Best Claude Code VS Code extensions in 2026

TL;DR: Start with Anthropic's own Claude Code for VS Code (anthropic.claude-code). It runs Claude in the editor and already handles diffs, checkpoints and resuming past chats. Then add one extension for the job it doesn't do: Claude Code Usage (growthjack.claude-code-usage) for quota in the status bar, Codex History Viewer (hiztam.codex-history-viewer) for free tagging and search across Claude Code and Codex, or CCAssist (ours, agsoft.claude-history-viewer) for diffs, search and cost across several CLIs in one place. All numbers below were checked on 1 October 2026.

What are the best Claude Code VSCode extensions right now?#

The best extension depends on the job, so this list is grouped that way. I searched the VS Code Marketplace for "claude code", "claude history", "claude session", "claude code usage", "codex" and "codex history" on 1 October 2026. Then I read each candidate's listing and README.

Most of the results are chat front-ends, themes, API switchers or abandoned experiments. The ones below are maintained, clearly about Claude Code (or Claude Code plus Codex), and good at one thing.

Disclosure: I build Claude Code and Codex Assist (CCAssist), and this page is on its site. It appears where it fits, and the list names a better pick wherever one exists.

Pick by job#

• Run Claude Code inside VS Code: Claude Code for VS Code (anthropic.claude-code).
• Run Codex CLI's agent in the same editor: Codex (openai.chatgpt).
• See 5-hour and weekly quota at a glance: Claude Code Usage (growthjack.claude-code-usage). For something smaller, Claudemeter (hypersec.claudemeter).
• Organize, tag and search Claude Code and Codex sessions for free: Codex History Viewer (hiztam.codex-history-viewer).
• Rename, move and clean up Claude Code sessions: Claude Code Sessions (es6kr.claude-sessions).
• Read old Claude Code chats with no setup: Claude Code History (doorsofperception.claude-code-history).
• See which session changed a file, with diffs, search and cost across Claude Code, Codex and other CLIs: CCAssist (agsoft.claude-history-viewer, ours).
• Get told when Claude is waiting for you: Claude Code Notifier (erdemgiray.claude-code-notifier).

Comparison table (1 October 2026)#

Install counts are VS Code Marketplace installs, read from the Marketplace API on 1 October 2026. "Last update" is the Marketplace's last-updated date. Open VSX counts downloads, a different counter, so it isn't mixed in here.

The official integration#

Claude Code for VS Code (Anthropic)#

This is the extension to install first. Anthropic's VS Code docs call it the recommended way to use Claude Code in VS Code. It has 26,726,580 Marketplace installs, version 2.1.286 on 30 September 2026, and a 3.72 rating from 809 reviews.

Good for: a chat panel with the file and selection as context, inline diffs you accept or reject, plan review, and @-mentions. It also has checkpoints that rewind code to any message. The Session history button lets you search and resume past conversations, and /usage shows plan limits.

What it lacks: it isn't a history browser. Session history lists conversations for resuming, not a cross-project archive with file diffs. It also can't keep old sessions alive: Claude Code deletes transcripts older than cleanupPeriodDays, which defaults to 30 days. Where Claude Code stores conversations covers how to keep them longer.

Note that the extension bundles its own copy of the CLI. To run claude in the integrated terminal, you still need the standalone install.

Codex (OpenAI)#

If you also use Codex, OpenAI's openai.chatgpt extension (14,981,510 installs, updated 23 September 2026) is the Codex equivalent of Anthropic's panel. It works with ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Business, Edu and Enterprise plans, and it can hand larger tasks to Codex in the cloud. It doesn't browse old Codex CLI sessions in depth. The Codex CLI history viewer guide covers that.

Chat for Claude Code (alternative UI)#

Chat for Claude Code (AndrePimenta.claude-code-chat, 524,912 installs, updated 30 September 2026) is a third-party chat interface for the Claude Code CLI. It adds git-based checkpoints, an MCP and skills browser, and cost and token tracking. Pick it if you prefer its interface. Most people are better served by the official panel, which Anthropic maintains alongside the CLI.

