# CC Switch alternatives: switching providers vs accounts > CC Switch rewrites the endpoint, key and model for twelve tools. As an alternative, Shuriken moves a running chat between your own accounts at a limit. Source: https://shuriken.sh/compare/cc-switch-alternative CC Switch is a free desktop app that swaps which API provider Claude Code, Codex and ten other tools talk to, by rewriting their config files. If what you need is to keep one chat going across several of your own subscriptions when a limit hits, on every device, Shuriken does that by itself. By Shuriken Updated 27 October 2026 8 min read **Contents** We make Shuriken. We tried to be fair; corrections welcome at office@shuriken.sh. ## Quick answer # CC Switch switches providers: it rewrites the endpoint, key and model in the config files of Claude Code, Codex and ten other tools, so the next request goes to a different API. Shuriken switches accounts: when one of your own subscriptions or keys nears its limit, the running chat moves to another of yours by itself, with its history, on every device. If you're looking for a CC Switch alternative, first decide which of the two problems you have. If you want a free, local place to keep your relay keys and flip Claude Code between them, CC Switch is good at that and costs nothing. If you hit Claude or ChatGPT limits mid-task and want work to carry on without you, a config switcher won't do it, because CC Switch keeps official sign-ins out of its failover queue. One naming note: ccswitch (one word, by GG-Santos) is a different tool, a CLI that switches Claude accounts at 90% usage by default. We cover it with claude-swap and clauth in our [Claude account switchers comparison](https://shuriken.sh/compare/claude-account-switchers). ## At a glance # CC Switch's column comes from its README and user manual on GitHub, read on 24 October 2026 (v4.0.19, released 23 October 2026; get the current build from its [Releases page](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch/releases)). Shuriken's comes from our own code. | | CC Switch | Shuriken | | --- | --- | --- | | What a switch changes | The endpoint, key and model fields in each tool's config file (Direct), or where its local router sends requests (Routing) | Which of your sources a chat runs on: a subscription sign-in, an API key or an endpoint | | Switches by itself | Only in Routing mode with failover on: a request that fails goes to the next provider in your queue. Official sign-ins can't join the queue | Yes, at your switch point (99% by default, 50 to 100%) or the moment a provider reports a limit | | Several subscriptions per provider | Several ChatGPT sign-ins for Codex and several Kimi Code sign-ins. None described for Claude | Several per provider, each signed in with the agent's own login: Claude, ChatGPT (Codex), Gemini, Copilot and more | | Restart after a switch | None for Claude Code. Codex, Gemini CLI and Grok Build need a restart; Claude Desktop must be quit and reopened | None. A Claude Code chat moves on its next request; other agents move when their current turn ends | | Devices | One desktop. Its settings can sync through WebDAV or S3-compatible storage; a community CLI covers servers | Every computer and server you link, at once, plus the phone web app | | Tools covered | Twelve, listed in its README | 67 coding agents | | Price and licence | Free, MIT | Free plan with 2 sources and 2 linked devices; Pro €49 a month | ## Switching a provider is not switching an account # The two jobs get mixed up because both are called "switching", and the difference decides which tool fits. When CC Switch moves Claude Code to a relay or to Kimi in Direct mode, it writes ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL and a key into ~/.claude/settings.json. Anthropic's [gateway docs](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/llm-gateway) say that while such a credential is active, requests carry it "in place of a developer's claude.ai subscription login, and the subscription's usage limits don't apply to them." So from that moment you are paying the provider per token or per its own plan, not using your Claude subscription. That's the point if you meant to, and a surprise if you didn't. Our guide on [API key versus subscription](https://shuriken.sh/guides/claude-code-api-vs-subscription) shows how to check which one Claude Code is using. Switching an account keeps the same company and the same kind of plan. You have a personal Claude Max and a work Claude Team seat, or two ChatGPT plans, and you want the chat to go on with the other one when the first runs out. CC Switch does this for Codex: an OpenAI Official card can pick which of your signed-in ChatGPT accounts it uses, so going from one Plus, Pro or Team account to another takes one click. It doesn't do it automatically, and for Claude its docs