Claude Code: Everything You Need to Know 
Learn Claude Code in three levels, from your first session to unattended multi-agent runs.
An independent community guide. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Anthropic.
Pick your level
Beginner
For you if you're new to Claude Code and comfortable with a terminal and git.
You'll take one change from request to commit, safely, and give your project a memory. About 2½ hours.
Start Beginner
Intermediate
Ready if you can plan a change in plan mode, review the diff and commit it, and keep a long session on track.
You'll shape Claude Code to your project with skills, hooks, subagents, MCP and plugins. About 3 hours.
Start Intermediate
Being rebuilt: these pages are from the previous edition and not yet re-verified.
Advanced
Ready if you can write a project skill, enforce a rule with a hook, delegate to a subagent and connect an MCP server.
You'll run Claude Code in parallel, unattended in CI, and for a team, within limits you set. About 3 hours 20 minutes, plus run time.
Start Advanced
Being rebuilt: these pages are from the previous edition and not yet re-verified.
Install
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
macOS, Linux and WSL. For Windows and other installers, see the official setup page. Claude Code needs a paid Claude plan (Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise), a Claude Console account, or a supported cloud provider (Quickstart).
Everything in the guide
Every page, by level
Beginner: Level index · Install, sign in and look around · Permission modes and plan mode · Your first change, from request to commit · Keep a session on track · Project memory with CLAUDE.md · Capstone
Beginner Electives: IDE extensions · Screenshots and images · The built-in teachers
Intermediate (being rebuilt): Level index
Advanced (being rebuilt): Level index
Topics: All topics · Permissions and safety · Memory and context · Models, effort and cost · Skills · Hooks · Subagents and parallel work · MCP · Plugins · Automation
Reference: Reference index · Models and effort · Commands by level · Feature map · Further learning · Glossary · Changelog
From the previous edition, not yet re-verified: Skills · Hooks · Subagents and parallel work · MCP · Fast mode · Skills in depth · Agent teams · Dynamic workflows · Effort levels · FAQ
Examples: How to use the examples
Found something stale? Report it with a source. Stuck on a lesson? Use the link at the bottom of that lesson. Claude Code is a product of Anthropic.
MIT License · Contributing · Changelog
Links from the previous edition
The previous edition's README sections moved. If a link brought you here, find its section below:
- Moved to Install, sign in and look around.
- Moved to Your first change, from request to commit.
- Moved to Project memory with CLAUDE.md.
- Moved to Give Claude a screenshot.
- Moved to Models and effort.
- Moved to Commands by level.
- Moved to Skills (previous edition).
- Moved to Skills topic.
- Moved to Hooks (previous edition).
- Moved to Subagents and parallel work topic.
- Moved to Subagents and parallel work (previous edition).
- Moved to Agent teams (previous edition).
- Moved to Dynamic workflows (previous edition).
- Moved to Feature map.
- Moved to MCP (previous edition).
- Moved to Fast mode (previous edition).
- Removed: listings no lesson uses. See the CHANGELOG.
- Removed: the guide's summaries of Claude Code releases. See the CHANGELOG.
- Moved to FAQ (previous edition).
- Moved to Further learning.
- Moved to Examples.
- Moved to When to use what.