Effective hole cleaning is essential to drilling success, with poor cuttings transport leading to reduced penetration rates, stuckpipe, and increased non‐productive time. The Drilling Cuttings Carrying Index (CCI) indicates the efficiency of hole cleaning.To ensure optimal hole cleaning, it should be greater than or equal to 1. Achieving a high CCI typically requires either thedeployment of high‐capacity rigs and robust surface equipment with increased volumes of drilling fluid, or the adjustment ofdrilling fluid properties—particularly rheology—to improve cuttings transport performance. This study proposes a data‐drivenoptimization of the CCI to enhance hole cleaning performance in a Middle Eastern oil field. Real field data from 15 depthsacross three formations were used to assess CCI, revealing suboptimal values below the critical threshold of 1. To improve CCI,key fluid and operational parameters—flow rate, plastic viscosity, and yield point—were optimized through Monte Carlosimulations using Oracle Crystal Ball. A total of 80 simulations were conducted for each depth to identify optimal parametercombinations that enhance cuttings transport efficiency. The optimized CCI values across all depths (440–2900 m) weredetermined, indicating satisfactory hole cleaning and offering a practical approach for improving wellbore cleaning. The d
