Get started

  1. 1 npx wtclaude setup

    wires up the statusline so WTClaude reads billing-grade data; reads the credential Claude already wrote, so there’s no login.

    npx wtclaude setup
  2. 2 wtclaude today

    your real cost so far today.

  3. 3 wtclaude compare

    the reveal: your billing-grade number next to the broken-log number.

Requirements: macOS or Linux, Node, and the Claude Code CLI in your terminal. Free, MIT-licensed.

New in v0.2.0: wtclaude compare-models prices your usage across Opus 4.8 · Sonnet 5 · Fable 5, and wtclaude waste finds the context you’re paying for but never using. Sonnet 5 (the new default) is now tracked correctly.

WTClaude reads the statusline, which only the terminal CLI emits — the Claude desktop app and Cowork don’t run it. (Desktop/Cowork tracking comes later, as clearly-labeled estimates.)

CLI reference

Everything the shipped CLI (v0.2.0) runs — run wtclaude <command> --help for the full flags on your install. Billing-grade = terminal Code, Anthropic-computed (not a guarantee of your invoice); everything else is a labeled estimate.

Everyday cost views

Your real spend, read from the statusline behind your bill.

today · week · month billing-grade
real cost, tokens, and model breakdown for the day / last 7 / last 30 days. Flags: --json, --csv, --clipboard, --since/--until, --group-by <project|branch|cost_center|task>, --currency <ISO>.
compare billing-grade
the reveal — your billing-grade cost next to the session-log estimate, and the gap. --days <n> widens the window; --share saves a shareable card to ~/Desktop.
report billing-grade
a monthly cost report. --month <YYYY-MM> picks the month; --cost-center breaks it down by cost center.
session [id] billing-grade
list sessions (newest first), or per-turn detail for one id. Supports --json, --group-by, --csv, --clipboard.
project [hash] billing-grade
usage for one project (by hash), or a list of known projects. Supports --since/--until, --json, --csv.
blocks billing-grade
usage bucketed into the rolling 5-hour windows your subscription limit resets on, so you can pace against it. --limit <n> caps how many show.
limit billing-grade
your overall plan limit — % used + reset countdown, from Anthropic’s shared rate-limit bucket (it spans Code, Cowork, and Chat), so it’s your overall plan limit, not a Code-only number.
watch
a live terminal monitor: today’s cost, current 5h-block burn, and the plan-limit gauge with a basic, non-predictive time-to-limit. --once renders one frame; --interval <s> sets the refresh.

Models & forecasting

What your usage would cost on each model — every projection a labeled estimate.

compare-models estimate
new — re-prices your recorded usage across Opus 4.8, Sonnet 5, and Fable 5: what would this month cost on each? Split by surface (Code billing-grade · Cowork a labeled estimate · Chat excluded). It re-prices your recorded usage, not the same task run on each model. Free. --days <n>, --json.
whatif estimate
quick plan- and model-comparison math on your recent usage. Flags: --plan <pro|max5|max20>, --model <haiku|sonnet|opus>, --days <n>.
fable estimate
reads your billing-grade Fable 5 cost in the terminal and forecasts what your pace would cost in usage credits after the allowance (Fable is included up to 50% of your weekly limit through ~July 19, extended from July 7 → July 12 → July 19, then usage credits at $10/$50 — an allowance cap, not free). A labeled estimate, if the announced $10/$50 holds. --days <n>, --json.
forecast estimate
projected Agent-SDK credit spend vs your included credits. (The June-15 credit split it was built for was paused — this stays ready if a revised split lands.) --days <n>, --json.
credits estimate
your Agent-SDK + fast-mode credit balance and burn. --json.
readiness estimate
a one-time credit-coverage check (built for the June-14 readiness window; the split was paused, so it reads as ready). --json.

Sonnet 5 is the new Claude Code default (claude-sonnet-5). WTClaude prices it correctly — $2/$10, auto-stepping to $3/$15 on Aug 31 — off the model’s own reported tokens, with no unknown-model gaps.

Insights

Beyond the dollars — where your context and effort actually go.

waste
new — reveals the always-loaded skills and rules you never invoke, and what re-reading them costs, computed at billing-grade cache-read rates (each item’s token size is a labeled estimate). A read-only reveal: it recommends a REVIEW, never removes or changes anything. --days <n>, --all, --json.
quality
your one-shot success rate — edits the model landed without a retry (file-aware, salted). Supports --since/--until, --json, --csv.
debrief
an end-of-day summary — your costliest turn and a tip.
tasks coming soon
token/cost breakdown by task category — coming soon (the live payload doesn’t expose tool names yet, so categories aren’t populated).
badges
the usage badges you’ve earned.
leaderboard
your local leaderboard standing, plus a privacy preview of exactly what a share would expose. --json.

Sync & dashboard

Opt-in and local-first — nothing leaves your machine until you turn it on.

sync
opt-in cloud backup + multi-device totals. --status / --enable / --disable. Local-first — nothing leaves your machine until you enable it, and you preview exactly what would sync before it does.
dashboard
open the web dashboard in your browser — everything the CLI tracks, in one view.
devices
combined + per-device totals (rides cloud sync; with sync off it’s a local-only view of this machine, plus a hint to enable sync).
share
manage anonymous data sharing for the leaderboard + benchmarks. --preview shows exactly what would be shared; --enable / --disable.
invite
generate a shareable invite link.

Setup & utility

setup
configure WTClaude — wires the Claude Code statusline and creates your local data dir; reads the credential Claude already wrote (no login). --plan <pro|max5|max20>, --yes for non-interactive.
export
dump all local WTClaude data to JSON — everything stored about you. --out <file>, --pretty.
uninstall
remove the WTClaude statusline hook. --keep-data leaves your local data; --purge also deletes ~/.wtclaude/.
statusline
render the WTClaude status line from your latest turn — a preview of what the collector prints back into Claude Code.

Global flags: --json and --csv/--clipboard on the summary/report commands, and --currency=<ISO> for display-only conversion (USD stays the billing-grade source).

FAQ

Is it accurate? +

For Claude Code, yes — billing-grade. We read the statusline path, the same source behind your bill (Anthropic-computed, not a guarantee of your invoice). Forward-looking projections — the forecast, the Fable forecast, the cross-model comparison — are clearly-labeled estimates.

Does it track Cowork or Chat? +

Terminal Code is the billing-grade surface. `compare-models` also shows a Cowork row as a labeled estimate where its data is present, and excludes Chat (no local cost data) rather than showing a fake zero. Fuller Cowork/Chat coverage is on the roadmap, always clearly labeled.

Does it work with the Claude desktop app? +

Tracking requires the Claude Code CLI in your terminal — the statusline WTClaude reads only fires there. The desktop app and Cowork don’t emit it, so install via the terminal. (Desktop/Cowork coverage is on the roadmap.)

Will it slow me down? +

No. The collector runs in the background, fire-and-forget. You won’t notice it.

Is my data private? +

Everything runs locally by default. Cloud sync is opt-in, with a preview before anything leaves your machine.

Is it free? +

Yes, and open-source (MIT). A paid Guardian intelligence layer is coming at $2.99/mo · $24.99/year (≈$2.08/mo — save 30%); the tracker stays free.

Who’s behind it? +

An independent project. Not affiliated with Anthropic.