No, Claude Code is a premium feature included in Claude Pro ($17/month), Team, and Enterprise plans. It is not available to free tier users.

How do I install Claude Code?

You can install it via npm using the command npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code, but you will need to authenticate with a paid Claude account to use it.

Can Claude Code push to GitHub?

Yes, because it runs in your terminal, it can execute git add, git commit, and git push commands, though it will typically ask for your permission before pushing.

Does it work with VS Code?

While it is a standalone terminal tool, it is often used alongside VS Code. You can run it in the VS Code integrated terminal to have it modify files while you watch in the editor.

Claude Code

An agentic coding tool that lives in your terminal.

From Anthropic

Founder: Anthropic (Engineering Team)

Code & Development

Nov 2025

1 Million+

Paid

Pricing Model

Paid

Starting Price

$17/Month

About This AI

Claude Code is a CLI (Command Line Interface) agentic coding tool that integrates the intelligence of Claude 3.5 Sonnet and Opus 4.5 directly into your terminal.

Unlike IDE plugins that just autocomplete text, Claude Code acts as an autonomous engineer: it can navigate your file system, read your entire codebase, run terminal commands, execute tests, and manage Git workflows.

It is designed to handle complex, multi-step engineering tasks like refactoring a module or debugging a crash by planning its actions, executing them, and verifying the results without constant hand-holding.

AI App Builder AI Website Builder Coding Game Development

Pricing

Pricing Model

Paid

Starting Price

$17/Month

Key Features

Agentic Architecture: Capable of planning and executing multi-step tasks (e.g., "fix the bug in auth.ts and add a test case") autonomously.
Deep Context Awareness: Reads and understands your project's file structure and dependencies to make informed changes.
Terminal Integration: Runs directly in your shell, giving it access to standard tools like git, npm, grep, and ls.
Safety Protocols: Asks for permission before executing potentially destructive commands (like deleting files or pushing to git).
Plan Mode: A specialized mode where Claude creates a detailed step-by-step plan for complex features before writing any code.
Model Selection: Users can toggle between "Sonnet 4.5" for speed/cost or "Opus 4.5" for complex reasoning and deep debugging.

Pros

Works where developers live (the terminal), not just in a specific IDE.
"Glass-box" transparency: you see every command it runs.
Can fix bugs by running tests, seeing the failure, and iterating until it passes.
Drastically reduces context switching between the editor and the command line.
Included with existing Claude Pro and Team subscriptions.

Cons

CLI interface has a steeper learning curve than a GUI helper.
Heavy usage (especially with Opus 4.5) can hit rate limits quickly.
"Safety" prompts ("Allow this command?") can be repetitive during long sessions.

Best for Senior Software Engineers, DevOps professionals, and developers who prefer the terminal and need an autonomous partner for complex refactoring and maintenance tasks.

FAQs

Is Claude Code free?
No, Claude Code is a premium feature included in Claude Pro ($17/month), Team, and Enterprise plans. It is not available to free tier users.
How do I install Claude Code?
You can install it via npm using the command npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code, but you will need to authenticate with a paid Claude account to use it.
Can Claude Code push to GitHub?
Yes, because it runs in your terminal, it can execute git add, git commit, and git push commands, though it will typically ask for your permission before pushing.
Does it work with VS Code?
While it is a standalone terminal tool, it is often used alongside VS Code. You can run it in the VS Code integrated terminal to have it modify files while you watch in the editor.