I've been using Claude Code for a while now, and here's the thing - it's genuinely amazing, but not in the way you might think.

What Claude Code Actually Is

Claude Code isn't your typical "vibe coding" tool. If you're looking for something to quickly prototype UI or generate a full app from a prompt, go use v0. That's not what this is for.

Claude Code shines at agentic coding - collaboratively writing code with AI. It's designed for actual development work where you're building alongside an AI that understands context and can handle complex tasks.

What Works Really Well

Integration is seamless. I connected it with Zed (my code editor of choice), and it works perfectly. No friction, just smooth collaboration.

GitHub integration is killer. It can work with pull requests directly, which makes code reviews and collaboration so much better.

The MCP server fix. Sometimes Claude Code would generate errors because it was referencing outdated docs. I solved this by introducing the Claude Code Context7 MCP server, which gives it access to all recent documentation. Game changer.

The One Big Problem

Usage limits hit fast. Like, really fast. You'll be working on something, hit your stride, and then boom - you're rate limited. I've heard OpenAI's Codex handles usage limits better, so that might be worth checking out if this becomes a blocker for you.

Bottom Line

Claude Code is incredible for real development work where you need an AI partner that can understand your codebase and collaborate meaningfully. Just don't expect it to be a quick prototype tool, and be prepared for those usage limits.

If you're doing serious coding and want AI assistance that actually gets it? Claude Code is worth it.