
+    all_results = {
+        "binary": {"total_results": 0, "total_time": 0, "queries": 0, "errors": []},
+        "splade": {"total_results": 0, "total_time": 0, "queries": 0, "errors": []},
+        "vector": {"total_results": 0, "total_time": 0, "queries": 0, "errors": []},
+    }
+
+    overlap_scores = {"binary_splade": [], "binary_vector": [], "splade_vector": []}
+
+    for query in TEST_QUERIES:
+        print(f"\n{'#'*70}")
+        print(f"QUERY: \"{query}\"")
+        print("#" * 70)
+
+        # Test each method
+        binary_results, binary_time, binary_err = test_binary_cascade_search(query)
+        splade_results, splade_time, splade_err = test_splade_search(query)
+        vector_results, vector_time, vector_err = test_vector_search(query)
+
+        # Print results
+        print_results("Binary Cascade (256-bit + Dense Rerank)", binary_results, binary_time, binary_err)
+        print_results("SPLADE (Sparse Learned)", splade_results, splade_time, splade_err)
+        print_results("Vector Dense (Semantic Embeddings)", vector_results, vector_time, vector_err)
+
+        # Update statistics
+        if not binary_err:
+            all_results["binary"]["total_results"] += len(binary_results)
+            all_results["binary"]["total_time"] += binary_time
+            all_results["binary"]["queries"] += 1
+        else:
+            all_results["binary"]["errors"].append(binary_err)
+
+        if not splade_err:
+            all_results["splade"]["total_results"] += len(splade_results)
+            all_results["splade"]["total_time"] += splade_time
+            all_results["splade"]["queries"] += 1
+        else:
+            all_results["splade"]["errors"].append(splade_err)
+
+        if not vector_err:
+            all_results["vector"]["total_results"] += len(vector_results)
+            all_results["vector"]["total_time"] += vector_time
+            all_results["vector"]["queries"] += 1
+        else:
+            all_results["vector"]["errors"].append(vector_err)
+
+        # Compare overlap
+        print("\n[Result Overlap Analysis]")
+        if binary_results and splade_results:
+            j = compare_overlap(binary_results, splade_results, "Binary", "SPLADE")
+            overlap_scores["binary_splade"].append(j)
+        if binary_results and vector_results:
+            j = compare_overlap(binary_results, vector_results, "Binary", "Vector")
+            overlap_scores["binary_vector"].append(j)
+        if splade_results and vector_results:
+            j = compare_overlap(splade_results, vector_results, "SPLADE", "Vector")
+            overlap_scores["splade_vector"].append(j)
+
+    # Print summary
+    print("\n" + "=" * 70)
+    print("SUMMARY STATISTICS")
+    print("=" * 70)
+
+    for method, stats in all_results.items():
+        queries = stats["queries"]
+        if queries > 0:
+            avg_results = stats["total_results"] / queries
+            avg_time = stats["total_time"] / queries
+            print(f"\n{method.upper()}:")
+            print(f"  Successful queries: {queries}/{len(TEST_QUERIES)}")
+            print(f"  Avg results: {avg_results:.1f}")
+            print(f"  Avg time: {avg_time:.1f}ms")
+        else:
+            print(f"\n{method.upper()}: No successful queries")
+            if stats["errors"]:
+                # Show truncated error
+                err = stats["errors"][0]
+                if len(err) > 200:
+                    err = err[:200] + "..."
+                print(f"  Error: {err}")
+
+    print("\n[Average Overlap Scores]")
+    for pair, scores in overlap_scores.items():
+        if scores:
+            avg = sum(scores) / len(scores)
+            print(f"  {pair}: {avg:.3f}")
+
+    print("\n" + "=" * 70)
+    print("ANALYSIS")
+    print("=" * 70)
+
+    # Analyze working methods
+    working_methods = [m for m, s in all_results.items() if s["queries"] > 0]
+
+    if len(working_methods) == 3:
+        # All methods working - compare quality
+        print("\nAll three methods working. Quality comparison:")
+
+        # Compare avg results
+        print("\n  Result Coverage (higher = more recall):")
+        for m in ["vector", "splade", "binary"]:
+            stats = all_results[m]
+            if stats["queries"] > 0:
+                avg = stats["total_results"] / stats["queries"]
+                print(f"    {m.upper()}: {avg:.1f} results/query")
+
+        # Compare speed
+        print("\n  Speed (lower = faster):")
+        for m in ["binary", "splade", "vector"]:
+            stats = all_results[m]
+            if stats["queries"] > 0:
+                avg = stats["total_time"] / stats["queries"]
+                print(f"    {m.upper()}: {avg:.1f}ms")
+
+        # Recommend fusion strategy
+        print("\n  Recommended Fusion Strategy:")
+        print("    For quality-focused hybrid search:")
+        print("    1. Run all three in parallel")
+        print("    2. Use RRF fusion with weights:")
+        print("       - Vector: 0.4 (best semantic understanding)")
+        print("       - SPLADE: 0.35 (learned sparse representations)")
+        print("       - Binary: 0.25 (fast coarse filtering)")
+        print("    3. Apply CrossEncoder reranking on top-50")
+
+    elif len(working_methods) >= 2:
+        print(f"\n{len(working_methods)} methods working: {', '.join(working_methods)}")
+        print("Consider fixing missing method for complete hybrid search.")
+    else:
+        print(f"\nOnly {working_methods[0] if working_methods else 'no'} method(s) working.")
+        print("Check your index setup.")
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/cli/embedding_manager.py b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/cli/embedding_manager.py
index e552bf57..a0508e1a 100644
--- a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/cli/embedding_manager.py
+++ b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/cli/embedding_manager.py
@@ -17,6 +17,20 @@ except ImportError:
     def is_embedding_backend_available(_backend: str):  # type: ignore[no-redef]
         return False, "codexlens.semantic not available"
 
