Unlimited Claude in VS Code

VS Code has the richest ecosystem of Claude-powered extensions. Three major paths exist: Continue for chat and inline edits, Cline for fully autonomous coding agents, and Roo Code for orchestrated multi-mode workflows. Each has different strengths and token consumption patterns. This guide helps you choose the right extension for your workflow, configure it with your unlimited API gateway, and understand how they can complement each other in a single VS Code installation.

Three Paths: Continue, Cline, and Roo Code

Continue is a chat-and-edit extension. It gives you a sidebar chat panel for conversations with Claude, inline edit capabilities (select code, press Ctrl+I, describe the change), and an apply mechanism for merging generated code into files. It is lightweight, fast, and focused on augmenting your editing rather than replacing it. Token consumption is moderate — each interaction is a single request-response pair.

Cline is a fully autonomous coding agent. It plans tasks, reads files, writes code, executes terminal commands, and verifies results — all without manual intervention. It operates in a Plan-then-Act loop where each step is a separate API call carrying the full conversation history. Token consumption is heavy — a single task can generate 20+ API calls with growing context.

Roo Code is an orchestrated multi-mode agent. It separates work into Architect, Code, Debug, and Ask modes, each assignable to a different model. Its Orchestrator spawns subtasks that multiply API consumption. Token consumption is the heaviest of the three — orchestrated tasks with per-mode Opus can easily exceed hundreds of thousands of tokens per session.

All three can be installed simultaneously in VS Code. They do not conflict because each uses its own settings storage, sidebar panel, and keyboard shortcuts. Many developers use Continue for quick questions and inline edits, then switch to Cline or Roo Code for complex autonomous tasks that benefit from agent behavior.

Continue Setup for Chat and Inline Edits

Install Continue from the VS Code Extensions Marketplace (search for 'Continue'). After installation, the configuration file lives at ~/.continue/config.yaml. Add a model entry with provider: anthropic, apiBase set to https://unlimited.aiprimetech.io (root host), apiKey set to your unlimited key, and model set to your preferred Claude variant.

Continue's inline edit feature (Ctrl+I) is particularly well-suited to unlimited access. Select a block of code, describe your desired change in natural language, and Continue sends the selection plus your instruction to Claude and returns the modified code. Each inline edit is a quick, focused API call — but developers who use it frequently can make dozens of these calls per hour.

The chat panel supports multi-turn conversations with code context. Use @-mentions to include files, functions, or documentation in the conversation. Each @-mention adds tokens to the request, but on unlimited this overhead is free. Reference as much context as helps Claude understand your question — the flat rate covers all of it.

Cline Setup for Autonomous Agent Work

Install Cline from the VS Code Extensions Marketplace. Open the Cline settings panel (gear icon in the Cline sidebar). Select Anthropic from the API Provider dropdown, enter https://unlimited.aiprimetech.io as the Base URL (root host, no /v1), and paste your unlimited API key. Select your model — claude-sonnet-4-5 for most tasks, claude-opus-4-6 for complex ones.

Cline's strength is full task autonomy. Give it a high-level instruction ('add pagination to the users API endpoint') and it will plan the approach, read relevant files, implement the changes, run tests, and fix any errors — all without further input from you. Each of these steps is a separate API call, making Cline a heavy consumer but also the most capable autonomous option.

Enable Plan mode and Checkpoints in Cline settings for best results on unlimited. Plan mode adds one API call to generate a structured plan before execution — worth it for improved accuracy. Checkpoints create git snapshots at key points, letting you roll back if the agent takes a wrong turn. On unlimited, the retry cost is zero, so aggressive experimentation is free.

Roo Code Setup for Orchestrated Workflows

Install Roo Code from the VS Code Extensions Marketplace. In the Roo Code settings, create API Configuration Profiles: one for each Claude model you want to use. Set Provider to Anthropic, Base URL to https://unlimited.aiprimetech.io (root host), and enter your unlimited key. Create profiles for Sonnet, Opus, and optionally Haiku.

Assign profiles to modes: Architect gets Opus for planning, Code gets Sonnet for implementation, Debug gets Opus for diagnosis, Ask gets Sonnet for quick answers. This per-mode assignment is Roo Code's unique strength — you get the right model for each type of work automatically without manual switching.

Enable Orchestrator mode for complex multi-step tasks. The Orchestrator decomposes work into subtasks and delegates them to appropriate modes. This multiplies API consumption but produces superior results for anything involving multiple files, multiple concerns, or multi-step logic. On unlimited, leave Orchestrator enabled as the default for non-trivial work.

