Is Claude Code free? Can you use it on a free plan, how do you get a 7-day trial, and how much does pay-as-you-go actually cost?

Claude Code isn't free: Claude's free plan can't be used with Claude Code. The only way to use it for free is with a “guest pass” sent by a Pro or Max subscriber, which gives you a 7-day free trial of the Pro plan. Otherwise, you need a paid subscription or a pay-as-you-go API key. The reason is simple: the CLI and editor extensions are free to install, but every action Claude Code performs calls a Claude model, and model calls cost money.

This page explains, in order: where the line falls between free and paid, which plans let you use Claude Code, the guest pass requirements and automatic conversion after 7 days, the actual cost of a task with an API key, and the cheapest way to use it without a subscription.

Sources (October 10, 2026 verified): Anthropic's Claude Code setup documentation, Help Center articles on guest passes and using Claude Code with a Pro or Max plan, and the pricing page at claude.com/pricing. Kunavo's unit prices and minimum top-up are read from the model catalog and top-up settings; they are not hard-coded.

What's free and what costs money

Claude Code reads files, proposes changes, runs commands, and checks results; each action calls a Claude model. You pay for those calls, not for the tool itself. Installation and configuration are free; from the first prompt onward, you need to sign in to a paid plan or configure an API key. See the Claude Code installation guide for setup steps.

Which plans let you use Claude Code

Anthropic's setup documentation states that Claude Code requires a Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise plan, or a Console (API) account; the free claude.ai plan doesn't include access to Claude Code. Prices in the table are from claude.com/pricing, in USD and excluding tax.

If you use a subscription, keep the usage limits in mind. Pro and Max both have five-hour session limits and weekly limits, shared between Claude chat and Claude Code: on days when you use chat heavily, less usage is available for Claude Code. See Claude Pro limits for options when you hit a limit, and Claude Code costs for the subscription and API break-even point.

The only free option: a guest pass (7-day Pro trial)

claude.com/pricing doesn't list a free trial plan. The only way to try Claude Code for free is Anthropic's invitation program, called a “guest pass”: eligible Pro / Max subscribers have a limited number of passes to send, and recipients can use the Pro plan free for 7 days, including Claude Code, Cowork, and Claude Design. The Help Center lists these requirements:

• Who can send one: Only eligible Pro / Max subscribers. Run /passes in Claude Code to see your remaining passes and invitation link.
• Who can claim one: Only people using a paid Claude subscription for the first time. Anyone who has previously had a paid plan isn't eligible.
• What you get: 7 days of free use of the Pro plan, including Claude Code.
• When signing up: You must enter payment information; you won't be charged if you stop using the trial after 7 days.
• After 7 days: Unless you cancel, it automatically converts to a paid Pro plan.
• Availability: Passes are limited and may expire or be revoked. If passes are sent to more people than are available, they're redeemed on a first-come, first-served basis.

So, the answer to “How long can I try Claude Code for free?” is 7 days, subject to two conditions: a subscriber must be willing to invite you, and you must never have used a paid Claude plan. If you don't plan to continue, remember to cancel before the end of day 7. The payment details you enter when signing up for the trial are used to pay Anthropic and are unrelated to the Kunavo top-up described below.

How much does a task cost with an API key?

If you can't get a guest pass, or your usage isn't high enough to justify a monthly fee, you can use a pay-as-you-go API key. You can create a key in Anthropic's Console or through a gateway such as Kunavo; both charge by token.

Claude Code resends the full system prompt, conversation, and file contents with every action, so one round trip with the model (one agentic step) uses about 25,000 input and 1,200 output tokens. Here's the calculation with claude-sonnet-5:

These are the baseline figures without prompt caching. Input read from the cache is much cheaper than regular input, so the actual bill is usually lower (how caching works). For occasional use, a few dollars a month is enough; costs only rise significantly in months when you run large tasks every day.

The minimum $10 top-up covers about 230 steps, or about 11 20-step tasks. Without a guest pass, this is a smaller “paid trial” unit than Pro at $20 per month.

The cheapest way to use it without a subscription: a Kunavo pay-as-you-go key

Claude Code natively reads the ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL environment variable. As long as the endpoint is compatible with Anthropic's Messages API, you can simply change the connection target without replacing the CLI. Kunavo is an independent API gateway, not affiliated with Anthropic. It offers the same Claude models at prices 30% below Anthropic's listed prices. There's no monthly fee, the minimum top-up is $10, and the balance never expires.

export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=https://api.kunavo.com
export ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN=sk-kn-...
export ANTHROPIC_MODEL=claude-sonnet-5
export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_OPUS_MODEL=claude-opus-5-5
export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL=claude-sonnet-5
export ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL=claude-haiku-4-5

You must include all four model settings. Claude Code's default model and the opus and sonnet aliases point to Anthropic's latest models; if Kunavo doesn't offer a model, the request returns a 404. The Sonnet 5.5 model currently targeted by the sonnet alias isn't available on Kunavo. Without setting ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL, both /model sonnet and opusplan runtime modes will fail. Pin opus to Claude Opus 5.5; this requires Claude Code v2.1.280 or later. On older versions, run claude update first. ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL routes miscellaneous background calls, such as Claude Code's summaries, to Claude Haiku 4.5, priced per 1M tokens at $0.70 for input and $3.50 for output.

While these variables are set, Claude Code uses the API key instead of your signed-in subscription, and usage is deducted from the key's balance. Remove the variables to switch back to your subscription. Check which one is active with /status. See Claude Code API key setup for configuration details.

How to pay in Taiwan

Kunavo top-ups use the Stripe checkout page. In Taiwan, you can pay with an international credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, JCB, UnionPay), Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Link. JKO Pay and LINE Pay aren't available. The payment goes to your Kunavo API balance; it can't pay for a Pro / Max subscription on claude.ai or for charges after a guest pass trial ends. Kunavo doesn't issue invoices. See Claude API payment methods for a full comparison.

How to assess methods described online as “free”

• Connecting a different model: Some search results describe connecting Claude Code to a free model that isn't Claude as a “free option.” The CLI is free, but in that case it's the connected model, not Claude, that answers you.
• “Pro subscription includes API access”: It doesn't. claude.ai subscriptions and API usage are billed separately; the Pro monthly fee doesn't include API usage.
• “Haiku is free”: It's just inexpensive, not free. Claude Haiku 4.5 costs $0.70 per 1M input tokens and $3.50 per 1M output tokens.
• “Anyone can get a guest pass”: Only eligible Pro / Max subscribers can send one, and only people new to paid subscriptions can claim one. You must enter payment information to sign up, and unless you cancel, it converts to a paid plan.

For everyday use after installing Claude Code, including switching models, checking costs, and managing context, see the Claude Code guide.

Frequently asked questions