A comprehensive, step-by-step guide to installing, configuring, and running Claude Code on PC, Linux, macOS, and Termux using alternative API endpoints.
OverviewStep 1: Register an AccountStep 2: Install Claude CodeStep 3: ConfigurationStep 4: Running Claude CodeTroubleshooting & Version Pinning
Claude Code normally requires an active Claude Pro subscription or official Anthropic API keys. By routing requests through compatible third-party API proxy services, you can run Claude Code for free or at a significantly lower cost using alternative routing endpoints.
| Feature | Provider A: AgentRouter | Provider B: IAMHC |
|---|---|---|
| Referral Link | ||
| Yes ( | ||
IAMHC Link)Featured Modelsclaude-opus-4-8
DeepSeek-V4-Pro
, glm-5.2
, Qwen3-Coder-Next-FP8
, etc.Free Balance / Quota****Base URLhttps://agentrouter.org
https://api.iamhc.cn/v1
-
Choose one of the providers from the list below and open the link: AgentRouter (with referral - Get +$50 USD bonus):https://bit.ly/3Tf0TJj** IAMHC (no referral):**https://api.iamhc.cn/
-
Sign up / Register an account using your GitHub account or Email.
-
Navigate to the API Key orToken menu. - Generate a new API Key and copy it.
Install Node.js on your system if you haven't already. Then run the appropriate command to install Claude Code:
It is recommended to use version 2.1.112
for optimal compatibility:
npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code@2.1.112
You can install the latest version:
npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
Open the Claude Code settings file using a text editor (e.g., nano
):
nano ~/.claude/settings.json
Replace the contents of the file with one of the configuration templates below, depending on the provider you selected in Step 1.
{
"env": {
"ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN": "YOUR_API_KEY",
"ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://agentrouter.org",
"ANTHROPIC_MODEL": "claude-opus-4-8",
"CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC": "1"
},
"permissions": {
"allow": [],
"deny": []
},
"skipWorkflowUsageWarning": true
}
{
"env": {
"ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN": "YOUR_API_KEY",
"ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://api.iamhc.cn/v1",
"ANTHROPIC_MODEL": "DeepSeek-V4-Pro",
"CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC": "1"
},
"permissions": {
"allow": [],
"deny": []
},
"skipWorkflowUsageWarning": true
}
Important
- Replace
YOUR_API_KEY
with the API Key/Token you generated from the respective provider. Available models for Provider A (AgentRouter):claude-opus-4-8
(Default in template)claude-opus-4-7
claude-opus-4-6
glm-5.2
gpt-5.5
- You can replace
ANTHROPIC_MODEL
in Template A with any of the exact model IDs listed above.
Available models for Provider B (IAMHC):DeepSeek-V4-Pro
(Default in template)DeepSeek-V4-Flash
glm-5.2
glm-5.1
glm-4.7
Qwen3-Coder-Next-FP8
Kimi-K2.6
MiniMax-M3
MiniMax-M2.7
kat-coder-pro-v2
- You can replace
ANTHROPIC_MODEL
in Template B with any of the exact model IDs listed above.
- Setting
CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC
to"1"
helps reduce unnecessary network traffic and telemetry.
- Press
CTRL + X
to exit. - Press
Y
to confirm changes. - Press
ENTER
to save the file.
Simply run:
claude
If the configuration is correct, the Claude Code terminal interface will start up successfully!
If you recently updated Claude Code and encounter errors or compatibility issues with the custom API endpoints, revert/pin to the recommended version using:
npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code@2.1.112
Double check that ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL
contains the correct protocol (https://
) and that your API key is correctly copied without leading or trailing spaces.