+try:
+    from codexlens.search.ranking import get_file_category
+except ImportError:
+    def get_file_category(path: str):  # type: ignore[no-redef]
+        """Fallback: map common extensions to category."""
+        ext = Path(path).suffix.lower()
+        code_exts = {".py", ".js", ".jsx", ".ts", ".tsx", ".java", ".go", ".c", ".cpp", ".rs"}
+        doc_exts = {".md", ".mdx", ".txt", ".rst"}
+        if ext in code_exts:
+            return "code"
+        elif ext in doc_exts:
+            return "doc"
+        return None
+
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 # Embedding batch size - larger values improve throughput on modern hardware
@@ -24,6 +38,22 @@ logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 EMBEDDING_BATCH_SIZE = 256
 
 
+def _build_categories_from_batch(chunk_batch: List[Tuple[Any, str]]) -> List[str]:
+    """Build categories list from chunk batch for index-level category filtering.
+
+    Args:
+        chunk_batch: List of (chunk, file_path) tuples
+
+    Returns:
+        List of category strings ('code' or 'doc'), defaulting to 'code' for unknown
+    """
+    categories = []
+    for _, file_path in chunk_batch:
+        cat = get_file_category(file_path)
+        categories.append(cat if cat else "code")  # Default to 'code' for unknown extensions
+    return categories
+
+
 def _cleanup_fastembed_resources() -> None:
     """Best-effort cleanup for fastembed/ONNX resources (no-op for other backends)."""
     try:
@@ -577,8 +607,9 @@ def generate_embeddings(
                                     batch_contents = [chunk.content for chunk, _ in chunk_batch]
                                     embeddings_numpy = embedder.embed_to_numpy(batch_contents, batch_size=EMBEDDING_BATCH_SIZE)
 
-                                    # Store embeddings
-                                    vector_store.add_chunks_batch_numpy(chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy)
+                                    # Store embeddings with category
+                                    categories = _build_categories_from_batch(chunk_batch)
+                                    vector_store.add_chunks_batch_numpy(chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy, categories=categories)
 
