Claude Code Cheatsheet

Launch

claude

Interactive session

claude "query"

Start with a prompt

claude -p "query"

Headless (non-interactive)

claude -c

Continue last conversation

claude -r "name"

Resume a named session

claude update

Update to latest version

claude project purge

Delete all Claude Code state for a path

claude agents

View all sessions: running, blocked, or completed

claude remote-control --continue

Resume a Remote Control session

claude plugin details <name>

Show plugin component inventory and projected token costs

claude plugin disable <name>

Disable plugin (refuses if another enabled plugin depends on it)

claude plugin enable <name>

Force-enable plugin and transitive dependencies

claude plugin init <name>

Scaffold a new plugin in .claude/skills

claude plugin list [--enabled|--disabled]

List plugins with optional enabled/disabled filter

claude auto-mode reset

Restore default auto-mode configuration (--yes to skip confirmation)

claude rc

Short alias for claude remote-control

claude setup-token

Create a long-lived auth token for headless and CI use

claude self-hosted-runner

Run web, mobile and desktop sessions on your own machine (Team/Enterprise)

claude plugin validate

Check a plugin or marketplace manifest before publishing

Key Flags

--model

Choose model

-w

Git worktree isolation

-n / --name

Name this session

--add-dir

Add working directory

--agent

Use a custom agent

--allowedTools

Pre-approve tools

--output-format

json or stream

--max-turns

Limit agentic turns

--max-budget-usd

Set cost cap

--effort

low / medium / high / xhigh / max

--permission-mode

plan / default / ...

--verbose

Show verbose output

--bare

Minimal headless (no hooks/LSP)

--bg --exec '<cmd>'

Start background shell session

--fallback-model

Use when primary model unavailable

--remote

Web session on claude.ai

--teleport <id>

Continue a cloud session locally

--chrome

Enable Chrome integration

--exclude-dynamic-system-prompt-sections

Improve cross-user prompt caching

--from-pr

Load context from PR URL (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, GHE)

--plugin-url <url>

Fetch plugin .zip from URL for current session

--safe-mode

Start with all customizations disabled (CLAUDE.md, plugins, skills, hooks, MCP)

--ax-screen-reader

Screen reader mode (plain-text rendering)

--dangerously-skip-permissions

Bypass config-file permission prompts

--forward-subagent-text

Include subagent text and thinking in stream-json output

--system-prompt-file <path>

Load system prompt from file in --print/-p mode

--append-system-prompt <text>

Append text to system prompt (interactive and print modes)

--mcp-config <file>

Load extra MCP servers for this session

--settings <file>

Load an extra settings file (trusted source for sandbox keys)

Controls

Ctrl+C

Cancel input or generation

Ctrl+D

Exit session

Ctrl+Z

Suspend Claude Code (resume with fg)

Ctrl+L

Clear screen / full redraw

Ctrl+U

Clear entire input buffer

Ctrl+O

Toggle verbose/transcript

Ctrl+R

Reverse search history

Ctrl+G

Open prompt in $EDITOR

Ctrl+X Ctrl+E

Open in $EDITOR (alias)

Cmd+Delete

Delete to start of line

Ctrl+B

Background running task

Ctrl+T

Toggle task list

Ctrl+V

Paste image

Esc Esc

Rewind or summarize

Ctrl+W

Delete word before cursor

Ctrl+K

Delete to end of line

Modes

Shift+Tab

Cycle permission modes

Alt+P

Switch model

Alt+T

Toggle thinking

Alt+O

Toggle fast mode

Ctrl+Alt+F

Toggle focus view in VSCode (hides tool activity)

Input

\\+Enter

Newline

/

Slash command

!

Run bash command

@

File mention + autocomplete

:word:

Emoji shortcode autocomplete (e.g. :heart: → ❤️)

Ctrl+S

Narrow history search to current project/session

Vim Mode

v

Enter visual mode (select chars)

V

Enter visual-line mode (select lines)

c

Change operator (delete selection + enter insert mode)

f / F

Find character forward / backward on line

t / T

Move till character forward / backward on line

Transcript View

{

Jump to previous user prompt

}

Jump to next user prompt

[

Dump transcript to scrollback

v

Open transcript in $EDITOR

?

