Claude Code

What it does

Claude Code is Anthropic's agentic coding tool. Developers give it a task, such as a bug fix, a set of tests or a longer migration, and it works through the codebase, edits files and runs commands while they steer or review. The terminal is its core interface, installed with a script on macOS, Linux or Windows. Anthropic also offers extensions for VS Code (which also cover editors such as Cursor) and JetBrains IDEs, a Code tab in the Claude desktop app, a web version at claude.ai/code, iOS and Android apps, a Slack integration and GitHub Actions support.

Pricing and plans

Claude Code is not part of the free Claude plan. It is included in Pro, at $17 per month billed annually ($200 up front) or $20 billed monthly, in Max ($100 per month on the pricing page; a larger 20x tier also exists) and Ultra ($200 per month). The Team plan, for 2 to 150 people, includes it on Standard seats at $20 per seat per month billed annually ($25 monthly) and Premium seats at $100 ($125 monthly); Enterprise is also available. Alternatively, Claude Code can run with a Claude Console account billed at standard API rates. Prices are shown in dollars and may vary by region and taxes.

Strengths and limits

Claude Code can be used from many surfaces with the same account, and it fits into existing terminal workflows. Usage on subscription plans is capped: Pro and Max have a five-hour session limit and a weekly limit, and these limits are shared with regular Claude chat. When a limit is reached, users can wait, upgrade, enable usage credits or switch to API credits, which are billed at different rates. If an API key is set in the environment, Claude Code uses it instead of the subscription, which can lead to unexpected API charges. As with any coding agent, changes and commands should be reviewed before they are accepted.