                                     files_seen.update(batch_files)
                                     total_chunks_created += len(chunk_batch)
@@ -630,7 +661,8 @@ def generate_embeddings(
                                         batch_num, chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy, batch_files, error = f.result()
                                         if embeddings_numpy is not None and error is None:
                                             # Write to DB in main thread (no contention)
-                                            vector_store.add_chunks_batch_numpy(chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy)
+                                            categories = _build_categories_from_batch(chunk_batch)
+                                            vector_store.add_chunks_batch_numpy(chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy, categories=categories)
                                             total_chunks_created += len(chunk_batch)
                                         files_seen.update(batch_files)
                                         total_files_processed = len(files_seen)
@@ -667,7 +699,8 @@ def generate_embeddings(
                                 try:
                                     batch_num, chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy, batch_files, error = future.result()
                                     if embeddings_numpy is not None and error is None:
-                                        vector_store.add_chunks_batch_numpy(chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy)
+                                        categories = _build_categories_from_batch(chunk_batch)
+                                        vector_store.add_chunks_batch_numpy(chunk_batch, embeddings_numpy, categories=categories)
                                         total_chunks_created += len(chunk_batch)
                                     files_seen.update(batch_files)
                                     total_files_processed = len(files_seen)
diff --git a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/config.py b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/config.py
index a01b6a9b..d29f13d5 100644
--- a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/config.py
+++ b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/config.py
@@ -67,15 +67,21 @@ class Config:
     venv_path: Path = field(default_factory=lambda: _default_global_dir() / "venv")
     supported_languages: Dict[str, Dict[str, Any]] = field(
         default_factory=lambda: {
-            "python": {"extensions": [".py"], "tree_sitter_language": "python"},
-            "javascript": {"extensions": [".js", ".jsx"], "tree_sitter_language": "javascript"},
-            "typescript": {"extensions": [".ts", ".tsx"], "tree_sitter_language": "typescript"},
-            "java": {"extensions": [".java"], "tree_sitter_language": "java"},
-            "go": {"extensions": [".go"], "tree_sitter_language": "go"},
-            "zig": {"extensions": [".zig"], "tree_sitter_language": "zig"},
-            "objective-c": {"extensions": [".m", ".mm"], "tree_sitter_language": "objc"},
-            "markdown": {"extensions": [".md", ".mdx"], "tree_sitter_language": None},
-            "text": {"extensions": [".txt"], "tree_sitter_language": None},
+            # Source code languages (category: "code")
+            "python": {"extensions": [".py"], "tree_sitter_language": "python", "category": "code"},
+            "javascript": {"extensions": [".js", ".jsx"], "tree_sitter_language": "javascript", "category": "code"},
+            "typescript": {"extensions": [".ts", ".tsx"], "tree_sitter_language": "typescript", "category": "code"},
+            "java": {"extensions": [".java"], "tree_sitter_language": "java", "category": "code"},
+            "go": {"extensions": [".go"], "tree_sitter_language": "go", "category": "code"},
+            "zig": {"extensions": [".zig"], "tree_sitter_language": "zig", "category": "code"},
+            "objective-c": {"extensions": [".m", ".mm"], "tree_sitter_language": "objc", "category": "code"},
+            "c": {"extensions": [".c", ".h"], "tree_sitter_language": "c", "category": "code"},
+            "cpp": {"extensions": [".cc", ".cpp", ".hpp", ".cxx"], "tree_sitter_language": "cpp", "category": "code"},
+            "rust": {"extensions": [".rs"], "tree_sitter_language": "rust", "category": "code"},
+            # Documentation languages (category: "doc")
+            "markdown": {"extensions": [".md", ".mdx"], "tree_sitter_language": None, "category": "doc"},
+            "text": {"extensions": [".txt"], "tree_sitter_language": None, "category": "doc"},
+            "rst": {"extensions": [".rst"], "tree_sitter_language": None, "category": "doc"},
         }
     )
     parsing_rules: Dict[str, Dict[str, Any]] = field(
@@ -141,6 +147,9 @@ class Config:
     fusion_method: str = "rrf"  # "simple" (weighted sum) or "rrf" (reciprocal rank fusion)
     rrf_k: int = 60  # RRF constant (default 60)
 
+    # Category-based filtering to separate code/doc results
+    enable_category_filter: bool = True  # Enable code/doc result separation
+
     # Multi-endpoint configuration for litellm backend
     embedding_endpoints: List[Dict[str, Any]] = field(default_factory=list)
     # List of endpoint configs: [{"model": "...", "api_key": "...", "api_base": "...", "weight": 1.0}]
@@ -210,6 +219,14 @@ class Config:
                 return language_id
         return None
 
+    def category_for_path(self, path: str | Path) -> str | None:
+        """Get file category ('code' or 'doc') from a file path."""
+        language = self.language_for_path(path)
+        if language is None:
+            return None
+        spec = self.supported_languages.get(language, {})
+        return spec.get("category")
+
     def rules_for_language(self, language_id: str) -> Dict[str, Any]:
         """Get parsing rules for a specific language, falling back to defaults."""
         return {**self.parsing_rules.get("default", {}), **self.parsing_rules.get(language_id, {})}
diff --git a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/hybrid_search.py b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/hybrid_search.py
index 3b6a554f..108c7656 100644
--- a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/hybrid_search.py
+++ b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/hybrid_search.py
@@ -35,8 +35,11 @@ from codexlens.entities import SearchResult
 from codexlens.search.ranking import (
     DEFAULT_WEIGHTS,
     FTS_FALLBACK_WEIGHTS,
+    QueryIntent,
     apply_symbol_boost,
     cross_encoder_rerank,
+    detect_query_intent,
+    filter_results_by_category,
     get_rrf_weights,
     reciprocal_rank_fusion,
     rerank_results,
@@ -131,6 +134,16 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
         except OSError:
             return []
 
