A powerline for Claude Code that tracks token burn

What it does Claude Powerline is a statusline generator that drops a vim-style powerline into Claude Code. It pulls live session data—token spend, context window pressure, rate-limit windows—and mixes it with git state, working directory, and model info into a configurable bottom bar. Configuration changes are picked up automatically without restarting the editor.

The interesting bit The README reveals an unusual attention to operational detail: it tracks both calculated and official cost sources, shows auto-compact thresholds, and even surfaces Claude’s 5-hour and 7-day rate-limit utilization for Pro/Max users. There is also a browser-based Powerline Studio for click-to-configure customization, which is overkill in the best way for a CLI ornament.

Key highlights

• Live token and cost tracking per session and daily totals, with optional budget monitoring
• Git integration showing branch, SHA, dirty state, rebase progress, and stash count
• Context-window gauge with percentage remaining and auto-compact buffer awareness
• Zero dependencies; config hot-reloads from project-specific, user, or XDG paths
• Six built-in themes (nord, tokyo-night, gruvbox, etc.) and four layout styles including an ASCII fallback

Caveats

• Rate-limit and block/weekly usage segments require Claude.ai Pro/Max subscription data; they silently hide otherwise
• Sonnet 4’s 1M context window support is in beta and needs manual configuration
• Requires Node.js 18+, Git 2.0+, and ideally a Nerd Font for the full glyph set

Verdict Worth a look if you live in Claude Code and want visibility into spend, context pressure, and git state without breaking flow. Skip it if you already track usage elsewhere or prefer your terminal minimal.