Command reference Β· Claude Code
/plan
Switches directly from the prompt into Plan mode.
/plan switches directly from the prompt into plan mode, in which Claude reads files, runs shell commands for research, and writes a plan, but does not edit source files. With an optional description, e.g. /plan fix the auth bug, plan mode starts immediately with this task as the first prompt.
Plan mode can alternatively be entered with Shift+Tab and stays active across multiple turns until a plan is approved or the mode is left manually (Shift+Tab again). When approving a plan, several options are available, such as automatically continuing in auto mode, manually approving each individual change, continuing to plan, or refining in Ultraplan in the browser. Only approval switches the session to the respective permission mode, so Claude begins editing.
/plan thus differs from direct requests without a planning phase, where Claude is allowed to start editing immediately.
π THE SAME TASK (βPLAN MODE (PLAN FIRST, THEN ACT)β) ON OTHER PLATFORMS
- Codex CLI: /plan
- Cursor CLI: /plan
- Aider: /architect
- Antigravity CLI: Shift+Tab Β· /plan
β WHEN TO USE IT?
Start a task directly with a description in plan mode
/plan fix the auth bug
Switch into plan mode from a running prompt
/plan
β WHEN NOT TO?
Trivial one-step change
/plan switches specifically into a planning phase β for a clear, small change this is an unnecessary intermediate step.
Better: Make the request normally without /plan
Already in the middle of implementation, a plan already exists
/plan switches back into plan mode instead of continuing implementation.
Better: just keep working normally, without switching modes
SOURCES
- Claude Code docs (official) β code.claude.com