+        # Detect query intent early for category filtering at index level
+        query_intent = detect_query_intent(query)
+        # Map intent to category for vector search:
+        # - KEYWORD (code intent) -> filter to 'code' only
+        # - SEMANTIC (doc intent) -> no filter (allow docs to surface)
+        # - MIXED -> no filter (allow all)
+        vector_category: Optional[str] = None
+        if query_intent == QueryIntent.KEYWORD:
+            vector_category = "code"
+
         # Determine which backends to use
         backends = {}
         
@@ -183,7 +196,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
 
         # Execute parallel searches
         with timer("parallel_search_total", self.logger):
-            results_map = self._search_parallel(index_path, query, backends, limit)
+            results_map = self._search_parallel(index_path, query, backends, limit, vector_category)
 
         # Provide helpful message if pure-vector mode returns no results
         if pure_vector and enable_vector and len(results_map.get("vector", [])) == 0:
@@ -263,6 +276,19 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
                         top_k=self._config.reranker_top_k,
                     )
 
+        # Apply category filtering to avoid code/doc pollution
+        # This ensures KEYWORD queries return code files, SEMANTIC queries prefer docs
+        enable_category_filter = (
+            self._config is None
+            or getattr(self._config, 'enable_category_filter', True)
+        )
+        if enable_category_filter and not pure_vector:
+            with timer("category_filter", self.logger):
+                query_intent = detect_query_intent(query)
+                fused_results = filter_results_by_category(
+                    fused_results, query_intent, allow_mixed=True
+                )
+
         # Apply final limit
         return fused_results[:limit]
 
@@ -361,6 +387,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
         query: str,
         backends: Dict[str, bool],
         limit: int,
+        category: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> Dict[str, List[SearchResult]]:
         """Execute parallel searches across enabled backends.
 
@@ -369,6 +396,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
             query: FTS5 query string
             backends: Dictionary of backend name to enabled flag
             limit: Results limit per backend
+            category: Optional category filter for vector search ('code' or 'doc')
 
         Returns:
             Dictionary mapping source name to results list
@@ -399,7 +427,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
             if backends.get("vector"):
                 submit_times["vector"] = time.perf_counter()
                 future = executor.submit(
-                    self._search_vector, index_path, query, limit
+                    self._search_vector, index_path, query, limit, category
                 )
                 future_to_source[future] = "vector"
 
@@ -490,7 +518,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
             return []
 
     def _search_vector(
-        self, index_path: Path, query: str, limit: int
+        self, index_path: Path, query: str, limit: int, category: Optional[str] = None
     ) -> List[SearchResult]:
         """Execute vector similarity search using semantic embeddings.
 
@@ -498,6 +526,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
             index_path: Path to _index.db file
             query: Natural language query string
             limit: Maximum results
+            category: Optional category filter ('code' or 'doc')
 
         Returns:
             List of SearchResult objects ordered by semantic similarity
@@ -616,6 +645,7 @@ class HybridSearchEngine:
                 top_k=limit,
                 min_score=0.0,  # Return all results, let RRF handle filtering
                 return_full_content=True,
+                category=category,
             )
             self.logger.debug(
                 "[TIMING] vector_similarity_search: %.2fms (%d results)",
diff --git a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/ranking.py b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/ranking.py
index 5060bb20..7fa5b8cb 100644
--- a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/ranking.py
+++ b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/search/ranking.py
@@ -9,7 +9,8 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 import re
 import math
 from enum import Enum
-from typing import Any, Dict, List
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any, Dict, List, Optional
 
 from codexlens.entities import SearchResult, AdditionalLocation
 
@@ -132,6 +133,83 @@ def get_rrf_weights(
     return adjust_weights_by_intent(detect_query_intent(query), base_weights)
 