describe a single official card that uses whatever /login left on the machine. ## How to switch providers without CC Switch # You don't need any app to point an agent at another provider. Both main agents read it from their own config. - For Claude Code, set ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL to the provider's Anthropic-compatible address and ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN to its key, plus the model variables. Put them in a shell alias per provider rather than in ~/.claude/settings.json, so plain claude stays on your subscription. Our [GLM and Kimi guide](https://shuriken.sh/guides/claude-code-with-glm-or-kimi) has each provider's exact values and what breaks. - For Codex, define a provider in ~/.codex/config.toml under [model_providers.] with its base_url and env_key, and set model_provider to that id. OpenAI's [advanced config page](https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/config-file/config-advanced) says profiles let you "save named configuration layers and switch between them from the CLI": put the provider settings in ~/.codex/.config.toml and start with codex --profile . - On a server with no desktop, CC Switch's README recommends the community CC Switch CLI (brew install cc-switch-cli), which by default shares the ~/.cc-switch folder with the desktop app. The aliases and profiles above never notice a limit or move your chat. For that you need an account switcher, a CLI one or Shuriken. ## What CC Switch does well # It covers a lot of tools from one window. Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Gemini CLI, Grok Build, OpenCode, OpenClaw, Hermes, Pi, MiniMax Code, Kimi Code and Oh My Pi, with more than 90 provider presets. Switching rewrites only the connection fields, and it backs up each config file before it first changes it, so your hooks, plugins and MCP entries stay put. Routing does format conversion. In Routing mode, CC Switch runs a local router on 127.0.0.1:15721 that translates between Anthropic Messages, OpenAI Chat Completions, OpenAI Responses and Gemini's format. That's how it puts GPT models in Claude Code or Claude models in Codex. Failover there has its own settings: a queue per tool, retries, timeouts and a circuit breaker with its own defaults for Claude. Aggregation puts several providers in one model picker. For Claude Code and Codex, models from different providers show up together in /model, and each request goes to the provider of the model you picked. The extras are useful on their own. One MCP list synced to the tools you choose, a prompt library that writes CLAUDE.md or AGENTS.md, a skills installer, a usage dashboard built from each tool's local logs, and a session reader that shows what each turn did and which step failed. It's a signed and notarised Mac app, installable with brew install --cask cc-switch. It warns you plainly. The Accounts section (beta) signs in to GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT and xAI so those subscriptions can serve as providers in Claude Code, Claude Desktop and Codex, and it also holds Kimi Code sign-ins. CC Switch's README says using a subscription outside the official client "may violate the vendor's terms of service; assess the risk yourself". Its manual adds that these account-backed proxies use "reverse-engineered OAuth integrations" and may get the account restricted or suspended. We'd take that warning seriously. Shuriken moves a running chat to another of your own accounts when one reaches its limit, on every device. [Download](https://shuriken.sh/download) ## Where Shuriken is different # ### It moves the chat, not the config file # Shuriken switches at your switch point (99% by default) or as soon as a provider reports a limit, whichever comes first. A Claude Code chat moves on its next request, with its subagents, and the request that hit the limit is replayed on the new account. Codex and the other agents move when their current turn ends. A "Switched to …" card in the chat says who took over and why. This is what we call hot swapping: Shuriken moves your chats to another of your accounts or sources when one nears its limit. The rules are on the [source switching page](https://shuriken.sh/features/source-switching). ### Subscriptions stay in their own agent # Each source keeps its own sign-in in its own folder: a Codex source signs in with codex login, and a Claude source on Anthropic's own sign-in page. A ChatGPT sign-in runs Codex, not Claude Code. Shuriken never moves a Claude Code chat into Codex. It doesn't reuse one product's subscription inside another product, which is the part of CC Switch's Accounts feature its own docs warn about. ### Other companies' endpoints, as a last step # You can still add a Kimi, GLM or other endpoint as a source for Claude Code or Codex. Automatic switching never puts it ahead of