Privacy first
Your prompts and code never leave your machine — all optimization runs locally.
Cut your Claude Code & Codex token costs by ~50%
Headroom is a menu bar app that quietly optimizes the inputs Claude Code and Codex get by reversibly compressing the bulky tool output, logs, and boilerplate that can devour your token budget. Nothing the model needs is lost: it can pull the original back on demand.
This unlocks about 2x as much usage on the plan you already pay for.
Download for free
macOS · 72-hour free trial, no account needed
1,930
Headroom installs around the world
20.9B
tokens saved, and counting
~$187,727
in equivalent value at Claude API rates
Self-contained
Keeps your runtime clean, never interfering with packages your projects depend on.
Fewer tokens, same result
Headroom compresses the noise reversibly, so the model still reaches anything it needs — with no measurable hit to output quality.
The problem
You hit your limit before you finish the work
Claude Code and Codex are the best part of your week — until the usage runs out. Most of what burns through that limit isn't your thinking; it's the noise your tools pump into every prompt.
The week resets, your deadline doesn't
You blow through the weekly limit by Wednesday, then spend the rest of the week rationing prompts or paying out of pocket.
You pay full price for noise
Build logs, JSON blobs, and shell output flood the context window. Every wasted token is one you can't spend on real work.
The only fix on offer is "pay more"
Upgrading a tier just raises the ceiling. You send the same bloated prompts and burn through the bigger limit too; pay up again.
How it works
Less noise in, more code out
Headroom runs as a local proxy: it intercepts each prompt before it reaches Claude Code or Codex and reversibly compresses the logs, boilerplate, and repetitive context that bloat it — keeping the original retrievable on demand. You get ~50% fewer tokens with no measurable hit to quality, automatically, on every session.
Your tools
Headroom
~50% saved
Claude Code & Codex
see only what matters
Benchmarks
Same results, fewer tokens
These are per-scenario results on the noisiest inputs, where savings run highest. A full session blends these with cheaper turns — the multi-tool agent below (61%) is closest to a realistic end-to-end task, and typical workloads land around ~50% overall. Measured before and after, on real workloads.
Token savings by scenario
Headroom powered savings
Tokens sent after optimization
Quality preserved
Fewer tokens doesn't mean fewer answers. Headroom strips noise — not signal. Every benchmark below ran the same task with and without compression, then compared the outputs.
0.919
HTML extraction F1
181 real web pages (Scrapinghub)
4/4
JSON retrieval
needle-in-haystack, 100 prod logs
+0.02 F1
QA accuracy vs. uncompressed baseline
Stripping HTML noise helped the model focus on relevant content — compression
improved results on SQuAD v2 / HotpotQA (+2% exact match).
0%
HTML recall
181 real web pages (Scrapinghub)
Same
Multi-tool agent findings
4-tool session, memory leak task — identical conclusions at 61% fewer tokens
Based on data from the open-source Headroom CLI benchmark suite.
ROI Calculator
See what Headroom saves your team
Headroom costs a fraction of your AI subscription and delivers roughly twice the usage.
$1,000
Monthly AI spend
$100
Headroom cost / mo
Equivalent extra capacity
$1,000/mo
10× return on Headroom spend — based on ~2× token efficiency from Headroom.
Testimonials
Loved by developers
Why switch
The other ways to stretch your usage limit
You have options when the usage runs low. Here is how they stack up against Headroom.
| Headroom | Do nothing | Run /compact by hand | Upgrade your tier | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| More usage per plan | ~2x | None | A little | More, until you cap again |
| Extra monthly cost | Small flat fee | $0 | $0 | +$80/mo and up |
| Keeps output quality | Preserved | n/a | Drops context | Unchanged |
| Effort from you | Install once | None | Every session | One click, recurring bill |
Prefer to wire it up yourself? The same engine ships as a free, open-source CLI — see how the app and CLI compare.
Pricing
Plans for every Claude & Codex tier
Try Headroom free for 72 hours with no account — just download and run it. Create a free account to extend to a 7-day trial, then choose the plan that matches your Claude or Codex tier — the price is the same either way. Each plan is priced as a small fraction of the subscription it stretches, so the bigger your plan, the more usage Headroom hands back. Need rollout controls or private deployment? Talk to us about Headroom for teams.
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Free
Use with Claude or Codex
$0
/ month
free
free
Includes:
- Unlock cost savings and stats
- Up to 50% of your weekly limit
- Optimize Claude Code or Codex
Pro
Claude Pro · ChatGPT Plus
billed annually
billed monthly
Everything in Free, plus:
- Use with Claude Pro or ChatGPT Plus
- Track sessions across devices
- Email-based support
Max x5
Claude Max x5 · ChatGPT Pro x5
billed annually
billed monthly
Includes:
- Use with Claude Max x5 or ChatGPT Pro x5
- Track sessions across devices
- Email-based support
Max x20
Claude Max x20 · ChatGPT Pro x20
billed annually
billed monthly
Includes:
- Use with Claude Max x20 or ChatGPT Pro x20
- Track sessions across devices
- Priority support
Team & Enterprise
Shared controls, governance, and private deployment options
custom • contact us
Built on Headroom CLI
Headroom for desktop is built on Headroom CLI.
The Headroom desktop app is based on the open-source Headroom CLI project created by Tejas Chopra, and is built with his endorsement and support.
The CLI is free and open-source — you can always install it yourself. The desktop app is what you pay for: a signed, notarized installer, automatic updates, the menu-bar UI and stats, and ongoing support.
Resources
Learn how to lower Claude Code and Codex costs
Guides on reducing Claude Code and Codex costs, understanding usage limits, and cutting Claude API spend — plus a product FAQ for privacy, quality, and rollout questions.
Setup
Install Headroom: app vs. open-source CLI
The two ways to run Headroom — the free CLI you operate yourself, or the one-click macOS app that runs in the background — and how to pick.
Cost Guide
How to reduce Claude Code costs
Learn where token waste comes from, which workflows benefit most from compression, and how Headroom helps preserve quality while cutting spend.
Usage Guide
Claude Code usage: what counts and how to get more from your plan
Learn what burns usage fastest, what counts toward your plan, and how to make the same Claude tier last longer.
Why So Expensive
Why is Claude Code so expensive?
The four patterns that drive Claude Code token spend: verbose tool output, repeated context, multi-step debugging, and large codebase reads.
Usage Limits
Claude Code usage limits and the 5-hour window
How the 5-hour rolling window and weekly cap work, what each plan covers, and how to keep coding without immediately upgrading.
Claude API
Reduce Claude API costs in 2026
Practical levers for cutting Claude API spend — prompt caching, model tier routing, output limits, batch API — plus the Claude Code shortcut.
Codex Cost Guide
How to reduce Codex costs
The same compression that stretches Claude Code applies to OpenAI Codex — cut token waste from logs, boilerplate, and large reads on your ChatGPT plan.
Codex Usage Limits
Codex usage limits and the 5-hour window
How the Codex 5-hour rolling window and weekly cap work, what each ChatGPT tier covers, and how to keep coding without upgrading.
FAQ
Headroom FAQ for Claude Code savings
Get quick answers about local processing, supported platforms, benchmarks, and how to evaluate whether Headroom fits your team.
Ready to try it?
Start with Headroom for free
Install the app and start reclaiming Claude Code and Codex usage in minutes — the first 72 hours are free, no account required.
Download for free
macOS