# Claude Max vs Ultra: which plan fits your coding agents?

URL: https://agentvera.dev/en/blog/claude-max-vs-ultra/ · Published: 2026-11-01

Claude Max vs Ultra after the rename: prices, usage, the end of the 5-hour limit on verified Ultra accounts, weekly limits, API credits and which plan to pick.

**In short:**

- Anthropic renamed Max 5x to Max ($100/month) and Max 20x to Ultra ($200/month) in late October 2026. Prices stayed the same and Max 20x subscribers moved to Ultra automatically.
- Max gives 5x Pro usage every 5 hours and every week. Ultra gives 10x Pro usage per week, and verified Ultra accounts have no 5-hour limit, only weekly limits.
- Without the 5-hour wall, long and overnight agent runs don’t stop at a session cap, but all agents on the account share the weekly limit, so budget for the week.

Claude Max vs Ultra is a new question, but not a new plan. In late October 2026 Anthropic renamed its two Max tiers: Max 5x is now simply **Max**, and Max 20x is now **Claude Ultra**. Prices didn’t change. What did change is how the top tier is limited, and for anyone running coding agents that is the real news: a verified Ultra account has **no 5-hour limit**. Only weekly limits remain.

This post covers what each plan includes, what “no 5-hour limit” means in practice, which one to pick and how to get the most out of Ultra when you run several agents or leave them working overnight.

## What changed

- **Max 5x became Max.** Still $100 a month, still five times Pro’s usage every 5 hours and every week.
- **Max 20x became Ultra.** Still $200 a month. Usage is now described as ten times Pro’s usage per week, and the 5-hour session window is gone for verified accounts.
- **Existing Max 20x subscribers** were moved to Ultra automatically, at the same price. There is nothing to do.
- **Weekly limits are unchanged** by the rename.

Both plans include Claude Code, and both are billed monthly only. Prices here are for web subscriptions; in-app purchases on mobile may cost differently.

## Max vs Ultra at a glance

| | Max | Ultra |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Former name | Max 5x | Max 20x |
| Price | $100/month | $200/month |
| Billing | Monthly only | Monthly only |
| Usage | 5x Pro every 5 hours and every week | 10x Pro per week |
| 5-hour session window | Yes | No, once the account is verified |
| Weekly limits | All models + a separate Fable limit | All models + a separate Fable limit |
| API credits | $100/month (Claude Platform API) | $200/month (Claude Platform API) |
| Claude Code | Included | Included |

For the full plan lineup, including Pro, Team, Enterprise and the pay-as-you-go API, see [Claude Code pricing](/en/blog/claude-code-pricing/ "Claude Code pricing").

## What “no 5-hour limit” actually means

On Pro and Max, usage is counted in a 5-hour session window plus a weekly limit. Hit the session cap and you wait for the window to reset, even if you have plenty of the week left. On a verified Ultra account that first cap is gone. You can keep working as long as the weekly limits hold.

That doesn’t make Ultra unlimited. Two weekly limits still apply: one across all models and a separate one for Fable, the top model. The practical shift is in how you plan. Instead of pacing yourself through a session, you budget for the week. Burn through a big share on Monday and Tuesday, and you have less for the rest of the week.

### Verification and the temporary limit

Newer or not yet verified Ultra accounts keep a temporary 5-hour limit. Anthropic removes it automatically based on account and payment history. There is no form to fill in, and phone verification at checkout is a separate step that doesn’t remove it.

### How to check your account

Open Claude’s **Settings → Usage**. If there is no “Current session” bar, the account is verified and has no 5-hour limit. If the bar is still there, the temporary limit is still active.

## Which one should you pick?

| Your usage | Plan |
| --- | --- |
| Claude Code for part of the day, mostly one agent | Pro |
| Most of the day, hitting Pro’s session limit often | Max |
| All day, several agents in parallel, or long unattended runs | Ultra |

A few points help decide:

- **You were on Max 20x:** you are on Ultra now, at the same price. Nothing to change.
- **You are on Max and keep hitting the 5-hour limit** while the weekly limit still has room: that is exactly the gap Ultra closes.
- **You are on Max and rarely wait for resets:** stay on Max. Ultra costs twice as much, and the extra headroom only pays off if you use it.
- **Upgrading from Max to Ultra is prorated**, so you don’t pay twice for the current month.

The API credits ($100 on Max, $200 on Ultra) are a nice extra if you build on the Claude Platform, but they don’t count toward Claude Code usage. Don’t factor them in when you size a plan for coding.