your subscriptions. When every Claude source is out, a Claude Code chat can carry on there between turns, and only if its history can be read there. That's on by default. Using API keys as a last resort is a separate setting, off by default, and when it's on, each fallback run stops at a spend cap ($25 by default). ### Every device sees the same choice # The account you pick, and every automatic switch, reaches each computer and server you've linked at the same moment, and you can follow the chat from your phone in the web app. CC Switch can sync its settings between desktops through WebDAV or S3, but each copy switches on its own. ### What you give up # Shuriken runs your chats inside its own app. It isn't a quiet tray icon that edits files for the terminals you already have. It doesn't convert between API formats: an endpoint you add for Claude Code has to speak Anthropic's format itself. The free plan holds two sources. And it costs money past that, while CC Switch doesn't. ## Pricing # CC Switch is free and MIT licensed. Shuriken, in euros, VAT included for EU consumers: Free has no card and isn't a trial, with two sources, two linked devices, every agent and automatic switching. Pro is €49 a month or €490 a year (2 months free) for unlimited sources and devices. Neither charges for model usage: your providers bill you. ## Using them together # It works if you give each tool its own lane. Shuriken's Claude Code chats use your ~/.claude/settings.json (that's how settings and plugins follow every account), and its Codex chats use your ~/.codex/config.toml. A claude or codex you start in a terminal reads the same files. So a third-party provider that CC Switch writes there would steer Shuriken's chats as well as your terminal's. Keep CC Switch's Claude Code card on Claude Official and its Codex card on OpenAI Official, and use its provider switching for apps Shuriken doesn't run, such as Claude Desktop. Both apps can add MCP servers to Claude Code's config, and Shuriken's Codex chats get Shuriken's list on top of what Codex's own config holds, so manage MCP in one of them. CC Switch's session reader and usage dashboard read each tool's local logs and sit fine alongside Shuriken. ## Terms, in one paragraph # Shuriken switches only between sources you add, and they should be accounts you own and are entitled to use, such as a personal and a work plan. Providers' terms may not allow sharing a subscription sign-in, and none of this is a reason to buy accounts to get around limits. What OpenAI's terms say about two ChatGPT plans, quoted with their sources, is in [can you use two ChatGPT accounts with Codex](https://shuriken.sh/guides/chatgpt-multiple-accounts-codex-rules). To try switching that happens inside the running chat, [download Shuriken](https://shuriken.sh/download). Try the free tools: [Claude limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/claude) · [Codex limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/codex) Share [X](https://x.com/intent/post?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fcompare%2Fcc-switch-alternative&text=CC%20Switch%20alternatives%3A%20switching%20providers%20vs%20accounts)[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fcompare%2Fcc-switch-alternative)[Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/submitlink?u=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fcompare%2Fcc-switch-alternative&t=CC%20Switch%20alternatives%3A%20switching%20providers%20vs%20accounts)[Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fcompare%2Fcc-switch-alternative&title=CC%20Switch%20alternatives%3A%20switching%20providers%20vs%20accounts)[E-mail](mailto:?subject=CC%20Switch%20alternatives%3A%20switching%20providers%20vs%20accounts&body=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fcompare%2Fcc-switch-alternative) ## Sources - [CC Switch on GitHub (README)](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [CC Switch releases (v4.0.19, 23 October 2026)](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch/releases) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [CC Switch user manual: Switch provider](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch/blob/main/docs/user-manual/en/2-providers/2.2-switch.md) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [CC Switch user manual: Failover](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch/blob/main/docs/user-manual/en/4-proxy/4.3-failover.md) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [CC Switch user manual: Settings, Accounts (Beta)](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch/blob/main/docs/user-manual/en/1-getting-started/1.5-settings.md) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [CC Switch user manual: Add provider (Codex OAuth risk notice)](https://github.com/farion1231/cc-switch/blob/main/docs/user-manual/en/2-providers/2.1-add.md) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [Claude Code docs: Other LLM gateways](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/llm-gateway) (accessed 24 October 2026) - [OpenAI: Codex advanced configuration](https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/config-file/config-advanced) (accessed 24 October 2026) ## Frequently asked questions **Is CC Switch free?