Claude plans include monthly Agent SDK credits

Anthropic has updated Claude subscription guidance to add a separate monthly credit for programmatic usage through its Agent SDK, according to a Claude Help Center article updated May 17. The change takes effect June 15, 2026, and applies to Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans that qualify for the credit. (support.claude.com) Anthropic said the credit covers Agent SDK usage, the `claude -p` command and third-party apps built on the Agent SDK. The company said the change means that Agent SDK and `claude -p` usage will no longer count against a subscriber’s regular Claude plan limits. ### When does the new billing treatment start? June 15, 2026 is the date Anthropic gives for the new setup. (support.claude.com) From that date, the company said, Agent SDK and `claude -p` usage will move off normal subscription usage limits and onto a separate monthly credit tied to the subscriber’s plan. Anthropic said regular plan limits will remain in place for interactive use of Claude, Claude Code and Claude Cowork. The Help Center article says eligible users must claim the credit once through their Claude account. After that, Anthropic said, the credit refreshes automatically with each billing cycle. Unused credit does not roll over, according to the same guidance. (support.claude.com) ### Which Claude plans get how much? Anthropic’s Help Center lists a tiered schedule by plan. Pro users get $20 a month, Max 5x users get $100, and Max 20x users get $200, the article says. Team standard seats get $20 and Team premium seats get $100, according to the same table. (support.claude.com) Enterprise treatment depends on seat type, Anthropic said. The article lists $20 for usage-based Enterprise plans and $200 for seat-based Enterprise premium seats, while members on seat-based Enterprise standard seats are not eligible for the monthly Agent SDK credit. (support.claude.com) ### What exactly does the credit pay for? Anthropic says the credit applies to four buckets of usage: Claude Agent SDK projects in Python or TypeScript, the non-interactive `claude -p` mode in Claude Code, the Claude Code GitHub Actions integration, and third-party apps that authenticate with a Claude subscription through the Agent SDK. The company’s Claude Code documentation repeats that subscription-plan Agent SDK and `claude -p` usage will draw from the new monthly credit starting June 15. (support.claude.com) The Help Center article also lists what is excluded. Interactive Claude Code sessions in the terminal or IDE are not covered, nor are Claude conversations on the web, desktop or mobile apps, Claude Cowork, or other features that use extra usage, Anthropic said. (support.claude.com) ### What happens after the monthly credit runs out? Anthropic said Agent SDK usage will draw from the monthly credit first. Once that credit is exhausted, additional usage moves to extra usage at standard API rates only if the subscriber has enabled extra usage, according to the Help Center article. If extra usage is not enabled, Anthropic said Agent SDK requests will stop until the next billing-cycle refresh. (support.claude.com) A separate Anthropic Help Center article updated this week says extra usage on paid Claude plans is billed at standard API rates and can be capped with user-set spending controls. That article also says extra usage is configured in Claude account settings and is charged separately from the base subscription. (support.claude.com) ### Does this replace API-key billing for developers? Anthropic said no. The Help Center article says Claude Platform accounts using an API key do not receive the monthly Agent SDK credit, and pay-as-you-go billing for those accounts continues as before. A separate billing article says API and Workbench usage is funded through prepaid usage credits in the Claude Console. (support.claude.com) March 16, 2026 guidance from Anthropic had said paid Claude subscriptions and the Claude Console were separate products and that a paid Claude plan did not include API or Console access. The new Agent SDK credit leaves that separation in place for API-key users while carving out a subscription-linked allowance for specific programmatic uses. (support.claude.com) June 15, 2026 is the next key date for users who rely on Agent SDK workflows, `claude -p`, GitHub Actions or third-party SDK apps. Anthropic’s current instructions and plan table are in the Help Center article “Use the Claude Agent SDK with your Claude plan,” which the company updated May 17. (support.claude.com 1) (support.claude.com 2)