History and search#

Claude Code writes every conversation to a JSONL file (one JSON object per line) under ~/.claude/projects/. These extensions read those files so you can find old work. For the manual route, see how to view Claude Code chat history.

Codex History Viewer (hiztam)#

The best free organizer. Despite the name, it reads both Codex CLI and Claude Code sessions. It has 7,791 installs, a 4.88 rating from 8 reviews, and version 2.15.0 from 28 September 2026. It is the most actively developed extension in this group.

Good for: pins, tags, notes, custom titles and saved searches. Search supports regex and boolean queries. There are file-change diff cards, a per-file "AI change history", history insights, and resume through the official Codex or Claude Code extensions. It is free.

What it lacks: cost and quota tracking. Its README says live quota, billing and cost data are outside the project's scope. It also reads only Codex and Claude Code, not other CLIs.

Claude Code Sessions (es6kr)#

The best for housekeeping. It has 9,822 installs and version 0.4.12 from 18 July 2026.

Good for: a sidebar tree of every project and session. You can rename, delete or drag sessions between projects, bulk-remove empty ones, split sessions, and resume in a terminal or the official extension.

What it lacks: Codex support, file diffs and any usage view. It is a file manager for sessions, not an archive.

Claude Code History (doorsofperception)#

The simplest reader. It has 3,913 installs and version 0.29.3 from 25 September 2026.

Good for: press Cmd+Shift+H and read any past conversation, with tool calls and thinking blocks. A free chat view continues a conversation in place. Reading every conversation is free, and a $9 one-time Pro adds full-text search, bookmarks, statistics and Markdown export.

What it lacks: Codex support and file diffs. Full-text search is paid.

Claude Code and Codex Assist (CCAssist, ours)#

This is our extension. It has 11,133 Marketplace installs, a 3.77 rating from 13 reviews, and version 0.7.5 from 26 September 2026. Separately, Open VSX shows 121,336 downloads, which is where Cursor and VSCodium users get it.

Good for: answering "which session changed this file, and what did it change?" A file timeline lists every session that edited the open file, with the prompt and a diff you can undo or reapply. It reads Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Grok, GitHub Copilot and Cursor sessions in one list, with tags and notes. Search covers prompts, replies and tool output. A usage dashboard shows estimated cost per model and quota burn-down in the same extension. A Recovery tab finds the saved copies Claude Code, Codex and Grok keep of files they edited, so you can compare or restore one after a bad change (today's copies on Free).

What it lacks: a generous free tier for diffs and usage. Free lets you browse sessions of any age, but search results older than 3 days are blurred and the dashboard shows 7 days. Diffs and undo cover same-day changes, and the file timeline covers 3 days. Full search results, older usage, archiving beyond 3 sessions, forking and bulk export need Pro (pricing). If you mainly want to tag and search months of sessions for free, Codex History Viewer is the better pick. For a status-bar quota number alone, a dedicated usage extension is lighter.

Usage and cost#

Two different numbers get called "usage". Quota is how much of your 5-hour and weekly plan limits you have used; see Claude Code weekly limits explained. Cost is an estimate computed from token counts and published API prices. Pro and Max subscribers don't pay per token, so treat cost as a measure of volume, not a bill.

Claude Code Usage (growthjack)#

The most installed usage extension, with 64,863 installs and version 2.4.0 from 24 September 2026. My July version of this page listed a June 2025 update date. That is no longer true: it is actively maintained and now covers Codex too.

Good for: a status bar with today's cost, the current session's cost, and 5-hour and weekly quota. It also has a dashboard with token composition, per-model tables, and a "where your tokens go" breakdown by content type.

What it lacks: no chat history, transcript search or file diffs. It is a usage tool only.