** Yes. CC Switch is MIT licensed and free to download from its GitHub Releases page for Windows, macOS and Linux. Its README lists sponsors, most of them API relay services, with referral links and discount codes. **Can CC Switch switch between two Claude subscriptions?** Its docs describe no way to hold several Claude sign-ins. The Claude Official card uses Claude Code's own login, so a second Claude account still means /logout and /login. For Codex it can keep several ChatGPT sign-ins and switch between them in one click. **Do I need to restart after switching providers in CC Switch?** Claude Code picks up the change without a restart. Codex, Gemini CLI and Grok Build need a restart, and Claude Desktop must be quit and reopened. In Routing mode, later requests go to the new provider at once, though a model change can still need a restart. **Is CC Switch's Accounts feature allowed by the providers?** CC Switch's own docs warn that using a subscription outside the official client may violate the vendor's terms, and its manual says these account sign-ins use reverse-engineered OAuth that can get an account restricted. Read each provider's terms before you turn it on. **Is there a CC Switch CLI for servers?** CC Switch itself is a desktop app only. Its README points to the community-made CC Switch CLI, a TUI and command-line tool that shares the ~/.cc-switch folder and supports Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, OpenClaw, Hermes and Pi. **Can I use CC Switch and Shuriken together?** Yes, with one rule: Shuriken's Claude Code and Codex chats read the same ~/.claude/settings.json and ~/.codex/config.toml that CC Switch edits, and so does a claude or codex you start in a terminal. Keep CC Switch on Claude Official and OpenAI Official for those two, and use its provider switching for apps Shuriken doesn't run, such as Claude Desktop. Source switching One account runs dry. The next one takes over. Add the Claude, Codex and Gemini accounts you own. At your switch point, your chats move to another of them and keep going. [Download](https://shuriken.sh/download) [Other platforms](https://shuriken.sh/download#main) ## Keep reading - [Codex with more than one ChatGPT account: Update 27 Oct 2026 4 min read Add each ChatGPT sign-in you own as a source. When one reaches its Codex limit, Shuriken moves your Codex chats to the next and they carry on.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/codex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts) - [Codex account switchers compared (2026): Comparison 27 Oct 2026 9 min read Codex Switcher, swapdex, cxs, codex-multi-auth and Shuriken compared: when each Codex account switch lands, what happens to your open chat, which devices.](https://shuriken.sh/compare/codex-account-switchers) - [Hot swapping: chats that move when an account runs out: Story 27 Oct 2026 4 min read Hot swapping AI accounts, the way Shuriken does it: your running chats move to another of your accounts when one nears its limit. What happens at 99%.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/hot-swapping-accounts) - [How Shuriken picks the next account: Story 27 Oct 2026 5 min read At your switch point (99% by default) or a limit, Shuriken moves your chats to the source with the most room. Expiring capacity goes first, API keys last.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/how-switching-picks-the-next-account) - [Every plan and key you own, working as one: Story 27 Oct 2026 4 min read Add your Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and other plans and API keys to Shuriken as sources. When one runs out, your chats move to the next.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/what-is-a-source) - [Codex usage limits explained (2026): Guide 27 Oct 2026 5 min read How Codex limits work on ChatGPT Plus and Pro: the 5-hour and weekly windows, the 2026 changes, checking yours with /status, and using several accounts.](https://shuriken.sh/guides/codex-usage-limits) - [We were tired of logging in and out of Claude: Story 27 Oct 2026 3 min read Limit reached, /logout, /login, paste the context back. We did it so often we built Shuriken: chats move to an account with room by themselves.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/why-we-built-shuriken) ## Free tools - [Claude limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/claude) - [Codex limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/codex)