Before upgrading, look at `/usage` in Claude Code for a week. If the limit is hit because of a bloated context or an expensive model on simple tasks, fix that first. [Claude Code usage limits](/en/blog/claude-code-usage-limits/ "Claude Code usage limits") covers the habits that make limits last.

## Long and overnight agent runs without the 5-hour wall

Coding agents feel the 5-hour limit more than chat does. A long refactor, a migration across dozens of files or a queue of tasks left running overnight could stop halfway through when the session cap hit, and stay stopped until the window reset. On a verified Ultra account that wall is gone: a run keeps going as long as the weekly limits allow.

The catch is that the weekly limit is shared. Every agent signed in to the same account, in parallel or one after another, draws from the same weekly pool. Four agents running all night can use a large slice of the week before you wake up. So the question shifts from “will this run hit the session cap?” to “how much of the week can this run use?”

A few habits help:

- Give each overnight task a clear, testable goal, so agents don’t spend tokens wandering.
- Use a cheaper model for simple jobs such as tests, docs and renames.
- Check the weekly usage in the morning before you start the next batch.

[Running Claude Code overnight](/en/blog/run-claude-code-overnight/ "Run Claude Code overnight") goes through planning tasks, approvals and the morning review in detail.

## Making the most of Ultra with AgentVera

AgentVera is a desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux that runs Claude Code and other CLI agents side by side, using the Claude Code login you already have. A few features fit the way Ultra is limited:

- **Parallel agents in worktrees:** run many agents at once, each in its own git worktree, so they don’t step on each other’s changes.
- **Weekly usage in the status bar:** the status bar shows each account’s 5-hour and weekly usage. On a verified Ultra account only the weekly part matters, and that is the number to watch.
- **[Token budgets](/en/features/token-budgets/ "Token budgets") per agent:** set a cap per agent so one long run doesn’t eat the week for everyone else.
- **Notifications:** get told when an agent finishes or needs input, instead of checking each terminal.
- **Kanban board:** agents work on cards, so you can line up a week of work and see what is done.
- **Automatic model selection:** simple tasks go to cheaper models, which stretches the weekly limit further.
- **[Account switching](/en/features/account-switching/ "Account switching"):** an account chain moves agents to the next account when 3% or less of a limit remains. Use it only where the provider’s terms allow it; that is your responsibility.

## Wrapping up

Max and Ultra are the same two tiers under new names, at the same prices. The difference that matters is the limit: Max keeps the 5-hour session window, while a verified Ultra account only has weekly limits. If the session cap is what stops your agents, Ultra removes it; if it rarely does, Max is still the better value. Either way, plan for the week, keep an eye on the weekly meter and give long runs a budget.

Sources: [Claude pricing](https://claude.com/pricing "Claude pricing") and [What is the Ultra plan?](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/17728952-what-is-the-ultra-plan "What is the Ultra plan?")

## Frequently asked questions

**Is Claude Ultra the same as Max 20x?** It is the same $200 a month tier under a new name. Existing Max 20x subscribers were moved to Ultra automatically at the same price. Ultra gives 10x Pro usage per week and, once the account is verified, no 5-hour limit.

**Does Claude Ultra have a 5-hour limit?** Not for verified accounts. They only have weekly limits: one across all models and a separate one for Fable. Newer accounts keep a temporary 5-hour limit until they are verified.

**Why do I still see a session limit on Ultra?** Your account is not verified yet. Anthropic removes the temporary 5-hour limit automatically based on account and payment history; there is no form to fill in, and phone verification at checkout does not remove it.

**Do the Ultra API credits cover Claude Code?** No. Ultra includes $200 a month and Max $100 a month in API credits, but those are for the Claude Platform API. Claude Code uses your plan’s usage limits.

**Is Ultra worth it over Max?** If you hit Max’s 5-hour limit most days, run several agents in parallel or leave long runs going unattended, Ultra usually pays off. If Max’s limits rarely stop you, stay on Max.

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**About AgentVera.** AgentVera is a desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux, built by Solviera Teknoloji. It runs 18 AI coding agents (Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Copilot, Cursor, Antigravity, opencode, Hermes, Qwen Code, Kimi Code, Kiro, Amp, Droid, Goose, Vibe, Crush, Aider, Cline) side by side, per project, in real terminals with the user's own CLI installs and logins. The free plan has unlimited agents. Download: https://agentvera.dev/en/download/ · Pricing: https://agentvera.dev/en/pricing/