Anthropic introduces weekly limits for Claude Code due to excessive load and abuse

Anthropic is introducing new weekly limits for paid users who use the Claude Code programming tool. As the company explained in a post on the X platform, this decision is intended to limit excessive use of AI and ensure stable service for all customers.

The new restrictions will take effect on August 28, 2025, and will apply to users who have purchased the Pro ($20/month), Max ($100/month), and Max Plus ($200/month) plans.

Anthropic explains that the new limits are intended to reduce excessive load on the service from users who run Claude Code in the background around the clock, as well as to stop violations of the terms of use — in particular, the transfer of accounts to third parties and the resale of access.

The current restrictions, which reset every five hours, remain in effect. The new restrictions introduce two additional weekly limits: one general limit and one specific to the company’s most powerful model, Claude Opus 4. Max plan users will be able to purchase additional hours at standard API rates.

According to Anthropic, most subscribers will not experience any changes — less than 5% of users will be affected by the new restrictions.

Weekly limits will be provided:

• Pro: 40 to 80 hours of Sonnet 4 use;

• Max: 140 to 280 hours of Sonnet 4 and 15 to 35 hours of Opus 4;

• Max Plus: 240 to 480 hours of Sonnet 4 and 24 to 40 hours of Opus 4.

It is important to note that limits are activated based on the number of tokens (pieces of text processed by AI) rather than time, so actual usage may vary.

This decision is part of a broader trend in the AI industry. Several other development companies, including Anysphere (Cursor) and Replit, have also recently revised their pricing policies to regulate excessive use of their tools.

Anthropic has indicated that it will seek other options to support long-term use in the future, but for now, restrictions are necessary to maintain stable service operation.