Originally published at claudeguide.io/claude-code-cli-commands

Claude Code CLI Commands: Full Reference (2026)

Claude Code is primarily a conversational tool, but it has a rich set of CLI flags, in-session slash commands, and keyboard shortcuts that change how it behaves. This is the complete reference. For a broader introduction to what Claude Code can do, visit the Claude Code Complete Guide in 2026.

CLI flags (when launching claude)

These flags are passed when you start Claude Code from the terminal.

Basic flags

Flag	Description	Example
--help, -h	Show help text	claude --help
--version, -v	Show installed version	claude --version
--print, -p	Print response and exit (non-interactive)	claude -p "Explain this file" < main.ts
--output-format	Set output format for -p mode	claude -p "..." --output-format json

Model and configuration

Flag	Description	Example
--model	Override the model for this session	claude --model claude-sonnet-4-6
--config	Path to a custom settings file	claude --config ./team-settings.json
--system-prompt	Inject a one-off system prompt	claude --system-prompt "You are a security auditor"

Context and files

Flag	Description	Example
--context	Add extra context text	claude --context "$(cat NOTES.md)"
--allowed-tools	Restrict which tools Claude can use	claude --allowed-tools Read,Grep
--disallowed-tools	Block specific tools	claude --disallowed-tools Bash,Write

Permissions and safety

Flag	Description	Example
--dangerously-skip-permissions	Skip all tool-use permission prompts	claude --dangerously-skip-permissions
--permission-mode	Set permission level (default/bypassPermissions)	claude --permission-mode bypassPermissions

Warning: --dangerously-skip-permissions and bypassPermissions disable all confirmation prompts. Use only in trusted automated environments where you have reviewed the task in advance.

Session control

Flag	Description	Example
--resume	Resume a previous session by ID	claude --resume abc123def
--continue, -c	Continue the most recent session	claude -c
--max-turns	Limit the number of agentic turns	claude --max-turns 5

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Non-interactive (pipe) mode

Claude Code can be used in scripts and CI pipelines without an interactive terminal. Use -p with stdin:

# Read a file and ask a question about it
cat main.ts | claude -p "What does this file do? List the exported functions."

# Pipe multiple files
cat src/auth.ts src/middleware.ts | claude -p "Find any security issues in these files."

# Save output to a variable
REVIEW=$(git diff HEAD~1 | claude -p "Review this diff for bugs.")
echo "$REVIEW"

# JSON output for programmatic use
git diff | claude -p "List any breaking changes as JSON" --output-format json

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In-session slash commands

Once Claude Code is running, these commands are typed in the conversation input.

Session management

Command	Description
/help	Show help and available commands
/quit, /exit	Exit Claude Code
/clear	Clear conversation history (new context)
/compact	Compact conversation to reduce token usage
/status	Show session info: model, token count, settings
/cost	Show token usage and estimated cost for this session

Model switching

Command	Description
`/model <name

40 slash command templates. Token-optimized variants. JSONL file for direct import. Tested in production sessions.

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