switching-accounts

name	switching-accounts
description	Use when the user asks to switch Claude accounts, check how much of their rate limit or session window is left, warm up a session, or work out which of their accounts to use next. Covers the `cca` account manager, the 5-hour session window, and why a switch only takes effect on the next launch.

Switching Claude accounts

The cca CLI keeps several Claude.ai logins side by side and points Claude Code at one of them. Prefer running cca over inspecting credential storage by hand.

Read the situation first

cca list      # every profile with live 5-hour and weekly utilisation
cca status    # detail for the active profile

cca list --json is the machine-readable form; each profile carries fiveHour and sevenDay objects with utilization (percent) and resets_at (ISO timestamp).

Switching

cca use <name>            # the next launch uses this account
cca run <name> -- <args>  # launch Claude Code as this account right now
cca run --best            # launch as whichever account has the most quota left

A switch never affects the running session. Claude Code reads credentials once at startup, so cca use changes the next launch. Say this plainly rather than implying the current conversation moved accounts.

The 5-hour window

A subscription's session window opens at the first request and runs for five hours; resets_at is when it lapses. Warming sends one minimal request so the window opens at a chosen time — it shifts when the window runs, it does not add quota.

cca warm <name>       # open the window now
cca warm --all
cca warmup smart      # warm each account as soon as its window resets
cca warmup schedule --at 08:00,13:00

Choosing an account

Recommend by 5-hour utilization first — lower is better — and fall back to the weekly figure when two accounts are close. If an account shows not logged in, the fix is cca login <name>, not a switch.

When something looks wrong

cca doctor --deep verifies the whole chain, including asking Claude Code itself which account it resolves under each profile. Run it before theorising about causes.