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Claude Code is only useable from a subscription. Other than that, API + custom UI seems better since you're paying for the usage instead of competing with othe

Claude Code is only useable from a subscription. Other than that, API + custom UI seems better since you're paying for the usage instead of competing with other flat-fee users for what seem to be overprovisioned resources (claude.ai was always throwing https 500 or 'sorry we're too busy' errors for me until I switched to API). Not sure if it's cheaper though - I never checked. It's insane how bad the first party chat apps are though. That's reason enough to use the API.

bananapub 1y ago
> Claude Code is only useable from a subscription. incorrect, you can pay per API call instead if you want.
- hombre_fatal 1y ago
  TFA says: > Pro and Max plan subscribers have access to use Claude Code directly in the terminal. Claude Code can spend from your API balance, but you still need a subscription to authenticate with the @anthropic-ai/claude-code tool. Or has that changed and it's not being communicated well here?
  - bananapub 1y ago
    because it's a document in the "Max Plan" section of their website. https://www.anthropic.com/claude-code https://www.anthropic.com/claude-code explains you can pay per token or pay monthly. they are definitely not doing a good job on the release - that page doesn't mention Pro including it, and it's not actually available on Pro yet for half a dozen posters on this thread.
    - hombre_fatal 1y ago
      Hmm, I stand corrected. I remember needing a subscription just to authenticate with the Claude Code tool (at least when it came out) even though it spends from my API balance kinda felt like a scam. I wonder how the pricing works out between using Opus in Claude Code pay-as-you-go vs the $100/mo plan. All I remember is easily spending $25 in a Claude Code session if I let the context stay too big. So maybe the sub isn't a bad deal.
nmcfarl 1y ago
This was once true, I think, but it is no longer true. If you set an API key in your environment, Claude Code will work.
- dkdcio 1y ago
  This did not when I tried it a few days ago but I also noticed it lets you use your API key after logging in through the web interface. I'll need to try again, really annoying that you can't just set $ANTHROPIC_API_KEY and have it work
  - nmcfarl 1y ago
    This is really possible. I installed Claude code many months ago, and never used it - but may have logged in in at that time. When sonnet 4 was released I tried it again, and started using it with just my API keys (I do not have a paid subscription).

bananapub 1y ago

> Claude Code is only useable from a subscription. incorrect, you can pay per API call instead if you want.

hombre_fatal 1y ago
TFA says: > Pro and Max plan subscribers have access to use Claude Code directly in the terminal. Claude Code can spend from your API balance, but you still need a subscription to authenticate with the @anthropic-ai/claude-code tool. Or has that changed and it's not being communicated well here?
- bananapub 1y ago
  because it's a document in the "Max Plan" section of their website. https://www.anthropic.com/claude-code https://www.anthropic.com/claude-code explains you can pay per token or pay monthly. they are definitely not doing a good job on the release - that page doesn't mention Pro including it, and it's not actually available on Pro yet for half a dozen posters on this thread.
  - hombre_fatal 1y ago
    Hmm, I stand corrected. I remember needing a subscription just to authenticate with the Claude Code tool (at least when it came out) even though it spends from my API balance kinda felt like a scam. I wonder how the pricing works out between using Opus in Claude Code pay-as-you-go vs the $100/mo plan. All I remember is easily spending $25 in a Claude Code session if I let the context stay too big. So maybe the sub isn't a bad deal.

nmcfarl 1y ago

This was once true, I think, but it is no longer true. If you set an API key in your environment, Claude Code will work.

dkdcio 1y ago
This did not when I tried it a few days ago but I also noticed it lets you use your API key after logging in through the web interface. I'll need to try again, really annoying that you can't just set $ANTHROPIC_API_KEY and have it work
- nmcfarl 1y ago
  This is really possible. I installed Claude code many months ago, and never used it - but may have logged in in at that time. When sonnet 4 was released I tried it again, and started using it with just my API keys (I do not have a paid subscription).