 
+# File extensions to category mapping for fast lookup
+_EXT_TO_CATEGORY: Dict[str, str] = {
+    # Code extensions
+    ".py": "code", ".js": "code", ".jsx": "code", ".ts": "code", ".tsx": "code",
+    ".java": "code", ".go": "code", ".zig": "code", ".m": "code", ".mm": "code",
+    ".c": "code", ".h": "code", ".cc": "code", ".cpp": "code", ".hpp": "code", ".cxx": "code",
+    ".rs": "code",
+    # Doc extensions
+    ".md": "doc", ".mdx": "doc", ".txt": "doc", ".rst": "doc",
+}
+
+
+def get_file_category(path: str) -> Optional[str]:
+    """Get file category ('code' or 'doc') from path extension.
+
+    Args:
+        path: File path string
+
+    Returns:
+        'code', 'doc', or None if unknown
+    """
+    ext = Path(path).suffix.lower()
+    return _EXT_TO_CATEGORY.get(ext)
+
+
+def filter_results_by_category(
+    results: List[SearchResult],
+    intent: QueryIntent,
+    allow_mixed: bool = True,
+) -> List[SearchResult]:
+    """Filter results by category based on query intent.
+
+    Strategy:
+    - KEYWORD (code intent): Only return code files
+    - SEMANTIC (doc intent): Prefer docs, but allow code if allow_mixed=True
+    - MIXED: Return all results
+
+    Args:
+        results: List of SearchResult objects
+        intent: Query intent from detect_query_intent()
+        allow_mixed: If True, SEMANTIC intent includes code files with lower priority
+
+    Returns:
+        Filtered and re-ranked list of SearchResult objects
+    """
+    if not results or intent == QueryIntent.MIXED:
+        return results
+
+    code_results = []
+    doc_results = []
+    unknown_results = []
+
+    for r in results:
+        category = get_file_category(r.path)
+        if category == "code":
+            code_results.append(r)
+        elif category == "doc":
+            doc_results.append(r)
+        else:
+            unknown_results.append(r)
+
+    if intent == QueryIntent.KEYWORD:
+        # Code intent: return only code files + unknown (might be code)
+        filtered = code_results + unknown_results
+    elif intent == QueryIntent.SEMANTIC:
+        if allow_mixed:
+            # Semantic intent with mixed: docs first, then code
+            filtered = doc_results + code_results + unknown_results
+        else:
+            # Semantic intent strict: only docs
+            filtered = doc_results + unknown_results
+    else:
+        filtered = results
+
+    return filtered
+
+
 def simple_weighted_fusion(
     results_map: Dict[str, List[SearchResult]],
     weights: Dict[str, float] = None,
diff --git a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/semantic/vector_store.py b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/semantic/vector_store.py
index bc947164..1dad8fbe 100644
--- a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/semantic/vector_store.py
+++ b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/semantic/vector_store.py
@@ -155,6 +155,7 @@ class VectorStore:
                     content TEXT NOT NULL,
                     embedding BLOB NOT NULL,
                     metadata TEXT,
+                    category TEXT DEFAULT 'code',
                     created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
                 )
             """)
@@ -162,6 +163,10 @@ class VectorStore:
                 CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chunks_file
                 ON semantic_chunks(file_path)
             """)
+            conn.execute("""
+                CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chunks_category
+                ON semantic_chunks(category)
+            """)
             # Model configuration table - tracks which model generated the embeddings
             conn.execute("""
                 CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS embeddings_config (
@@ -177,6 +182,8 @@ class VectorStore:
 
             # Migration: Add backend column to existing tables
             self._migrate_backend_column(conn)
+            # Migration: Add category column
+            self._migrate_category_column(conn)
 
             conn.commit()
 
@@ -197,6 +204,28 @@ class VectorStore:
                 ADD COLUMN backend TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT 'fastembed'
             """)
 
+    def _migrate_category_column(self, conn: sqlite3.Connection) -> None:
+        """Add category column to existing semantic_chunks table if not present.
+
+        Args:
+            conn: Active SQLite connection
+        """
+        # Check if category column exists
+        cursor = conn.execute("PRAGMA table_info(semantic_chunks)")
+        columns = [row[1] for row in cursor.fetchall()]
+
+        if 'category' not in columns:
+            logger.info("Migrating semantic_chunks table: adding category column")
+            conn.execute("""
+                ALTER TABLE semantic_chunks
+                ADD COLUMN category TEXT DEFAULT 'code'
+            """)
+            # Create index for fast category filtering
+            conn.execute("""
+                CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chunks_category
+                ON semantic_chunks(category)
+            """)
+
     def _init_ann_index(self) -> None:
         """Initialize ANN index (lazy loading from existing data)."""
         if not HNSWLIB_AVAILABLE:
@@ -390,9 +419,16 @@ class VectorStore:
                 self._ann_index = None
                 return False
 
-    def add_chunk(self, chunk: SemanticChunk, file_path: str) -> int:
+    def add_chunk(
+        self, chunk: SemanticChunk, file_path: str, category: str = "code"
+    ) -> int:
         """Add a single chunk with its embedding.
 
