Account Switcher for Claude Code (Unofficial)
Switch between multiple Claude Code accounts — work, personal, client A, client B — from inside VS Code, without /logout → /login every time.
Published by Ideogram Technology Solutions (P) Ltd. This is an independent, community extension. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Anthropic. "Claude" and "Claude Code" are trademarks of Anthropic, PBC.
How it works
Claude Code keeps everything that makes an account "yours" (OAuth login, settings, history, MCP servers) in the folder named by the CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR environment variable, defaulting to ~/.claude. On macOS, the Keychain entry is namespaced per config folder too.
This extension gives every account its own folder and points VS Code at the one you choose:
- Integrated terminals — sets
CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR for new terminals in the window. Existing terminals show VS Code's "relaunch" indicator.
- Claude Code extension panel — writes
CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR into claudeCode.environmentVariables (user settings), so new Claude Code sessions use the account. Other entries you have there are preserved.
Nothing is copied between accounts unless you ask, and credentials are never read, copied or synced by this extension.
Features
- Status bar shows the active account; click to switch (or
Ctrl+Alt+A / Cmd+Alt+A).
- Accounts view in the activity bar: signed-in email, inline switch and "open terminal" buttons, right-click for more.
- Open Claude Terminal for any account, even one that isn't active — handy for running two accounts side by side.
- Pin an account to a workspace — e.g. always use Work in your company repos. Pins are stored per workspace (not in
.vscode/settings.json), so nothing gets committed.
- Seed a new account from an existing one: copies
settings.json, CLAUDE.md, agents/, commands/, skills/, output-styles/, hooks/ — never the login.
- Adopt existing folders like
~/.claude-work if you already use shell aliases.
- First run: your current
~/.claude setup is imported automatically as Default.
- Live refresh: the view updates as soon as a login completes.
Getting started
- Install the
.vsix: Extensions view → … → Install from VSIX… (or code --install-extension ideogram-claude-account-switcher-0.1.0.vsix).
- Open the Claude Accounts view and click +.
- Name the account, choose Start fresh, then Switch & Log In. A terminal opens running
claude; finish the sign-in there (type /login if you aren't prompted).
- Switch any time from the status bar.
Commands
| Command |
What it does |
| Claude Accounts: Switch Account |
Pick the active account |
| Claude Accounts: Add Account |
Create or adopt an account folder |
| Claude Accounts: Open Claude Terminal |
Terminal running claude as a chosen account |
| Claude Accounts: Log In to Account |
Opens a sign-in terminal for an account |
| Claude Accounts: Use This Account for This Workspace |
Pin an account to the current workspace |
| Claude Accounts: Clear Workspace Account |
Remove the pin |
| Claude Accounts: Remove Account |
Remove (optionally delete its folder) |
| Claude Accounts: Show Active Account |
Show name, email and folder |
Settings
| Setting |
Default |
|
claudeAccounts.accountsDirectory |
~/.claude-accounts |
Where new account folders are created |
claudeAccounts.claudeCommand |
claude |
Command run in account terminals |
claudeAccounts.syncClaudeCodeExtension |
true |
Update claudeCode.environmentVariables for the Claude Code panel |
claudeAccounts.promptReloadAfterSwitch |
true |
Offer a window reload so open Claude panels pick up the switch |
claudeAccounts.showStatusBar |
true |
Show the status bar item |
Good to know
- Already-running sessions keep their account. A switch applies to new terminals and new Claude Code sessions; reload the window (the switch message offers this) to restart open panels.
- Multiple windows: the account choice is global, and each window re-applies its account when it gains focus. Pinned workspaces always use their pinned account.
- Workspace overrides: if a workspace's own settings set
CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR in claudeCode.environmentVariables, that wins — you'll get a warning.
- Removing an account doesn't delete its macOS Keychain entry; remove
Claude Code-credentials-… in Keychain Access if you want it gone.
CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR is widely used for this but isn't formally documented by Anthropic, so a future Claude Code release could change its behaviour.- With a custom config folder, Claude Code has been reported to also load
~/.claude/CLAUDE.md in addition to the account's own one.
Build from source
npm install
npm run compile
npx vsce package # produces ideogram-claude-account-switcher-0.1.0.vsix
Press F5 in VS Code to run it in an Extension Development Host.
