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Terminal versus the app

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Up to now you've used Claude in the app. This section adds , which runs in an app on your computer called . Before you anything, this lesson shows what each one is for, and helps you decide whether you need Claude Code at all. You don't need anything open. this part confusing is normal. Most people do at first.

Claude Code Claude, working inside Terminal. It can make files and run things on your Mac, with a safety checker watching what it does. All wordsTerminal An app on your Mac where you type instructions instead of clicking on things. Claude Code works inside it. All wordsinstall Put a new program on your computer so you can use it. All wordsfinding One thing an audit found, with the link and the words that show it. All words

Before this, you'll want:

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  1. See the difference between the two

    The (or claude.ai in your ) is Claude doing tasks for you. It answers, writes, uses the tools you connect and runs helpers on a schedule. In the Claude desktop app, it can also work on the files in a you connect.

    Claude Code is your own workshop, which you set up and own. It lives in a on your computer, with instruction files like , its own skills and memory, and to tools like Slack, and . You can build websites and tools in it, or run a team of helpers that each do one job and report to you in Slack. Tasks you set up from Claude Code show on the same Scheduled page.

    Going from the app to Claude Code means going from "Claude does a task for me" to "I set up how Claude works, and it keeps working that way."

    Terminal is the app this section uses to start it.

    1. Pick a year below, and read the example for it.
    Claude app Claude on your phone or computer, where you chat with it by typing. claude.ai is the same thing in a web browser. All wordsbrowser The app you use to visit websites, like Safari or Chrome. All wordsfolder A place on your computer that holds files and other folders, like a drawer in a filing cabinet. All wordsproject folder One folder in your Backyard that holds everything for one thing you're building. All wordsCLAUDE.md A note to Claude about how to work in this project. Claude Code reads it at the start of every session in that folder. All wordsconnector A link between Claude and another app or service, like Google Calendar or Linear, so Claude can read from it or work in it. All wordsGitHub A website that keeps a copy of your git project, with every version saved. Your backup, and where changes get reviewed. All wordsLinear A website for keeping track of tasks and problems, one issue each, so nothing lives only in your head. All words

    Explain it like it's

    1980

    The Claude app: Calling the reference librarian, who'll now fetch it too. Ask, and they find what you need, type it up and leave it on your desk, even every Monday morning.

    Claude Code in Terminal: Giving the handyman his own workshop in your garage. You pin your rules on the wall, each of his crew has one job, and the plans stay on the bench. He asks before he knocks out a wall, and the shop runs your way even when you're out.

    1990

    The Claude app: AOL chat with your smartest friend, who'll do the chore too. Send over the folder, and the sorted list is waiting the next time you sign on.

    Claude Code in Terminal: That friend setting up the family PC the way you like it: your folders, your programs, the notes taped to the monitor. After that it runs your way every time. Terminal is the black C:\> screen you typed win into. You type one word, then you're talking normally.

    2000

    The Claude app: MapQuest, if it also booked the motel and left the printout by the door every Friday. Ask for the trip, and it's planned and waiting.

    Claude Code in Terminal: Handing a friend the keys to a car you've set up your way: the seat, the stations, the map in the glove box. They drive, you say where, and you can say "pull over" anytime. Terminal is the ignition.

    That's not what I see
    I'm worried it will change things on my computer that I didn't want changed.
    Claude Code works in the folder you start it in. Before it starts, it shows you that folder and asks whether you trust it, and you can say no. A safety checker also blocks anything risky. You'll see all of this in Install Claude Code and .sign in Tell Claude Code which Claude account is yours, so it knows you've paid for it. All words

  2. See how little you type in Terminal

    You only type a few short words in Terminal. Once Claude is running, you talk to it in normal English, like the app.

    Here's most of what you'll type in Terminal on a normal day:

    • cd and a folder's name, to go into your project folder.
    • claude, to start Claude Code.
    • /exit, to leave when you're done.

    Everything in between is you and Claude talking, the same way you do in the app.

    1. Read the three short words above. The next lessons walk you through each one.
    That's not what I see
    I've never typed a command in my life.
    That's what Find your Terminal is for. It's the next lesson, and the steps in it can't break anything.

  3. Decide whether you need Claude Code

    You need Claude Code if you want to set up how Claude works and have it keep working that way: build a website or a tool, or run your own team of helpers from a project folder, over weeks and months. If you want help writing, answering customers, checking facts, planning, sorting the files in a folder or a helper that runs every morning, the app does that, and you never need Terminal.

    1. Pick one thing you'd like to build or set up.
    2. If you can't think of one, stop here. The app is enough, and every section on the business path works without Terminal.
    3. If you can, go on to Find your Terminal.

    Your and plan stay the same. You'll still use the app for everyday questions.

    account A sign-in with a company, like a domain, email or hosting. Whoever owns the account controls what's in it. All words
    That's not what I see
    The app can work on my files now. Why would I need Claude Code?
    For quotes, notes and spreadsheets, you may not. Claude Code is your own workshop. It keeps a project's files, instructions and history together, runs the code it writes, and keeps working the way you set it up.
    Do I need a second plan for Claude Code?
    No. Pro and Max include Claude Code, and it shares your usage limits with the app. Free doesn't include it.
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Your challenge

Tell someone at home, in one sentence, what the Claude app does for you and what you'd set up with Claude Code. If they get it, you've got it.

Last checked 2026-10-21

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