+        Args:
+            chunk: SemanticChunk with embedding
+            file_path: Path to the source file
+            category: File category ('code' or 'doc'), default 'code'
+
         Returns:
             The inserted chunk ID.
         """
@@ -406,10 +442,10 @@ class VectorStore:
         with sqlite3.connect(self.db_path) as conn:
             cursor = conn.execute(
                 """
-                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata)
-                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata, category)
+                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?)
                 """,
-                (file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json)
+                (file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json, category)
             )
             conn.commit()
             chunk_id = cursor.lastrowid or 0
@@ -427,9 +463,16 @@ class VectorStore:
         self._invalidate_cache()
         return chunk_id
 
-    def add_chunks(self, chunks: List[SemanticChunk], file_path: str) -> List[int]:
+    def add_chunks(
+        self, chunks: List[SemanticChunk], file_path: str, category: str = "code"
+    ) -> List[int]:
         """Add multiple chunks with embeddings (batch insert).
 
+        Args:
+            chunks: List of SemanticChunk objects with embeddings
+            file_path: Path to the source file
+            category: File category ('code' or 'doc'), default 'code'
+
         Returns:
             List of inserted chunk IDs.
         """
@@ -445,7 +488,7 @@ class VectorStore:
             embedding_arr = np.array(chunk.embedding, dtype=np.float32)
             embedding_blob = embedding_arr.tobytes()
             metadata_json = json.dumps(chunk.metadata) if chunk.metadata else None
-            batch_data.append((file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json))
+            batch_data.append((file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json, category))
             embeddings_list.append(embedding_arr)
 
         # Batch insert to SQLite
@@ -456,8 +499,8 @@ class VectorStore:
 
             conn.executemany(
                 """
-                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata)
-                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata, category)
+                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?)
                 """,
                 batch_data
             )
@@ -484,6 +527,7 @@ class VectorStore:
         chunks_with_paths: List[Tuple[SemanticChunk, str]],
         update_ann: bool = True,
         auto_save_ann: bool = True,
+        categories: Optional[List[str]] = None,
     ) -> List[int]:
         """Batch insert chunks from multiple files in a single transaction.
 
@@ -494,6 +538,8 @@ class VectorStore:
             update_ann: If True, update ANN index with new vectors (default: True)
             auto_save_ann: If True, save ANN index after update (default: True).
                           Set to False for bulk inserts to reduce I/O overhead.
+            categories: Optional list of categories per chunk. If None, defaults to 'code'.
+                       If provided, must match length of chunks_with_paths.
 
         Returns:
             List of inserted chunk IDs
@@ -503,10 +549,17 @@ class VectorStore:
 
         batch_size = len(chunks_with_paths)
 
+        # Validate categories if provided
+        if categories is not None and len(categories) != batch_size:
+            raise ValueError(
+                f"categories length ({len(categories)}) must match "
+                f"chunks_with_paths length ({batch_size})"
+            )
+
         # Prepare batch data
         batch_data = []
         embeddings_list = []
-        for chunk, file_path in chunks_with_paths:
+        for i, (chunk, file_path) in enumerate(chunks_with_paths):
             if chunk.embedding is None:
                 raise ValueError("All chunks must have embeddings")
             # Optimize: avoid repeated np.array() if already numpy
@@ -516,7 +569,8 @@ class VectorStore:
                 embedding_arr = np.array(chunk.embedding, dtype=np.float32)
             embedding_blob = embedding_arr.tobytes()
             metadata_json = json.dumps(chunk.metadata) if chunk.metadata else None
-            batch_data.append((file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json))
+            category = categories[i] if categories else "code"
+            batch_data.append((file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json, category))
             embeddings_list.append(embedding_arr)
 
         # Batch insert to SQLite in single transaction
@@ -529,8 +583,8 @@ class VectorStore:
 
             conn.executemany(
                 """
-                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata)
-                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata, category)
+                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?)
                 """,
                 batch_data
             )
@@ -565,6 +619,7 @@ class VectorStore:
         embeddings_matrix: np.ndarray,
         update_ann: bool = True,
         auto_save_ann: bool = True,
+        categories: Optional[List[str]] = None,
     ) -> List[int]:
         """Batch insert chunks with pre-computed numpy embeddings matrix.
 
@@ -576,6 +631,7 @@ class VectorStore:
             embeddings_matrix: Pre-computed embeddings as (N, D) numpy array
             update_ann: If True, update ANN index with new vectors (default: True)
             auto_save_ann: If True, save ANN index after update (default: True)
+            categories: Optional list of categories per chunk. If None, defaults to 'code'.
 