Show keyboard shortcuts overlay

Session

/clear

Clear conversation

/compact [focus]

Compress context

/resume

Resume or switch session

/usage

Token usage + streaks (merges /cost and /stats)

/rename [name]

Name session

/branch [name]

Branch conversation

/cost

Token usage breakdown

/context

Visualize context usage

/diff

Interactive diff viewer

/copy [N]

Copy last response

/rewind

Rewind to checkpoint

/undo

Alias for /rewind

/recap

Recap session context (summary while away)

/goal [condition]

Set completion condition; Claude works until met (shows elapsed time, turns, tokens)

/export

Export conversation

/autocompact

Auto-compact settings dialog (opens mid-turn)

Configuration

/config

Open settings

/config key=value

Set any config key directly from prompt

/config --help

List available shorthand keys for /config key=value

/model [model]

Switch model

/fast [on|off]

Toggle fast mode (Opus 5 and 4.8)

/theme

Change color theme (incl. auto/terminal)

/color

Set prompt-bar color for session ID

/permissions

View and update permissions

/effort [level]

Set effort level

/keybindings

Customize shortcuts

/scroll-speed [speed]

Tune mouse wheel scroll speed with live preview

/terminal-setup

Configure editor scroll sensitivity (VS Code/Cursor/Windsurf)

/login

Sign in or switch account

/remote-control

Move Remote Control to this session

Tools

/init

Create CLAUDE.md

/memory

Edit CLAUDE.md files

/mcp

Manage MCP servers

/hooks

Manage hooks

/skills

List available skills

/agents

Manage agents

/chrome

Chrome integration

/add-dir <path>

Add working directory

/install-github-app

Install GitHub App with optional Actions workflow setup

/reload-skills

Re-scan skill directories without restarting session

/cd <path>

Move session to new working directory without breaking prompt cache

/commit-push-pr

Commit, push, and open a PR in one step (auto-allows pushes to configured push remote)

/fork [desc]

Copy conversation to a new background session; keeps your current session running

/subtask

Launch an in-session subagent (former /fork behavior)

/review

Alias for /code-review (reviews current diff or PR; /review <level> <pr#>)

/plugin

Browse, install and manage plugins (installs activate without a restart)

/reload-plugins

Reload plugins without restarting the session

Utilities

/powerup

Interactive feature lessons

/btw <question>

Side question (no context cost)

/plan [desc]

Enter plan mode

/loop [interval]

Recurring scheduled task

/proactive

Alias for /loop

/status

Show session kind (interactive / attached / unattended)

/focus

Toggle focus view (clutter-free; separate from verbose)

/voice

Push-to-talk (20 languages)

/feedback

Send feedback (can attach last 24h or 7 days of sessions)

/doctor

Complete setup checkup

/checkup

Alias for /doctor

/pr-comments [PR]

Fetch PR comments

/stats

Usage streaks

/download

Download files with arrow navigation to step through results

/deep-research

Deep research mode (manual-launch only)

/schedule

Cloud scheduled tasks

/teleport

Cloud sessions: show how to continue locally (claude --teleport <id>)

/security-review

Security analysis

/release-notes

Interactive changelog

/team-onboarding

Generate teammate ramp-up guide from usage

/workflows

View dynamic workflow runs

/tasks

Open the background task panel

/bug

Report a bug

/advisor

Pick an advisor model to consult during a session

/usage-credits

Request usage credits from your organization admins

/autofix-pr

Cloud session that fixes a PR (not on the default branch)

/help

Show help

CLAUDE.md Locations

./CLAUDE.md

Project (team-shared)

~/.claude/CLAUDE.md

Personal (all projects)

/etc/claude-code/

Managed (org-wide)

