Conan
Live HUD for Claude Code on macOS — every prompt, tool, and token in real time.
If you live in Claude Code and need to understand how your agent spends tokens and invokes skills, Conan is indispensable — its real-time context breakdown is the clearest we've seen. The $29 one-time price is fair for serious users, but the macOS-only limitation and the need for Claude Code itself keep it a niche buy. For developers on other platforms, there's no equivalent yet.
Verified 5d ago · liveness 77/100 · cite: rightaichoice.com/tools/conan
- Developers using Claude Code for complex multi-skill sessions
- Teams auditing AI agent token consumption and context efficiency
- Prompt engineers wanting transparency into skill selection and tool calls
- Power users managing context limits in long-running coding sessions
- Non-developers or those who don't use Claude Code
- Windows or Linux users (macOS only, Apple silicon, macOS 13+)
- Users seeking a cheap or free alternative to Claude Code itself
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Skip Conan if you don't use Claude Code, are on Windows or Linux, or prefer a terminal without an overlay—its value is entirely tied to Claude Code on macOS.
The one-time $29 Premium fee is required for full insight layers; the free tier only shows a limited HUD without detailed context breakdowns.
At $29 one-time, Conan's Premium is a flat fee with no subscription, unlike Claude Code's usage-based API costs. It's cheaper than many developer tools that charge monthly, and for heavy Claude Code users, the observability can save more than $29 in wasted tokens by preventing context overflow and inefficient skill use.
In short
Conan — Live HUD for Claude Code on macOS — every prompt, tool, and token in real time. Best for Developers using Claude Code for complex multi-skill sessions, Teams auditing AI agent token consumption and context efficiency, Prompt engineers wanting transparency into skill selection and tool calls. Free to start; paid plans from $29/mo.
What's new in Conan
Checked 3 days agoAcross the latest 8 updates: 8 feature updates.
Conan v1.4.0: Agent activity in the Timeline
Subagent spawns show inline in Timeline with live status. New Project skills view, passive usage data polling, smoother Pulse chart.
Conan v1.2.0: Conan Setup in the box
New terminals can launch a spec-first setup that produces PRD.md and CLAUDE.md before starting Claude. Setup can be skipped or disabled; auto context tracking is opt-in.
Conan v1.3.0: Agents in the HUD
New Agents HUD tab lists global, project, and plugin agents with descriptions, tools, and paths. YAML block scalar skills render correctly.
Conan v1.0.6: Claude Radio reconnects itself
Claude Radio resolves live stream at startup, preventing offline state. Adds one-time What's New note after updates.
Conan v1.1.0: Files panel
Files panel shows active terminal's working directory, follows cd, and flags files Claude has edited or read this session.
Conan v1.0.5: One-click upgrade
Upgrade buttons in Timeline, Pulse, and Radio now open Polar checkout directly. License paste remains in Settings.
Conan v1.0.4: Buy Premium checkout fix
Fixed Settings > License 'Buy Premium' button to open real Polar checkout instead of homepage.
Conan v1.0.3: Checkout link + new model families
Buy Premium links to live Polar checkout. Context/Usage capture now parses new Claude model families (e.g., Claude Fable 5).
What people actually say about Conan — is it worth it?
We ran a structured research pass across product reviews, community discussions, and post-purchase forum threads to surface the patterns vendors won't publish themselves. Below: the recurring strengths, the hidden costs people mention most, and the cohort that consistently regrets adopting this tool.
106 mentions across 6 sources (Hacker News, YouTube, Product Hunt, App Store, GitHub, Lemmy) · researched Aug 21, 2026.
- +Real-time visibility into every prompt, tool call, skill, and token.
- +Context window gauge makes compaction pressure obvious before it hurts.
- +Local-only, privacy-friendly — no cloud dependency for telemetry.
- +Loved by users juggling multiple terminal tabs and concurrent agents.
- +Details skill and MCP server usage, which is a common black box.
- −Requires macOS 13+ and Apple silicon — no Windows or Linux.
- −No session replay or post-run summaries for debugging.
- −Potential information overload from multiple live panels.
- −Real-time architecture unclear — may be log-based, not live.
- −Very few real-world reviews outside the Product Hunt launch.
