Using BeatAPI in Claude Code

Claude Code is a command-line coding agent that reads and writes files, runs commands, and works through a task in the terminal. It speaks the Anthropic Messages format, which BeatAPI serves directly at POST /v1/messages — so pointing it at BeatAPI is a base-URL change, not a translation layer.

Prerequisites

1. Claude Code installed — see Step 1 if you have not installed it yet.
2. A BeatAPI API key — create one in Dashboard → API Keys.

Step 1: Install Claude Code

$
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

$
brew install --cask claude-code

Confirm the install:

$
claude --version

Step 2: Point Claude Code at BeatAPI

Three configuration methods, in descending order of durability. Pick one.

Method 1: settings.json

The most stable approach — configure once and it persists across terminals.

Locate the configuration directory:

• macOS / Linux: ~/.claude
• Windows: %userprofile%\.claude

If it does not exist, run claude once and press Ctrl + C to exit; the directory is created for you.

Create or edit settings.json:

1
{
2
  "env": {
3
    "ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://api.beatapi.io",
4
    "ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN": "<BEATAPI_API_KEY>",
5
    "ANTHROPIC_MODEL": "claude-fable-5-1",
6
    "CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_NONESSENTIAL_TRAFFIC": "1"
7
  }
8
}

Save the file and restart Claude Code.

Method 2: Persistent environment variables

$
echo 'export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="https://api.beatapi.io"' >> ~/.zshrc
$
echo 'export ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="<BEATAPI_API_KEY>"' >> ~/.zshrc
$
echo 'export ANTHROPIC_MODEL="claude-fable-5-1"' >> ~/.zshrc
$
source ~/.zshrc

Method 3: One terminal only

Useful for a quick test. The values disappear when the terminal closes.

$
export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="https://api.beatapi.io"
$
export ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="<BEATAPI_API_KEY>"
$
export ANTHROPIC_MODEL="claude-fable-5-1"
$
claude

Step 3: Verify and start working

$
claude "Hello"

A reply means the configuration took effect. A login prompt, a 401, or a 403 means it did not — see the FAQ below.

Claude Code has two interaction modes:

• Interactive — run claude for a continuing session, suited to multi-step work.
• One-shot — run claude "your question" for a single answer.

Models

Every Claude model on the account is reachable with the same key. Switch with /model inside an interactive session, or change ANTHROPIC_MODEL and restart.

Prices for each are on the pricing page; the Claude API page documents the request shape.

Common commands

FAQ

The login screen still appears after configuring

The configuration did not take effect.

1. Using settings.json — check the path is ~/.claude/settings.json (%userprofile%\.claude\settings.json on Windows).
2. Using environment variables — make sure you launched Claude Code from the terminal where the variables were set.
3. Check the JSON is valid: matching braces, no trailing comma, straight quotes rather than typographic ones.

401 or 403

Also confirm ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL is https://api.beatapi.io and not the vendor’s own address.

”Auth conflict” on startup

Auth conflict: Both a token (claude.ai) and an API key (ANTHROPIC_API_KEY) are set.

You are signed in to a first-party account and have an API key set at the same time. Run /logout inside Claude Code to drop the session and keep the key.

402 insufficient_credits

The account balance is exhausted. Add credits from the dashboard; in-flight requests fail rather than queue.

429 rate_limit_exceeded

The key exceeded its request rate. BeatAPI returns Retry-After — wait that long before retrying. The per-minute allowance rises with lifetime top-ups and is shown on the dashboard.

Connection failures

1. Check general connectivity.
2. Re-check ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL for a typo or a stray /v1.
3. Behind a corporate proxy, allow api.beatapi.io.

Checking usage and spend

The dashboard shows calls, token consumption, and cost per key. The same numbers are available programmatically from GET /v1/usage.

Support

Open a support ticket from the dashboard and include the request_id from the failing response — it identifies the exact call in the logs.