Rules

.claude/rules/*.md

Project rules

~/.claude/rules/*.md

User rules

paths: frontmatter

Path-specific rules

@path/to/file

Import in CLAUDE.md

Auto Memory

~/.claude/projects/<proj>/memory/

MEMORY.md + topic files, auto-loaded

Plan Mode

Shift+Tab

Manual -> Auto-Accept -> Plan

--permission-mode plan

Start in plan mode

Thinking

Alt+T

Toggle thinking on/off

"ultrathink"

Max effort for this turn

/effort

low, medium, high, max

Worktrees

--worktree name

Isolated branch per feature

isolation: worktree

Agent in own worktree

sparsePaths

Checkout only needed dirs

/batch

Auto-creates worktrees

Voice

/voice

Enable push-to-talk

Space (hold)

Record, release to send

20 languages

EN, ES, FR, DE, PL, CZ...

Context Management

/context

Usage and optimization tips

/compact [focus]

Compress with focus keyword

Auto-compact

Triggers at ~95% capacity

1M context

Opus 5 and Opus 4.6 (Max/Team/Enterprise)

CLAUDE.md

Survives compaction

Headless / SDK

claude -p "query"

Non-interactive mode

--output-format json

Structured output

--max-budget-usd 5

Set a cost cap

cat file | claude -p

Pipe input

Config Files

~/.claude/settings.json

User settings

.claude/settings.json

Project (shared)

.claude/settings.local.json

Local only

~/.claude.json

OAuth, MCP, state

.mcp.json

Project MCP servers

managed-settings.d/

Drop-in org policy fragments

Notable Settings

modelOverrides

Map model picker to custom IDs

autoMemoryDirectory

Custom memory directory

showThinkingSummaries

Opt-in (off by default)

hooks: if

Conditional hooks

continueOnBlock: true

PostToolUse hook: feed rejection reason back to Claude and continue

PermissionDenied

Hook on auto-mode denial

refreshInterval

Re-run status command every N seconds

disableSkillShellExecution

Block shell execution inside skills

forceRemoteSettingsRefresh

Fail-closed remote settings (policy)

sandbox.credentials

Block sandboxed commands from accessing credential files and secret env vars

sandbox.network.deniedDomains

Block specific domains even under allowedDomains wildcards

sandbox.failIfUnavailable

Exit with error if sandbox can't start

disableDeepLinkRegistration

Prevent claude-cli:// protocol handler

CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_AWAY_SUMMARY

Enable auto-recap when resuming after time away

prUrlTemplate

Custom code-review URL template

wslInheritsWindowsSettings

Inherit Windows managed settings in WSL

cleanupPeriodDays

Days before pruning tasks/shell-snapshots/backups

skillOverrides

Control skill invocation: off / user-invocable-only / name-only

worktree.baseRef

fresh | head: branch base for new worktrees

worktree.bgIsolation

Background session worktree behavior (none = direct working copy)

pluginSuggestionMarketplaces

Managed: allowlist org marketplaces for plugin suggestions

forward_user_identity

Apps gateway opt-in: attribute actions to the authenticated user identity

additionalMarketplaces

Friendly alias for pluginSuggestionMarketplaces (add org marketplaces)

allowedMarketplaces

Friendly alias for allowed marketplace settings (restrict which marketplaces Claude can use)

MessageDisplay

Hook event: transform or hide assistant message text during display

EnterWorktree

Hook event: fires when switching between Claude-managed worktrees mid-session

workflowKeywordTrigger

Disable 'ultracode' keyword auto-triggering dynamic workflows (set via /config)

workflowSizeGuideline

Advisory dynamic workflow size target (e.g. 'medium' for fewer than 15 agents); settable from any settings file

reloadSkills: true

SessionStart hook output: load newly-installed skills in same session

requiredMinimumVersion

Managed: minimum Claude Code version required to run

requiredMaximumVersion

Managed: maximum Claude Code version allowed to run

hookSpecificOutput.additionalContext

Stop/SubagentStop hook return: extra feedback fed back to Claude

disableBundledSkills

Hide bundled skills, workflows, and built-in slash commands from model

post-session

Self-hosted runner lifecycle hook: runs after session ends, before workspace deletion

teammateMode: "iterm2"

