# Claude Code > Source: https://agentsindex.ai/claude-code Anthropic's agentic coding tool for terminal, IDE, desktop and browser, included with Claude plans. Claude Code is Anthropic's agentic coding tool that reads a codebase, edits files and runs commands from the terminal, VS Code, JetBrains, a desktop app or the browser. It connects to external systems through MCP and is programmable with the Agent SDK. - Best for: Developers and engineering teams who want an agent to make multi-file changes, run tests and open pull requests in their own repositories. - Look elsewhere if: - you want to try it without paying Starting price $20 a month From [claude.com/pricing](https://claude.com/pricing), checked 27 October 2026 - MCP server Yes - API Yes - Open source No - Self-host Not stated [Docs](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/overview) What we checked - Pages last read: 27 October 2026 - Facts checked: 5 facts From 5 sources - AI answers: Not named in any of 62 Buyer questions, our November check [How we check](https://agentsindex.ai/methodology) [Editorial policy](https://agentsindex.ai/editorial-policy#not-for-sale) [Visit Claude Code](https://agentsindex.ai/go/claude-code) [Compare](https://agentsindex.ai/compare?cat=coding-agents&products=claude-code) ## At a glance - Category: [Coding agents](https://agentsindex.ai/categories/coding-agents) ### For developers - SDKs: Python, TypeScript - Runs: Cloud, Desktop, CLI ### Security - Compliance: SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 ## What it actually is Claude Code is an agentic CLI that reads a codebase, edits files, runs shell commands, and drives git — installed via a native installer, Homebrew, or (deprecated) npm. The same engine now runs across the terminal, a VS Code/Cursor/JetBrains extension, a standalone desktop app, a browser (claude.ai/code), and CI via GitHub Actions or GitLab CI/CD, all reading the same CLAUDE.md, settings.json, and MCP server config, so a team's conventions travel with the repo rather than the tool. It also supports multi-agent orchestration (parallel subagents, an 'agent team' mode, and a scriptable Agent SDK for building custom agents on the same engine). ## How it's priced There are two independent paths, and mixing them up is the most common pricing mistake. (1) Subscription usage: Claude Code is included in every paid Claude plan and draws from the same rolling 5-hour/weekly usage pool as claude.ai chat — Pro is $17/month billed annually ($20 monthly), Max is $100/month (5x Pro's usage) or $200/month (20x), Team is $20/seat/month annually ($25 monthly, Standard) or $100/seat (Premium, 5x), and Enterprise is $20/seat plus usage at API rates. (2) Pay-per-token API: through a Console account, Claude Code bills per token at Sonnet 5's $2/MTok input and $10/MTok output (Opus 5: $5/$25; Haiku 4.5: $1/$5), separate from any subscription. Anthropic's own published enterprise figures put average cost at about $13/developer/active-day and $150-250/developer/month, with 90% of users under $30/day — a vendor claim, not independently verified. ## Development pace as a signal The public changelog shows releases roughly every 1-3 days (2.1.259 through 2.1.267 across a two-week window in the sample reviewed), each with dozens of dated fixes across the CLI, VS Code extension, and gateway — not a marketing cadence but a genuinely fast-moving product. That cuts both ways: features you rely on can change quickly (e.g. npm install was deprecated in favor of a native installer during this period), and pinning a `minimumVersion` or release channel matters more here than for a slower-moving tool. ## Not open source, despite the GitHub repo github.com/anthropics/claude-code has 144,571 stars and 23,078 forks, but it is not the product's source: its README states the CLI is installed via a native installer or npm, its package.json links back to a separate private repo (`claude-cli-internal`), and the npm package itself ships as a small wrapper plus platform-specific compiled binaries, not readable JS/TS source. What the public repo actually contains is the issue tracker, example plugins, MDM/devcontainer configs, and CI workflows. The license file is a one-line pointer to Anthropic's Commercial Terms of Service, not an OSS license. ## Security and permissions model Claude Code defaults to read-only in Manual mode and prompts before edits, command execution, or network