Viability Score
How well maintained and how widely used is Conan? Built from what the vendor actually publishes (docs, changelog, tutorials, integrations, pricing), whether the site is live, and how much real users discuss it. How we calculate this
Last calculated: September 2026
How we score →Key Features
- Live HUD overlaying Claude Code on macOS
- Streaming Timeline of prompts, tool calls, skills, and events
- Agent activity in Timeline: subagent spawns with status, duration, model, tools
- Context window breakdown: system, tools, memory, skills, messages
- Pulse visualization of token throughput spikes
- Skills & MCP server inventory with last-used timestamps
- Files panel showing working directory and flagged read/edited files
- Agents tab listing global, project, and plugin-shipped subagents
- Conan Setup for spec-first project setup (PRD + CLAUDE.md)
- Claude Radio with curated stations and custom YouTube URLs
- Background polling keeps usage data fresh
- One-click Premium upgrade via Polar checkout
- Auto-update via signed sidecar binary
- Supports new Claude model families (e.g., Claude Fable 5)
- Per-tab working directory and session correlation
About Conan
Conan is a native macOS app that wraps Claude Code in a live HUD, giving you real-time visibility into every prompt, tool call, skill, and token during coding sessions. Designed for developers running complex, multi-skill Claude Code workflows, Conan overlays a DevTools-style dashboard on the terminal with panels for Timeline, Context, Pulse, Skills & MCP, Files, Agents, and Radio. The Timeline streams every command and tool call as it happens, including subagent spawns with live status, duration, model, and tools. The Context panel breaks down the context window into system, tools, memory, skills, and messages tokens, while Pulse shows session throughput spikes — active when Claude works, quiet when it waits. Beyond visibility, Conan inventories every skill and MCP server with last-used timestamps, so you know exactly what the agent wields. The Files panel follows your cd commands and flags files Claude read or edited, and the Agents tab lists installed subagents across global, project, and plugin-shipped locations. Conan Setup coaches you into a PRD and CLAUDE.md before starting Claude, promoting spec-first development. Claude Radio provides curated ambient stations—like Claude FM—or any YouTube URL, session-only. Conan is free to download; a one-time $29 Premium purchase unlocks full insight layers, no subscription. Requires macOS 13+ on Apple silicon; no Windows or Linux version yet. Recent updates added agent activity in the Timeline, a Project skills view, background polling for usage data, and auto context tracking is now opt-in. For developers who need to see how their agent spends tokens and invokes skills, Conan turns a black-box terminal into a transparent, observable cockpit.
Behind the Verdict
Conan's core strength is turning Claude Code's opaque terminal into a transparent cockpit. The Timeline streams every prompt, tool call, and skill as they happen, including subagent spawns with live status, duration, model, and tools — a level of observability you don't get from Claude Code's native output. The Context panel breaks down token usage by system, tools, memory, skills, and messages, which is crucial for avoiding context-window limits in long sessions. Pulse gives you a heartbeat of activity, showing when Claude is actually working versus waiting. The Skills & MCP inventory with last-used timestamps helps you debug why Claude picks certain skills, and the Files panel flags every file Claude reads or edits — great for audits. Conan Setup's spec-first approach is a thoughtful add that encourages better project initialization, and Claude Radio is a nice touch for ambient focus. The $29 one-time Premium price is a reasonable deal compared to subscription-based dev tools. Limitations: it's macOS-only (Apple silicon, macOS 13+), so Windows and Linux are out of luck. It requires Claude Code itself, so you're paying for visibility, not the agent. Some features like auto context tracking are opt-in, and the curated radio stations are fixed unless you provide YouTube URLs. But for serious Claude Code users, Conan is a must-have observability layer.
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Real-world workflow fit
Concrete scenarios for the personas Conan actually fits — and what changes day-one when you adopt it.
You're working on a complex frontend task and want to see which skills Claude invokes and how context fills.
Outcome: Using the Timeline and Skills & MCP panel, you watch as Claude fires 'frontend-design', see token usage spike in Pulse, and notice the context nearing 1M. You adjust the prompt to reduce wasteful tool calls, keeping the session within limits.
You need to verify that Claude used the right skills and didn't edit unintended files.
Outcome: You open Conan after the session, review the Timeline for every tool call and subagent spawn, and use the Files panel to see which files were edited or read, confirming the agent's actions matched the plan.
You want to start with a clear specification before handing work to Claude.
Outcome: Using Conan Setup, you answer a few questions and get a reviewed PRD.md and CLAUDE.md, ensuring Claude starts with a well-defined context, reducing ambiguity and rework.