iTerm2 teammate mode; warns when auto-detection fails

respondToBashCommands: false

Disable auto Claude responses to ! bash commands (preserves context-only behavior)

autoMode.classifyAllShell

Route all Bash/PowerShell commands through auto-mode classifier

disableAutoMode

Disable auto mode on Bedrock/Vertex/Foundry (auto mode is now on by default on these platforms)

vimInsertModeRemaps

Two-key insert-mode sequences (e.g. jj -> Esc)

emojiCompletionEnabled

Disable emoji shortcode autocomplete (set false)

sandbox.filesystem.disabled

Skip filesystem isolation while keeping network egress control

sandbox.network.strictAllowlist

Restrict sandboxed commands to only allowlisted hosts

DirectoryAdded

Hook event: fires after /add-dir registers a new working directory mid-session

UserPromptSubmit

Hook event: fires before each user prompt is submitted

PreCompact

Hook event: fires before conversation compaction

awsAuthRefresh

Helper script for foreground AWS auth (e.g., aws sso login)

awsCredentialExport

Helper script for background AWS credential export (STS-like response)

keybindingFlavor

classic (default) or readline: readline makes Ctrl+W delete back to whitespace

spellcheck

Underline misspelled words in the prompt (needs aspell, hunspell or ispell)

crossSessionInbound

Hold, auto-deliver or refuse cross-session messages

dialogExpiry

Expiry for held cross-session message approval dialogs

subagentStatusLine

Custom status line for agent rows (payload carries model and effort)

remoteControlAtStartup

Enable Remote Control when a session starts

axScreenReader

Screen reader mode with plain-text rendering (settings equivalent of --ax-screen-reader)

selection:clear

Keybinding action: clear the in-app text selection

forceLoginMethod

Enterprise: force a login method for terminal, SDK, VS Code and setup-token

extraKnownMarketplaces

Add marketplaces (additionalMarketplaces is the friendly alias)

strictKnownMarketplaces

Managed: restrict to listed marketplaces; accepts owner/* wildcards

blockedMarketplaces

Managed: block marketplaces; accepts owner/* wildcards

sandbox.ripgrep

Sandbox ripgrep binary; honored from user, managed and --settings only

Environment Variables

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

API authentication

ANTHROPIC_MODEL

Default model override

CLAUDE_CODE_EFFORT_LEVEL

low / medium / high / max / auto

MAX_THINKING_TOKENS

0 = thinking off

CLAUDE_STREAM_IDLE_TIMEOUT_MS

Streaming watchdog (default 90s)

CLAUDE_CODE_NO_FLICKER

Alt-screen rendering (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_CERT_STORE

bundled = use bundled CAs only (default: os)

CLAUDE_CODE_PERFORCE_MODE

Error on read-only files with p4 edit hint

CLAUDE_CODE_SUBPROCESS_ENV_SCRUB

Enable subprocess sandboxing with PID namespace isolation (Linux)

API_TIMEOUT_MS

Custom API request timeout in ms (default 300000)

CLAUDE_CODE_SCRIPT_CAPS

Limit script invocations per session

CLAUDE_CODE_USE_POWERSHELL_TOOL

Enable PowerShell tool (=1; requires pwsh)

MCP_CONNECTION_NONBLOCKING

Skip MCP wait in -p / headless mode (=true)

CLAUDECODE

Detect CC shell (=1)

ENABLE_PROMPT_CACHING_1H

Force 1-hour prompt cache TTL

FORCE_PROMPT_CACHING_5M

Force 5-minute prompt cache TTL

CLAUDE_CODE_HIDE_CWD

Hide working directory in startup logo (=1)

DISABLE_UPDATES

Block all update paths (stricter than DISABLE_AUTOUPDATER)

CLAUDE_CODE_FORK_SUBAGENT

Enable forked subagents on external builds (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_SESSION_ID

Session ID passed to Bash tool subprocess env

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_ALTERNATE_SCREEN

Opt out of fullscreen renderer (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_PACKAGE_MANAGER_AUTO_UPDATE

