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Install Claude Code and run your first command

10 min read · Checked October 2026

What Claude Code is, which plan you need, and how to install it on a Mac or Windows PC.

Claude, the Claude app and Claude Code

Claude is the AI assistant made by Anthropic. You can use it in two main ways:

  • The Claude app: the chat you use at claude.ai, on your phone or in the desktop app. Good for writing, research and questions.
  • Claude Code: a version of Claude that works directly with the files on your computer. It can build websites, edit documents and run commands for you. Most tools on this site are made for Claude Code.

Which plan you need

The free Claude plan doesn’t include Claude Code. To use it you need a paid plan:

  • Pro: $17 a month if you pay for a year up front ($200), or $20 paid monthly. The right place to start.
  • Max: $100 or $200 a month, for 5 or 20 times more use than Pro. Only worth it once you hit Pro’s limits often.
  • Team and Enterprise: for companies paying for several people.

Prices are in US dollars before tax and come from claude.com/pricing. Sign up there first, then come back for the steps below.

Install Claude Code

1

Open your Terminal

The Terminal is a window where you type commands. On a Mac, press ⌘ Space, type Terminal and press Enter. On Windows, open the Start menu, type PowerShell and open it.

2

Paste the install command

On a Mac (or Linux), paste this and press Enter:

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

On Windows PowerShell, paste this instead:

irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

It shows no progress while it downloads, so give it a minute.

3

Check it worked

Close the Terminal, open a new one, and type:

claude --version

If you see a version number, you’re done. If it says claude isn’t found, follow Anthropic’s install troubleshooting guide.

Open it in a project folder

4

Make a folder for your project

Claude Code works inside a folder. Make a new, empty folder, for example my-website in your Documents. Then in the Terminal, type cd (with a space), drag the folder into the Terminal window, and press Enter.

5

Start Claude Code

claude

The first time, it opens your browser so you can log in with your Claude account. After that you’ll see a box where you can type.

6

Run your first request

Type a request in plain English, for example:

Make a simple one-page website about my bakery with an opening hours section

Claude tells you what it plans to do and asks before it creates or changes files. Type /help any time to see the commands.

Next, find out what skills, agents and plugins are, or jump straight to choosing a tool.