Windows System Tray App for Real-Time Claude API Usage Monitoring

A developer has created a Windows system tray application that monitors Claude API usage in real time. The tool provides visibility into API quota consumption and token usage directly from the system tray.

Key Features

• Real-time quota usage display for 5-hour and 7-day windows with progress bars
• Depletion forecast showing estimated time until quota exhaustion
• Today's token breakdown showing input, output, and cache token counts
• Cost estimation based on current usage
• Display of extra purchased usage
• Push notifications via ntfy for phone alerts
• Auto-update functionality
• Multi-language UI support for Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese

Development Details

The application was built primarily using Claude Code as a coding partner. According to the developer, Claude Code wrote most of the C# and WPF code, helped design the API polling logic, debugged deserialization errors, and handled GitHub Actions release workflows. The developer describes their role as "directing and reviewing" while Claude Code "did the heavy lifting."

Availability

The tool is free and open source on GitHub at github.com/jeiel85/claude-usage-tray-windows. No sign-up is required - users can simply download the .exe file from the Releases section.

This type of monitoring tool is particularly useful for developers who rely on Claude's API for production applications and need to track usage patterns and avoid unexpected quota exhaustion. Real-time monitoring helps developers optimize their API calls and manage costs effectively.