Anthropic has announced it will block Claude Code subscription limits from being used with third-party harnesses like OpenClaw starting April 4. The company stated that tools like OpenClaw place an outsized strain on their systems and that they need to prioritize customers using their core products. Users will still be able to access Claude Code and Claude Cowork with their subscriptions.

To ease the transition, Anthropic is offering a one-time credit equal to the monthly subscription price and discounts of up to 30% on prepaid bundles of extra usage. The policy applies to all third-party harnesses and will be rolled out to more tools shortly. Users can also request refunds if they prefer.

This move has sparked significant backlash from developers who feel Anthropic is breaking the terms they originally agreed to. Many are considering switching to alternatives like OpenAI or exploring open-source solutions. The restriction particularly affects users who relied on OpenClaw's integration with Claude Code via the claude -p flag, which Anthropic has explicitly disallowed for building products around.