When to Use Which Extension

Use Continue when you want quick answers, inline edits, or conversational exploration of code. It is the lightest-weight option — minimal setup, minimal token overhead, fast responses. Ideal for: explaining unfamiliar code, generating unit tests for a specific function, refactoring a single method, asking architecture questions.

Use Cline when you have a well-defined task that requires multiple file changes, terminal operations, or end-to-end implementation. Cline excels at: building new features from descriptions, fixing bugs that span multiple files, setting up project infrastructure, running and fixing test suites. It works autonomously and reports back when done.

Use Roo Code when you need structured decomposition of complex work with different models at different stages. Roo Code excels at: large refactoring projects, architectural overhauls, tasks where planning and implementation benefit from different model strengths, workflows where you want custom modes for project-specific patterns.

Running Multiple Extensions Simultaneously

All three extensions can coexist in VS Code without conflict. Each has its own sidebar panel, its own settings storage, and its own keybindings. The only shared resource is your API key and gateway — all three point to the same unlimited endpoint. On unlimited, simultaneous usage from multiple extensions is fully covered by the flat rate.

A productive workflow might use Continue for quick inline edits while Cline runs a background task in its panel. You edit a file with Continue's Ctrl+I, while Cline autonomously builds a related feature in parallel. When Cline finishes, you review its work while Continue helps you understand the changes. The extensions complement rather than compete.

The combined token consumption of using multiple extensions throughout a workday can be substantial. Each Continue inline edit, each Cline autonomous step, each Roo Code orchestrated subtask — they all accumulate. This is precisely why unlimited access makes sense for VS Code power users: the editor becomes the hub for all AI interactions, and the flat rate covers the entire volume.

Troubleshooting VS Code Extension Connections

If one extension works but another does not, check the base URL format for each. Continue and Cline (Anthropic provider) expect the root host without /v1. Cline (OpenAI Compatible provider) expects /v1. Roo Code (Anthropic provider) expects the root host. Each extension configures the URL independently, so a mistake in one does not affect the others.

If extensions suddenly stop working after a VS Code update, check for extension version updates that may have changed configuration format. Continue, Cline, and Roo Code all update frequently. Occasionally a major version introduces breaking config changes that require migration. Check each extension's changelog if connections fail after updates.

For rate limit errors when running multiple extensions simultaneously, remember that all three share the same API key and fair-use rate limits. If Cline is making rapid autonomous calls while you are also using Continue for inline edits, you may temporarily exceed the per-minute limit. The gateway returns 429 with Retry-After — all three extensions handle this gracefully by waiting and retrying.

# Continue (~/.continue/config.yaml):
models:
  - title: "Claude Sonnet"
    provider: anthropic
    model: claude-sonnet-4-5
    apiBase: "https://aiprimetech.io"
    apiKey: "<your key>"

# Cline (Extension Settings -> API Provider: Anthropic):
#   Base URL: https://aiprimetech.io
#   API Key:  <your key>
#   Model:    claude-sonnet-4-5

# Roo Code (API Configuration Profile):
#   Provider: Anthropic
#   Base URL: https://aiprimetech.io
#   API Key:  <your key>
#   Model:    claude-sonnet-4-5 (or claude-opus-4-6 for Architect)

Frequently asked questions

Can I use Continue, Cline, and Roo Code at the same time?
Yes. All three install as separate VS Code extensions with independent settings, panels, and keybindings. They share the same API key and gateway. On unlimited, simultaneous usage from all three is covered by the flat rate with fair-use rate limits.

Which VS Code extension uses the most tokens?
Roo Code with Orchestrator enabled is the heaviest — it spawns multiple subtask conversations. Cline is next due to its autonomous Plan/Act loop. Continue is the lightest with single request-response interactions. On unlimited, token consumption is irrelevant to cost.

Do all three extensions use the same base URL format?
When using the Anthropic provider in each: yes, all three expect the root host without /v1 (https://unlimited.aiprimetech.io). The SDK appends the API path automatically. Only Cline's OpenAI Compatible provider path requires /v1.

Which extension should I start with?
Start with Continue for chat and inline edits — it is lightweight and immediately useful. Add Cline when you need autonomous agent capabilities for multi-file tasks. Add Roo Code when you want structured orchestration with per-mode model assignment.

Will multiple extensions hit rate limits faster?
Possibly. All extensions share one API key and its fair-use rate limits. If Cline makes rapid autonomous calls while you use Continue simultaneously, you might temporarily hit the per-minute cap. All three handle 429 responses gracefully with automatic retry.

AI Prime Tech is an independent API gateway. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or a reseller of Anthropic. Claude and related model names are trademarks of their respective owners.