Quick intro

I've spent over a year using both ChatGPT and Claude Code CLI daily while building healthcare software. Not for side projects or demos - for actual production systems where bugs matter.

This isn't a benchmark comparison. Those tell you nothing about real work. This is what it's actually like to use both tools when you're shipping code that matters.

Spoiler: They're not competing. They solve different problems.

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ChatGPT vs Claude Code: Over a Year of Building Production Software

I've been using AI coding tools for about a year now, and for the last 6 months, Claude Code CLI has been running in my terminal every single day. But I'm not here to tell you it's perfect or that you should switch. I'm here to tell you what actually matters when you're building real software.

Because here's the thing: ChatGPT and Claude Code aren't really competing. They're solving different problems.

The Setup

I'm a senior full-stack developer at a healthcare software company. I build clinical systems with Node.js, MySQL, and AWS. My typical day involves fixing bugs in production, adding features to existing systems, and reviewing code from our team.

For the past year, I've used Claude Code CLI as my primary coding assistant. I also use ChatGPT (with the new GPT-5 models) for specific tasks. This isn't a benchmark comparison – those tell you nothing about real work. This is what it's actually like to use both tools when you're shipping code that matters.

What They Actually Are

ChatGPT is a web interface for chatting with an AI. You can describe problems, paste code, and get suggestions. With the new GPT-5, GPT-5.1, and GPT-5.2 models, it's legitimately smart at coding. OpenAI also has Codex (their cloud coding agent), but I'm comparing ChatGPT's web chat interface here.

Claude Code CLI is a terminal tool. You run it in your project directory, and it can see your entire codebase, modify files, run git commands, execute bash scripts, and use your CLI tools. It's powered by Claude Sonnet 4.5 (I can switch to Opus 4.5 for complex stuff). It's not a chat interface – it's integrated into your actual development workflow.

That difference is everything.

[Continue with the rest of my blog post content here: https://intelligenttools.co/blog/chatgpt-vs-claude-code-1-year ]