calls; an 'auto mode' instead routes actions through a separate classifier model. It supports OS-level sandboxing for Bash (filesystem and network isolation) and a scoped working-directory boundary. Anthropic publishes SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO 27001 documentation through its Trust Center, and Claude Code has a HackerOne bug-bounty program. Anthropic explicitly does not security-audit third-party MCP servers a user connects — that risk sits with whoever configures them. ## What's missing from independent evaluation Public benchmarks like SWE-bench Verified and Aider's polyglot leaderboard score the underlying Claude models (Sonnet, Opus), not the Claude Code harness itself, so there is no independent, apples-to-apples benchmark of 'Claude Code' as a product against competing agentic CLIs (e.g. Aider, OpenAI Codex CLI, Cursor's agent mode) that we could locate. Anthropic's status page (status.claude.com) shows Claude Code sharing infrastructure incidents with claude.ai and the API — a September 3, 2026 elevated-error incident, for example, affected claude.ai, the API, Claude Code, and Cowork simultaneously — so outages are not isolated to one surface. Our take Decide how you will pay before a team rolls it out. Subscription use draws on the same usage limits as Claude chat, while API credits through a Console account bill every token and have no plan cap. ## How much does Claude Code cost? Prices excluding tax, as Claude Code publishes them. - Pro · $17/month - Billed annually, or $20 monthly - Includes Claude Code - Usage shared with Claude chat - Max · From $100/month - 5x or 20x the usage of Pro - Includes Claude Code - Team · $20/month per seat - Standard seat, billed annually, or $25 monthly - Premium seat $100, or $125 monthly - Central billing and SSO - Enterprise · $20/seat plus usage - Billed annually, 20 seat minimum - Usage billed at API rates - Role-based access, SCIM and audit logs ### Terms - Free plan or trial: No ## For AI agents - MCP server: Yes - API: Yes [Developer docs](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/overview) Where these prices come from [claude.com/pricing](https://claude.com/pricing), checked 27 October 2026 ## What we checked on Claude Code Yes Partly No What it costs to start Yes ### What the price counts Metered by subscription seat and month: Pro at $20 billed monthly, Max 5x and Max 20x at flat monthly rates, Team at a per-seat monthly price, with Claude Console usage billed at API rates instead. > $17 Per month with annual subscription discount ($200 billed up front). $20 if billed monthly. Plan cards, Pro column price cell [claude.com/pricing](https://claude.com/pricing) Checked 27 October 2026 What it costs to start No ### Free tier The plan comparison table lists Claude Code as not available on the Free plan and available on Pro, Max 5x and Max 20x, so a paid Claude subscription or a Console account with API credits is required. On the page: Features and capabilities comparison table, Claude Code row across Free, Pro, Max 5x, Max 20x Features and capabilities comparison table, Claude Code row across Free, Pro, Max 5x, Max 20x [claude.com/pricing](https://claude.com/pricing) Checked 27 October 2026 How you build with it Yes ### Public API The Agent SDK exposes Claude Code's tools and agent loop as a Python and TypeScript library, and the CLI can be driven headlessly as a subprocess, so this is documented programmatic access rather than a hosted REST endpoint. > The Agent SDK gives you the same tools, agent loop, and context management that power Claude Code, programmable in Python and TypeScript. Agent SDK overview, opening paragraph [code.claude.com/docs/en/agent-sdk/overv…](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/agent-sdk/overview) Checked 27 October 2026 How you build with it Yes ### MCP server Claude Code is both an MCP client that connects to remote HTTP, SSE, WebSocket and local stdio servers, and can itself be started as a stdio MCP server other applications connect to. > You can use Claude Code itself as an MCP server that other applications can connect to: Section 'Use Claude Code as an MCP server' [code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp) Checked 27 October 2026 How you build with it No ### Open source The public anthropics/claude-code repository carries a LICENSE.md that reserves all rights and points to Anthropic's Commercial Terms