Claude Status, Claude Code Usage Tracker and Claudemeter#

• Claude Status (long-kudo.vscode-claude-status, 16,500 installs, 28 July 2026): cost and quota in the status bar, computed from local files, with configurable prices.
• Claude Code Usage Tracker (YahyaShareef.claude-code-usage-tracker, 14,036 installs, 19 September 2026): quota only. It reads the same usage API Claude Code uses, and respects its rate limit.
• Claudemeter (hypersec.claudemeter, 4,090 installs, 4.83 from 6 reviews, 13 August 2026): session, weekly and context-window use, plus Claude service status.

All three are narrow on purpose, and that is the point. Pick one status-bar tool, not three. Tools that poll Claude's usage endpoint share a small per-account budget, so stacking them can get you rate-limited. Our Claude Code usage tracker guide compares the options in more depth.

Workflow and other jobs#

• Claude Code Notifier (erdemgiray.claude-code-notifier, 5,791 installs, 9 September 2026) plays a sound and shows a system banner when Claude needs permission, asks a question or finishes. It also works over SSH, in WSL and in containers. It is worth installing if you run long tasks and look away.
• CC Workflow Studio (breaking-brake.cc-wf-studio, 10,122 installs, 11 July 2026) lets you draw multi-agent workflows on a canvas, then export them as .claude/agents/ and .claude/commands/ files.
• Claude Changes (FotisPanokis.claude-changes, 3,136 installs, 6 April 2026) lists files each session changed and reverts them from Claude Code's checkpoint backups. It hasn't been updated in six months, and it can't see edits made through shell commands. For the full picture, read how to undo Claude Code changes.

What changed since the July version#

• Claude Code Usage went from a stale June 2025 release to active updates, and it added Codex.
• Codex History Viewer grew from 4,268 installs to 7,791 and added history insights and per-file change history.
• Claude Code Sessions grew from 6,874 installs to 9,822.
• The official panel's session history, checkpoints and /usage now cover what several small extensions used to do. That is why it leads this list.
• Claude Chats (AlexZanfir.claude-chats) was left out: 8,138 installs, but no update since 1 November 2025.
• The standalone desktop app jhlee0409/claude-code-history-viewer (2,214 GitHub stars) is still active. It isn't a VS Code extension, so it isn't ranked here.

How we checked#

• Registry data: VS Code Marketplace extensionquery API, read by extension ID on 1 October 2026 (install count, rating, last-updated date, version). Open VSX downloads came from open-vsx.org/api on the same day. The two counters are never added together.
• Features: each extension's current Marketplace README. Anthropic's features come from the VS Code docs and settings reference, read on 1 October 2026.
• CCAssist: checked against the published 0.7.5 listing and changelog, and against the extension source for free and Pro limits.
• Excluded: general AI assistants (Cline, Roo Code, Continue), themes, API-provider switchers, and extensions not updated in the last six months, unless they were in the July list.

Install CCAssist from the VS Code Marketplace and it picks up your existing Claude Code and Codex sessions: a project-grouped history list, today's file changes as diffs, and a usage dashboard, all on the free tier.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a third-party extension if I have the official Claude Code extension?

No. Anthropic's Claude Code for VS Code (anthropic.claude-code) covers chatting, inline diffs, checkpoints and resuming past conversations. Third-party extensions add things it doesn't do: browsing history across projects and CLIs, cost and quota tracking outside the chat, and session housekeeping.

Which extension shows Claude Code quota in the status bar?

Claude Code Usage by growthjack (growthjack.claude-code-usage) is the most installed option, with 64,863 Marketplace installs on 1 October 2026. It shows cost estimates and 5-hour and weekly quota use for Claude Code, and token use for Codex.

Can I see Claude Code conversations older than 30 days?

Only if the session files still exist. Claude Code deletes transcripts older than cleanupPeriodDays, which defaults to 30. Raise that setting, or archive sessions with an extension, before they age out.