The menu bar of a program you cannot click. In Word you open the File menu with the mouse. In Claude Code there is no mouse, so the menu opens when you type /.
A slash command is an instruction to the harness, not to the model. When you type /clear, no AI is involved. The program itself does something: wipes the conversation, shows a picker, changes a setting. Everything you type without a slash goes to the model as a prompt.
Type / on an empty line and the full menu appears. Keep typing to filter it: /mo leaves /model. Press Enter to run the highlighted one, Esc to close the menu.
The ten to know first
| Type | Does |
|---|---|
/help | Lists every command and shortcut. |
/clear | Starts a new session in the same folder. The old one is saved. |
/resume | Shows your saved sessions in this folder so you can pick one up again. |
/model | Picks the model tier. See Claude model family. |
/effort | Sets how long the model thinks before it answers. See Effort. |
/context | Shows how full the context window is and what is in it. |
/usage | Shows how much of your five-hour and weekly allowance is left. See Usage limits. /cost is the same command. |
/memory | Lists your instructions files and opens the one you pick. |
/statusline | Sets up a status line under the prompt in plain English. See Set up a status line. |
/exit | Leaves Claude Code. |
The full list, with the ones you will meet later, is on the Claude Code cheat sheet.
Example
You have been working on a report for an hour and want to switch to sorting invoices. You type /clear. The whiteboard is wiped and the invoices get a clean start. Tomorrow you type /resume, pick the report session from the list, and carry on where you left off.
Why it matters for you
Slash commands are how you steer the program around the model: which brain, how much it thinks, how full the whiteboard is, when to start fresh. Once /clear and /model are in your fingers, most of the “the AI is being strange” moments have a one-word fix. And when you forget one, / shows you the whole menu.
Related
- Claude Code cheat sheet - every command and key on one page
- Session - what
/clearand/resumeact on - Claude Code in the terminal - where you type them
- Harness - the program these commands talk to