of Service, granting no open license to the code. > © Anthropic PBC. All rights reserved. Use is subject to Anthropic's Commercial Terms of Service. LICENSE.md, full file text [github.com/anthropics/claude-code/blob/…](https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/blob/main/LICENSE.md) Checked 27 October 2026 ## Claude Code alternatives - [Hyper](https://agentsindex.ai/hyper) · The team behind Hyper runs this listing · Autonomous engineering agent that tests each delivery in a real browser on its servers and ships it with evidence. · Free, then $20 a month Checked 11 Nov · Featured Freemium Free trial · [Visit](https://agentsindex.ai/go/hyper) - MCP server - API - Open source - Self-host - Claude Code and Hyper | Claude Code | From $20 a month | 27 Oct | | --- | --- | --- | | [Hyper](https://agentsindex.ai/hyper) | Free, then $20 a month | 11 Nov | ## Where we've written about Claude Code - [Hyper review (2026): an autonomous coding agent that ships verified pull requests](https://agentsindex.ai/blog/hyper-review-autonomous-coding-agent) - [AI coding agents compared: what each one is actually good at](https://agentsindex.ai/blog/ai-coding-agents-what-each-is-good-at) ## Questions about Claude Code - How much does Claude Code cost?: Claude Code costs $20 a month. From claude.com/pricing, checked 27 October 2026. - Does Claude Code have an API or an MCP server?: It has an API. It has an MCP server. - Is Claude Code open source, and can you host it yourself?: It is not open source. - What have we checked on Claude Code?: 5 facts, under these headings: What it costs to start, how you build with it. - How do we check Claude Code?: We hold 5 facts on Claude Code, quoted from 5 pages. Facts and price last checked 27 October 2026. Last change found 26 October 2026. [How we check every listing](https://agentsindex.ai/methodology) ## Sources and changes Last changed 26 October 2026 Sources 5 - Read 27 October 2026 · [claude.com](https://claude.com/pricing) /pricing - Read 27 October 2026 · [github.com](https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/blob/main/LICENSE.md) /anthropics/claude-code/blob/main/LICENSE.md - Read 27 October 2026 · [code.claude.com](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/agent-sdk/overview) /docs/en/agent-sdk/overview - Read 27 October 2026 · [code.claude.com](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp) /docs/en/mcp - Read 26 October 2026 · [support.claude.com](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/8325606-what-is-the-pro-plan) /en/articles/8325606-what-is-the-pro-plan What changed on this page 1 - 26 October 2026 Free tier ## Similar to Claude Code [See all in Coding agents](https://agentsindex.ai/categories/coding-agents) - [ERIUS PHONE](https://agentsindex.ai/eriusphone) A dedicated virtual Android phone per AI agent, with Google Play apps and sign-ins that persist between sessions. From about $45 a month - [TinyFish](https://agentsindex.ai/tinyfish) One web layer for agents: free search and fetch, plus hosted browsers and goal-driven web automation. Free plan, then $0.002 per minute - [UI Discovery](https://agentsindex.ai/uidiscovery) Library of real website and app UI sections, queryable by AI assistants over MCP and a REST API. Free plan, then $15 a month - [ClineFlow](https://agentsindex.ai/clineflow) Git-native project memory and handoffs for coding agents. Free plan ## From our research [All research](https://agentsindex.ai/blog) - [Comparison](https://agentsindex.ai/blog/agent-automation-platforms-which-can-you-actually-buy) 28 Sep 2026 Beam AI, Stack AI, Gumloop and more: which can you buy? - [Buyer's guide](https://agentsindex.ai/blog/ai-agent-tools-that-let-you-take-your-data-out) 23 Oct 2026 AI agent tools that let you take your data out ClineFlow, AgentMail and Automater let you take your data out in full, while UI Discovery, AgentQL, Arcmira and Wash Bodega do so only in part. - [Comparison](https://agentsindex.ai/blog/ai-customer-service-agents-cost-per-resolution) 13 Aug 2026 AI support agents: what each costs per resolved chat Published prices for 21 AI support agents, converted to one comparable number: cost per conversation the AI closed on its own. Verified 13 Aug 2026. ## Is this yours? Claim it free, then see who reads this page and carry the verified owner mark. You confirm it with an email at claude.ai. 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