Claude Code Statusline: Set Up the Status Line with /statusline

Open Claude Code in your terminal

Everything happens inside one PowerShell window — no editor or dashboard needed.

1. 1

   Launch the CLI

   Open Windows PowerShell (any terminal works — the recording uses PowerShell on Windows), cd into your project folder and type claude. Press Enter and the CLI starts in that directory.

   

2. 2

   The welcome box

   Claude Code greets you with a welcome box showing the version (v2.1.83 in the recording), your plan and the model in use — Opus 4.6 with the 1M context window on a Claude Max account. Everything that follows happens inside this terminal session.

   

Run the /statusline command

One slash command hands the job to a dedicated setup agent.

1. 3

   Type the slash command

   In the input box, type /statusline. The autocomplete menu shows two related commands: /statusline — "Set up Claude Code's status line UI" — and /status, which prints version, model, account, API connectivity and tool statuses on demand. Submit /statusline.

   

2. 4

   The agent takes over

   Submitting /statusline doesn't just flip a setting — it spawns a small setup agent (statusline-setup, "Configure statusline from PS1") that works out the right configuration for your shell and platform. You'll see it start with an Initializing spinner.

   

Answer the setup question

Windows has no shell config to convert — the fresh default is the fastest route.

1. 5

   It checks for an existing PS1

   The agent first looks for your shell's prompt definition, reading files like C:\Users\<you>\.bashrc and .bash_profile to see whether there's a PS1 it can convert. On this Windows machine there isn't one.

   

2. 6

   Three ways forward

   On Windows the agent reports it "couldn't find standard shell config files" and offers three choices: 1. paste your PS1 and it will convert it; 2. point to a config file in a custom location such as WSL or Git Bash; or 3. set up a fresh statusline — "a sensible default showing user, directory, model, and context usage."

   

3. 7

   Pick the fresh setup

   The creator types 3. The fresh-default route needs nothing from your existing shell prompt, which makes it the quickest path on Windows — and it works the same way on macOS and Linux if you don't want to translate a PS1.

   

4. 8

   Generating the default

   With the answer in, the statusline-setup agent re-labels its task "Setup fresh default statusline" and starts configuring — reading your current ~/.claude/settings.json before touching anything.

   

Review and approve the generated script

Before it touches your settings, Claude shows you the exact diff.

1. 9

   Approve the diff

   Claude shows you exactly what it wants to write: a small bash script that pipes the status JSON through jq to pull the context-window percentage, git branch and model name, then printfs them into one line. The dialog asks "Do you want to make this edit to statusline-command.sh?" — the creator picks option 2, "Yes, and allow Claude to edit its own settings for this session", so future tweaks don't need re-approval.

   

2. 10

   Files it writes

   Once approved, the tool's action list shows the two touchpoints: it creates ~/.claude/statusline-command.sh (the script that renders the line) and updates ~/.claude/settings.json (the config entry that tells Claude Code to run it).

   

See it configured

The bar goes live at the bottom of the same terminal, with two paths to remember for later customization.

1. 11

   Done in 49 seconds

   The run wraps up as "Done (5 tool uses · 6.4k tokens · 49s)". Watch the bottom edge of the terminal: the new bar is already live there — harddik | d:/Dev — before the agent even finishes narrating.

   

2. 12

   What each segment means

   The confirmation spells out the format with a sample — harddik | ~/Dvs/project | main | Claude Opus 4.6 | ctx:42% — and a legend: your username, the current directory (shortened), the Git branch when you're in a repo, the active model, and context window usage.

   

3. 13

   Where the config lives

   Two paths to remember: the config is in ~/.claude/settings.json, and the script is at ~/.claude/statusline-command.sh. To change what the bar shows later, just ask Claude to update the status line — no manual editing required.

   

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