Set Up Claude Code with Distill.codes

To use Distill.codes with Claude Code, create an account, start the trial, copy your proxy URL from the dashboard, add it to ~/.claude/settings.json as ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL, then restart Claude Code. Your Claude login or Anthropic API access stays yours. Distill.codes sits between Claude Code and the provider as an optimization layer for supported coding-agent requests.

Get your proxy URL

Start from the Distill.codes landing page and choose the trial flow. After signup and billing activation, the dashboard generates a proxy URL for your account.

The URL has this shape:

https://proxy.distill.codes/<proxy-key>/essential/anthropic

Your exact key is shown in the dashboard. Treat it like an access token:

• Do not paste it into public issues, docs, screenshots, or commit history.
• Rotate it from the dashboard if it was shared or exposed.
• Update Claude Code settings after rotating, because the old URL stops working.

Distill.codes does not replace Claude Code, Anthropic, or your Claude account. It only changes where Claude Code sends compatible model requests.

Configure Claude Code

Claude Code uses settings files such as ~/.claude/settings.json. Anthropic documents an env object in settings for environment variables. Add the proxy URL there.

Open:

~/.claude/settings.json

If the file is still close to the default settings file:

{
  "theme": "dark"
}

add the env object:

{
  "theme": "dark",
  "env": {
    "ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://proxy.distill.codes/<proxy-key>/essential/anthropic"
  }
}

If your file already has an env object, add only the ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL entry inside that existing object:

"ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://proxy.distill.codes/<proxy-key>/essential/anthropic"

Save the file and restart Claude Code. A running Claude Code session may keep old environment settings until it restarts.

Choose a current Claude model

Use a capable current Claude model for real evaluation. In Claude Code, run /model and choose the newest Claude model available to your plan.

Use your preferred top Claude model (Fable 5, Sonnet 5, or Opus 5) with xhigh effort. Avoid Max by default: it can be slower and may consume session limits quickly.

If your Claude Code surface exposes effort as a separate setting, use /effort and choose the highest practical effort level for the task. Higher effort can cost more and take longer, so use it where correctness and complex multi-step work matter.

Verify the setup

Run a small real task first. Good setup tests are concrete and easy to inspect:

In this repo, find one small duplicated helper and remove the duplication.
Keep behavior unchanged and run the focused test if one exists.

Watch for two things:

• Claude Code should complete the task normally.
• The Distill.codes dashboard should keep showing the same proxy URL after refresh.

For a cleaner comparison, run the same task twice in separate fresh directories or worktrees:

• once with your normal Claude Code setup;
• once with the Distill.codes proxy URL.

Keep the model, effort, repository, and prompt as close as possible. Compare the accepted result, output tokens if available, files changed, source LOC changed, time, and review effort.

Troubleshooting

If Claude Code does not appear to use the proxy, restart Claude Code first. Then confirm ~/.claude/settings.json is valid JSON and that ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL is inside the root settings object.

If the dashboard says billing is required, complete the checkout flow or open the billing portal from the dashboard header. The proxy URL is available after access is active.

If requests fail after rotating your key, copy the new dashboard URL into ~/.claude/settings.json, save the file, and restart Claude Code.

If a task looks too small to show a difference, test on a realistic multi-file task. Optimization is usually easier to observe when the agent has enough room to over-search, over-edit, or over-explain.

Sources checked July 18, 2026: Claude Code settings, Claude Code model configuration, Anthropic model selection guidance, and the Distill.codes docs.