Claude Code Just Got Faster: Here's How to Set It Up (With Examples)

Source: Dev.to

Introduction

Anthropic has introduced a fast mode for Claude Code, reducing response latency and helping maintain a smoother workflow.

Installation

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code

Configuration

# Set your API key (replace with your actual key)
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-key-here"

Running Claude Code

claude

Note: Fast mode requires “additional usage” to be enabled on your Anthropic dashboard.

Using Fast Mode

claude "write a debounce function in TypeScript"

Typical response times with fast mode are ~2–3 seconds, compared with ~8–10 seconds previously.

Example Queries

• claude "explain what this regex does: /^[a-zA-Z0-9._%+-]+@[a-zA-Z0-9.-]+\.[a-zA-Z]{2,}$/"
• claude "why is this throwing undefined: arr.map(x => x.name)"
• claude "refactor this to use async/await instead of .then()"

Comparison of Popular AI Coding Tools

No single tool dominates; competition drives overall improvements.

Shell Convenience

Add the following to your ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc for quick access:

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-key"
alias c="claude"
# If a quick flag exists, you can also alias:
# alias cq="claude --quick"

Now you can type c "your question" and receive answers within seconds.

Takeaway

If you already use an AI coding assistant, give fast mode a try for a direct performance comparison. If you haven’t adopted any AI tools yet, the “it’s too slow” excuse is now weaker than ever.