Use Cases
- Monitor real-time token usage to avoid hitting context window limits mid-session
- Debug why Claude picks certain skills over others by viewing the 'skills considered' heuristic
- Track session throughput to identify when Claude is idle vs actively processing
- Review a full timeline of tool calls and prompts after a session for audit or replanning
- Use Claude Radio as ambient focus music while coding with Claude Code
- Set up a new project with a spec-first approach using Conan Setup to generate PRD and CLAUDE.md
- Track subagent spawns and tool usage across long-running sessions for performance tuning
- Follow file reads and edits via the Files panel to understand Claude's filesystem activity
Models Under the Hood
as of 2026-09-01
Limitations
- Conan is a native macOS app requiring macOS 13+ and Apple silicon, available for a one-time $29 purchase with no subscription.
- Windows or Linux users can sign up for notification when support is available.
- It wraps Claude Code, surfacing prompts, tool calls, skills, and token usage in a live HUD.
as of 2026-08-21
Verification history
We have re-verified Conan 8 times since . Each pass re-reads the vendor's own pages and re-checks every listed field against that evidence; passes where nothing had changed are marked as such.
- — re-checked, vendor evidence unchanged
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
Showing the 6 most recent of 8 verification passes.
Free to cite with attribution — this page re-verifies continuously.
12-month cost
Project the real annual outlay, including the implied monthly cost when only an annual tier is published.
Vendor list price only. Add-on usage, seat overages, and contract minimums are surfaced under Hidden costs & gotchas.
Plans compared
For each published Conan tier: who it actually fits, and what it adds vs. the previous tier. Cross-reference the cost calculator above for projected annual outlay.
Free
$0
Ideal for
Anyone wanting to try Conan's live HUD without cost—casual Claude Code users who want basic timeline, pulse, and radio features.
What this tier adds
Free tier includes live HUD with Timeline, Pulse, Radio, Context breakdown, Skills & MCP inventory, Files, Agents, and Conan Setup; Premium unlocks full insight layers.
Premium
$29 one-time
Ideal for
Serious Claude Code users and teams who need full observability—context analysis, deeper tool tracking, and lifetime access.
What this tier adds
One-time $29 unlocks full insight layers; free tier is limited in depth of insight.
Where the pricing makes sense
The company stage and team size where Conan's pricing actually pencils out — and where peers do it cheaper.
At $29 one-time, Conan's Premium is a flat fee with no subscription, unlike Claude Code's usage-based API costs. It's cheaper than many developer tools that charge monthly, and for heavy Claude Code users, the observability can save more than $29 in wasted tokens by preventing context overflow and inefficient skill use.
Setup time & first value
How long it actually takes to get something useful out of Conan — broken out by persona, not the marketing-page minute.
Download and install takes under 2 minutes. First launch, you can immediately run Claude Code in the terminal; after a few prompts, the HUD populates. Conan Setup, if used, adds another 3-5 minutes to interview you. Premium upgrade via Polar is one-click.
Integrations
Resources & Guides
Tutorials & Learning
Official links
Tools that pair well with Conan
Common stack mates teams adopt alongside Conan, with the specific reason each pairing earns its keep.
Featured Head-to-Head Comparisons
Conan vs Spider Cloud
Conan and Spider Cloud serve entirely different needs. Choose Conan if you're a Claude Code power user on macOS who demands real-time observability into every prompt, tool call, and token. Choose Spider Cloud if you need a fast, scalable web scraping API with AI extraction and Browser AI commands for feeding web data into your AI agents. There's no direct overlap; the decision hinges on whether your bottleneck is debugging Claude Code or gathering live web content.
Conan vs Temporal Ai
If you're building durable AI agents or multi-step workflows that need fault tolerance and retries, Temporal AI is the clear choice. For developers deeply into Claude Code who want real-time transparency into prompts, tokens, and tool calls, Conan is an invaluable companion. They serve different purposes: one orchestrates robust backend processes, the other debugs an AI coding assistant. Choose based on your primary need.
Conan vs Voyage Ai
Choose Voyage AI if you need high-accuracy, domain-specific embedding models for enterprise RAG – it's purpose-built for finance, legal, and code retrieval with low-dimensional vectors and long-context support. Choose Conan if you're a Claude Code power user on macOS who demands real-time visibility into token usage, context windows, and skill execution. These tools address completely different problems: Voyage AI powers search and retrieval at scale, while Conan gives you a developer debugging overlay for AI coding sessions.
Alternatives to Conan
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