         Returns:
             List of inserted chunk IDs
@@ -591,6 +647,13 @@ class VectorStore:
                 f"{embeddings_matrix.shape[0]} embeddings"
             )
 
+        # Validate categories if provided
+        if categories is not None and len(categories) != batch_size:
+            raise ValueError(
+                f"categories length ({len(categories)}) must match "
+                f"chunks_with_paths length ({batch_size})"
+            )
+
         # Ensure float32 format
         embeddings_matrix = embeddings_matrix.astype(np.float32)
 
@@ -600,7 +663,8 @@ class VectorStore:
             embedding_arr = embeddings_matrix[i]
             embedding_blob = embedding_arr.tobytes()
             metadata_json = json.dumps(chunk.metadata) if chunk.metadata else None
-            batch_data.append((file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json))
+            category = categories[i] if categories else "code"
+            batch_data.append((file_path, chunk.content, embedding_blob, metadata_json, category))
 
         # Batch insert to SQLite in single transaction
         with sqlite3.connect(self.db_path) as conn:
@@ -612,8 +676,8 @@ class VectorStore:
 
             conn.executemany(
                 """
-                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata)
-                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)
+                INSERT INTO semantic_chunks (file_path, content, embedding, metadata, category)
+                VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?)
                 """,
                 batch_data
             )
@@ -765,6 +829,7 @@ class VectorStore:
         top_k: int = 10,
         min_score: float = 0.0,
         return_full_content: bool = True,
+        category: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> List[SearchResult]:
         """Find chunks most similar to query embedding.
 
@@ -776,6 +841,7 @@ class VectorStore:
             top_k: Maximum results to return.
             min_score: Minimum cosine similarity score in [0.0, 1.0].
             return_full_content: If True, return full code block content.
+            category: Optional category filter ('code' or 'doc'). If None, returns all.
 
         Returns:
             List of SearchResult ordered by similarity (highest first).
@@ -796,14 +862,14 @@ class VectorStore:
         ):
             try:
                 return self._search_with_ann(
-                    query_vec, top_k, min_score, return_full_content
+                    query_vec, top_k, min_score, return_full_content, category
                 )
             except Exception as e:
                 logger.warning("ANN search failed, falling back to brute-force: %s", e)
 
         # Fallback to brute-force search (O(N))
         return self._search_brute_force(
-            query_vec, top_k, min_score, return_full_content
+            query_vec, top_k, min_score, return_full_content, category
         )
 
     def _search_with_ann(
@@ -812,6 +878,7 @@ class VectorStore:
         top_k: int,
         min_score: float,
         return_full_content: bool,
+        category: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> List[SearchResult]:
         """Search using HNSW index (O(log N)).
 
@@ -820,13 +887,16 @@ class VectorStore:
             top_k: Maximum results to return
             min_score: Minimum cosine similarity score in [0.0, 1.0]
             return_full_content: If True, return full code block content
+            category: Optional category filter ('code' or 'doc')
 
         Returns:
             List of SearchResult ordered by similarity (highest first)
         """
         # Limit top_k to available vectors to prevent hnswlib error
         ann_count = self._ann_index.count()
-        effective_top_k = min(top_k, ann_count) if ann_count > 0 else 0
+        # When category filtering, fetch more candidates to compensate for filtering
+        fetch_k = top_k * 3 if category else top_k
+        effective_top_k = min(fetch_k, ann_count) if ann_count > 0 else 0
 
         if effective_top_k == 0:
             return []
@@ -875,8 +945,12 @@ class VectorStore:
         top_ids = [f[0] for f in filtered]
         top_scores = [f[1] for f in filtered]
 
-        # Fetch content from SQLite
-        return self._fetch_results_by_ids(top_ids, top_scores, return_full_content)
+        # Fetch content from SQLite with category filtering
+        results = self._fetch_results_by_ids(
+            top_ids, top_scores, return_full_content, category
+        )
+        # Apply final limit after category filtering
+        return results[:top_k]
 
     def _search_brute_force(
         self,
@@ -884,6 +958,7 @@ class VectorStore:
         top_k: int,
         min_score: float,
         return_full_content: bool,
+        category: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> List[SearchResult]:
         """Brute-force search using NumPy (O(N) fallback).
 
