clarp: Open Source Drop-In Replacement for Claude -p Before June 15 Metered Pricing
Claude -p (print mode) and the Agent SDK are moving to separate credit-based pricing on June 15. For developers with tools and workflows built around claude -p, that change could mean significantly higher costs. Enter clarp — an open source CLI that acts as a drop-in replacement for claude -p in local developer workflows.
How It Works
Under the hood, clarp launches the normal interactive Claude Code CLI in a hidden PTY, then uses a local read-only proxy to observe the Anthropic API stream and reconstruct claude -p-style output. It does not modify Claude's requests or responses — it's purely a proxy that translates interactive output into print-mode format.
In most projects, migrating is as simple as changing the binary name from claude to clarp.
What Works
- Text, JSON, and stream-JSON output
- stdin prompts
- Multi-turn stream-JSON input
- Most Claude Code flag passthrough
- Permission forwarding
- Token-level partials via
--include-partial-messages
What's Not Yet Perfect
Sideband/non-assistant events are not exact parity. Some hook/task/progress events are still incomplete. The author says it's high parity for common claude -p use but not a perfect reimplementation of Claude Code's internal print-mode pipeline. It is aimed at local developer workflows, not a hosted service.
Installation
npm install -g clarp-cliOnce installed, replace claude -p with clarp in your scripts and tools. The project is built with significant help from Claude itself: implementing the proxy/session pieces, writing parity tests, finding edge cases in argument parsing, and tightening the release and docs.
Who It's For
Developers who have automated tools or scripts dependent on claude -p and want to avoid the upcoming metered pricing without rewriting their workflows.
📖 Read the full source: r/ClaudeAI
👀 See Also
Claude Auto-Continue: Chrome extension automates tool-use limit interruptions
A developer built a free Chrome extension that automatically clicks 'Continue' when Claude hits its tool-use limit after roughly 20 tool calls, eliminating manual interruptions during agentic workflows. The extension includes optional token minimization and works across all tabs and windows.
read-once: A Claude Code Hook That Prevents Redundant File Reads
A developer built a PreToolUse hook called read-once that tracks files Claude Code has already read in a session, blocking re-reads of unchanged files and using diffs for changed files. The tool saves thousands of tokens per session by preventing Claude from repeatedly reading the same file content.
Prompt-caching MCP plugin automatically reduces Claude API costs by identifying stable context
The prompt-caching MCP plugin automatically identifies stable parts of context like system prompts and tool definitions, then marks them for Anthropic's caching feature to reduce API costs by 80-92% in coding sessions.
Context Gateway: An Open-Source Proxy for Compressing AI Agent Context
Context Gateway is an open-source proxy that sits between coding agents and LLMs, compressing tool outputs before they enter the context window. It uses small language models to detect signal in context, performs background compaction at 85% window capacity, and includes spending caps, a dashboard, and Slack notifications.