Auto-upgrade via Homebrew/WinGet

ANTHROPIC_BEDROCK_SERVICE_TIER

Bedrock service tier: default / flex / priority

AWS_BEARER_TOKEN_BEDROCK

Bearer token for Bedrock API authentication

CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_GATEWAY_MODEL_DISCOVERY

Enable /v1/models gateway discovery (=1)

CLAUDE_PROJECT_DIR

Project directory injected into stdio MCP server environments

MCP_TOOL_TIMEOUT

Per-request timeout for remote HTTP/SSE MCP servers (ms)

CLAUDE_CODE_MCP_TOOL_IDLE_TIMEOUT

Idle timeout for remote MCP tool calls beyond 5 min (ms)

ANTHROPIC_WORKSPACE_ID

Workload identity federation workspace scoping

CLAUDE_CODE_GIT_BASH_PATH

Custom Git for Windows path override

CLAUDE_CODE_POWERSHELL_RESPECT_EXECUTION_POLICY

Opt out of PowerShell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_STOP_HOOK_BLOCK_CAP

Override stop hook block limit (default 8)

CLAUDE_CODE_PLUGIN_PREFER_HTTPS

Clone plugins over HTTPS instead of SSH (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_AUTO_MODE

Enable auto mode on Bedrock/Vertex/Foundry for Opus 4.7/4.8 (=1)

OTEL_LOG_TOOL_DETAILS

Include tool parameters in tool_decision telemetry events (=1)

OTEL_RESOURCE_ATTRIBUTES

Values included as labels on metric datapoints for slicing usage by team or repo

CLAUDE_CODE_TMPDIR

Override directory for temporary files

CLAUDE_CODE_SAFE_MODE

Start with all customizations disabled (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_BUNDLED_SKILLS

Hide bundled skills, workflows, and built-in slash commands (=1)

API_FORCE_IDLE_TIMEOUT

Set to 0 to opt out of idle timeout on Vertex/Foundry (default 5 min)

CLAUDE_CODE_MAX_RETRIES

Max retry attempts (capped at 15; use CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG for unattended sessions)

CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG

Enable retry watchdog for unattended/long-running sessions

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_MOUSE_CLICKS

Disable mouse interactions in fullscreen while preserving scroll (=1)

OTEL_LOG_ASSISTANT_RESPONSES

Control redaction of assistant responses in claude_code.assistant_response OTel log events

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_BG_SHELL_PRESSURE_REAP

Disable automatic memory-pressure reaping for idle background shell commands (=1)

CLAUDE_AX_SCREEN_READER

Enable screen reader mode with plain-text rendering (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_PROCESS_WRAPPER

Corporate launcher integration wrapper

CLAUDE_CODE_FORWARD_SUBAGENT_TEXT

Include subagent text and thinking in stream-json output (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_MAX_WEB_SEARCHES_PER_SESSION

Session-wide web search cap (default 200)

CLAUDE_CODE_MAX_SUBAGENTS_PER_SESSION

Session-wide subagent spawn cap (default 200; /clear resets budget)

CLAUDE_CODE_MCP_AUTO_BACKGROUND_MS

Auto-background MCP calls exceeding this ms threshold (default 120000; 0 to disable)

CLAUDE_CODE_OTEL_CONTENT_MAX_LENGTH

Configure OTel content attribute truncation limit (default 60 KB)

CLAUDE_CODE_MAX_CONCURRENT_SUBAGENTS

Cap concurrently-running subagents (default 20)

CLAUDE_CODE_MAX_SUBAGENT_SPAWN_DEPTH

Allow nested subagents to spawn their own subagents (default 3)

CLAUDE_CODE_TOOL_MEMORY_LIMIT

Memory cgroup limit for Bash tool on Linux (e.g. 512m)

CLAUDE_CODE_WEBFETCH_CACHE_TTL_MS

WebFetch session URL cache TTL in ms

CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_TODO_TOOLS

Restore task-tracking tools on Opus 4.8, Sonnet 5, and newer models (=1)

ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_MODEL

Model new sessions start on (a /model pick still overrides it)

CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN

Auth token from claude setup-token, for headless and CI use

CLAUDE_CODE_PROJECT_DIR_NAME

Short name for the per-project transcript directory

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_1M_CONTEXT

Hold every 1M-window model to 200K via auto-compaction

CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_UNKNOWN_MODEL_WINDOW_ENFORCEMENT

Stop auto-compact enforcing an assumed window on unknown model IDs (=1)

CLAUDE_CODE_GOAL_CHECKIN_MINUTES

Minutes before /goal checks in on background work (0 to opt out)

CLAUDE_CODE_WORKFLOW_PREFIX_STAGGER_MS

Stagger between sibling workflow agents for prompt-cache reuse (0 disables)

ANTHROPIC_BEDROCK_REGION_PREFIX

Prefer a specific Bedrock cross-region inference profile

Built-in Skills

/code-review [--comment|--fix]

Correctness-focused review; runs as background subagent (does not fill conversation); --comment posts inline PR comments; --fix applies findings

/simplify

Cleanup-only review (reuse, simplification, efficiency); applies fixes to working tree

/batch

Large parallel changes (5-30 worktrees)

/debug [desc]

Troubleshoot from debug log

/loop [interval]

Recurring scheduled task

/claude-api

Load API + SDK reference

/ultrareview [PR#|branch|desc]

Cloud code review with parallel agents; accepts PR number, branch name, or description

/less-permission-prompts

Scan transcripts, propose tool allowlist

/dataviz

Chart and dashboard design guidance with color-palette validator

/code-review ultra

Deep multi-agent cloud review (/ultrareview is the old alias)

Custom Skill Locations

.claude/skills/<name>/

Project skills

~/.claude/skills/<name>/

Personal skills

.claude/skills/<name>/bin/

Executables shipped with skill

Skill Frontmatter

description

Auto-invocation trigger

allowed-tools

Skip permission prompts

model

Override model for skill

effort

Override effort level

paths: [globs]

Path-specific activation

context: fork

Run in subagent (background by default)

background: false

Opt out of background for context:fork skills

monitors

Background monitor agents in manifest

initialPrompt

Auto-submit prompt on skill load

disallowedTools

Block specific tools in skill

disable-model-invocation: true

Run skill without LLM call

$ARGUMENTS

User input placeholder

argument-hint

Hint text displayed for slash command argument input

`!`cmd``

Dynamic context injection

Built-in Agents

Explore

Fast read-only (Haiku)

Plan

Research for plan mode

General

Full tools, complex tasks

Bash

Terminal, separate context

Agent Config

permissionMode

default / acceptEdits / plan / dontAsk

isolation: worktree

Run in git worktree

background: true

Background task

maxTurns

Limit agentic turns

SendMessage

Resume agents

@agent-name

Mention named subagents

3 levels deep (default)

Sub-agents can spawn their own sub-agents (depth 3 by default, configurable)

subagent_type: "fork"

Subagent inherits the full conversation and prompt cache (on by default)

ListAgents

List sessions you can message, on this machine and Remote Control

notify_when_idle

SendMessage option: one notice when that session next goes idle

Add Servers

--transport http

Remote HTTP (recommended)

--transport stdio

Local process

--transport sse

Remote SSE

Scopes

Local

~/.claude.json (you only)

Project

.mcp.json (shared/VCS)

User

~/.claude.json (global)

Management

/mcp

Interactive UI

claude mcp list

List all servers

claude mcp serve

CC as MCP server

claude mcp login <name>

Authenticate MCP server without interactive menu (--no-browser for SSH)

claude mcp logout <name>

Log out from authenticated MCP server

Elicitation

Servers can request input mid-task

_meta maxResultSizeChars

Override result size up to 500K chars

alwaysLoad

Always load server tools (skip deferred tool search)

claude mcp get <name>

Show one server's config and connection status

headersHelper

Command that mints HTTP headers (e.g. a short-lived token) per request

manual

Prompts for each action

acceptEdits

Auto-accept file edits

plan

Read-only research

dontAsk

Deny unless pre-allowed

bypassPermissions

Skip all prompts