This lesson is being recorded
Every video of this course is being uploaded to my YouTube channel. Subscribe so you do not miss it.
Bruno Ashford @brunoashfordSubscribeModule 2 · Lesson 2.1 · 10 min
Plans, Accounts and What It Costs
Choose the right Claude plan and understand the cost before installing anything.
Use ← → to move. The marker highlights text and the pencil draws on the slide; navigation locks while you annotate. Undo removes the last mark, Esc exits.
1Know which plans include Claude Code
Claude Code requires a Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise plan, or an Anthropic Console account billed by API usage. The free Claude plan does not include Claude Code or Cowork. Cowork is included with the paid plans at no extra charge.
2Understand the subscription options
At the time of recording, Pro is about $20 a month (less if billed annually) and is the right place to start for most owners. Max starts at about $100 a month and gives you much higher usage limits for heavy daily use. Team and Enterprise add shared billing, admin controls and seats for staff. Always confirm current prices on claude.com/pricing.
3Understand pay-as-you-go
A Console account charges by usage (tokens) instead of a flat fee. It suits automated, scheduled jobs and companies that want usage billed to a separate account. For learning and daily use, a subscription is simpler and more predictable. You can switch later.
4Know what usage limits mean
Subscriptions include a usage allowance that resets over time, shared across the Claude apps. Long, heavy sessions use more of it. If you hit the limit regularly, that is a good sign: it means the agent is doing real work, and it is the moment to consider Max.
5Compare cost with your Time Map
Take the weekly cost of your top 10 tasks from Module 0. If an agent removes even 10 percent of it, compare that with your plan. Let Claude do the maths with your numbers.
My top 10 repetitive tasks cost my business $[weekly cost] per week. I am considering a Claude plan at $[plan price] per month. Show me the break-even point: how many hours per month the AI needs to save, at an average cost of $[hourly cost] per hour, to pay for itself. Keep it to a short table.The first question every owner asks me is not how it works. It is what it costs. Fair enough. You would not hire a person without knowing the salary, and an AI department is no different. The good news: the entry cost is lower than one hour of most professionals' time per month.
In this lesson I walk you through the plans that include Claude Code and Cowork, how usage works, and how to decide between a subscription and pay-as-you-go. Prices change, so I will show you where to check the live numbers, and we will compare them with the weekly cost you found in your Time Map.
Key points
- Claude Code needs a paid plan or a Console (API) account.
- The free plan does not include Claude Code or Cowork.
- Start with Pro; move to Max when you hit limits often.
- Team and Enterprise add admin controls and shared billing.
- Check live prices on claude.com/pricing.
Avoid
- Installing Claude Code on a free account and assuming it is broken.
- Buying the most expensive plan before you have a single working use case.
- Leaving an old API key on your computer that bills a different account.
- Judging cost without comparing it to the hours it saves.
An agency with 9 staff started with one Pro plan for the owner and one for the operations lead. Their Time Map showed about 22 hours a week of reporting and content scheduling across the team. They needed the agents to save only a little over one hour a month at their blended rate of $60 an hour to cover both plans. After six weeks the operations lead moved to Max because she was hitting the limit daily, which they treated as proof of use, not a problem.