@@ -892,6 +967,7 @@ class VectorStore:
             top_k: Maximum results to return
             min_score: Minimum cosine similarity score in [0.0, 1.0]
             return_full_content: If True, return full code block content
+            category: Optional category filter ('code' or 'doc')
 
         Returns:
             List of SearchResult ordered by similarity (highest first)
@@ -926,27 +1002,31 @@ class VectorStore:
             if len(valid_indices) == 0:
                 return []
 
-            # Sort by score descending and take top_k
+            # When category filtering, fetch more candidates to compensate for filtering
+            fetch_k = top_k * 3 if category else top_k
+
+            # Sort by score descending and take top candidates
             valid_scores = scores[valid_indices]
-            sorted_order = np.argsort(valid_scores)[::-1][:top_k]
+            sorted_order = np.argsort(valid_scores)[::-1][:fetch_k]
             top_indices = valid_indices[sorted_order]
             top_scores = valid_scores[sorted_order]
 
             # Get chunk IDs for top results
             top_ids = [self._chunk_ids[i] for i in top_indices]
 
-        # Fetch content only for top-k results (lazy loading)
+        # Fetch content only for top-k results (lazy loading) with category filtering
         results = self._fetch_results_by_ids(
-            top_ids, top_scores.tolist(), return_full_content
+            top_ids, top_scores.tolist(), return_full_content, category
         )
-
-        return results
+        # Apply final limit after category filtering
+        return results[:top_k]
 
     def _fetch_results_by_ids(
         self,
         chunk_ids: List[int],
         scores: List[float],
         return_full_content: bool,
+        category: Optional[str] = None,
     ) -> List[SearchResult]:
         """Fetch full result data for specific chunk IDs.
 
@@ -954,6 +1034,7 @@ class VectorStore:
             chunk_ids: List of chunk IDs to fetch.
             scores: Corresponding similarity scores.
             return_full_content: Whether to include full content.
+            category: Optional category filter ('code' or 'doc').
 
         Returns:
             List of SearchResult objects.
@@ -968,15 +1049,25 @@ class VectorStore:
         # SQL injection prevention:
         # - Only a validated placeholders string (commas + '?') is interpolated into the query.
         # - User-provided values are passed separately via sqlite3 parameters.
-        query = """
-            SELECT id, file_path, content, metadata
-            FROM semantic_chunks
-            WHERE id IN ({placeholders})
-        """.format(placeholders=placeholders)
+        # - Category filter is added as a separate parameter
+        if category:
+            query = """
+                SELECT id, file_path, content, metadata
+                FROM semantic_chunks
+                WHERE id IN ({placeholders}) AND category = ?
+            """.format(placeholders=placeholders)
+            params = list(chunk_ids) + [category]
+        else:
+            query = """
+                SELECT id, file_path, content, metadata
+                FROM semantic_chunks
+                WHERE id IN ({placeholders})
+            """.format(placeholders=placeholders)
+            params = chunk_ids
 
         with sqlite3.connect(self.db_path) as conn:
             conn.execute("PRAGMA mmap_size = 30000000000")
-            rows = conn.execute(query, chunk_ids).fetchall()
+            rows = conn.execute(query, params).fetchall()
 
         # Build ID -> row mapping
         id_to_row = {r[0]: r for r in rows}
diff --git a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/watcher/events.py b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/watcher/events.py
index 96860c93..dbb3f2fa 100644
--- a/codex-lens/src/codexlens/watcher/events.py
+++ b/codex-lens/src/codexlens/watcher/events.py
@@ -30,8 +30,22 @@ class WatcherConfig:
     """Configuration for file watcher."""
     debounce_ms: int = 1000
     ignored_patterns: Set[str] = field(default_factory=lambda: {
-        ".git", ".venv", "venv", "node_modules",
-        "__pycache__", ".codexlens", ".idea", ".vscode",
+        # Version control
+        ".git", ".svn", ".hg",
+        # Python environments & cache
+        ".venv", "venv", "env", "__pycache__", ".pytest_cache", ".mypy_cache", ".ruff_cache",
+        # Node.js
+        "node_modules", "bower_components", ".npm", ".yarn",
+        # Build artifacts
+        "dist", "build", "out", "target", "bin", "obj", "_build", "coverage", "htmlcov",
+        # IDE & Editor
+        ".idea", ".vscode", ".vs", ".eclipse",
+        # CodexLens internal
+        ".codexlens",
+        # Package manager caches
+        ".cache", ".parcel-cache", ".turbo", ".next", ".nuxt",
+        # Logs & temp
+        "logs", "tmp", "temp",
     })
     languages: Optional[List[str]] = None  # None = all supported