Aident AI
Fix Claude Code "Fable 5 Requires Usage Credits" on Max
If Claude Code says Fable 5 requires usage credits on a Max plan, first check Settings > Usage on the Claude web app. The message is expected if you are on Pro, a standard Team seat, a standard seat-based Enterprise seat, or if Fable 5 has already consumed 50% of your Max weekly allowance. If you are on Max or a premium seat, remain below that Fable limit, and still see the message, update Claude Code, restart it, select standard-context Fable 5, and remove any saved claude-fable-5[1m] default before re-authenticating.
Do not enable or buy usage credits just to test the error. Anthropic says Fable 5 is included for up to 50% of the regular weekly limit on Max and premium seats. The troubleshooting path below separates expected billing from the current entitlement or model-alias failure.
First, Decide Whether the Message Is Correct
Starting July 20, 2026, Anthropic documents these rules:
Your plan or seat | Is Fable 5 included? | What to do |
|---|---|---|
Max 5x or Max 20x | Yes, up to 50% of the regular weekly usage limit | Troubleshoot if the dashboard shows unused Fable allowance |
Team or seat-based Enterprise premium seat | Yes, up to 50% of the regular weekly usage limit | Confirm the seat type and organization policy, then troubleshoot |
Pro or Team standard seat | No, it uses pay-as-you-go usage credits from the start | Switch models, use an eligible promotion, or choose whether to buy credits |
Seat-based Enterprise standard seat | No, and an owner must enable usage credits | Ask the organization owner or switch to an included model |
Usage-based Enterprise or API | No included subscription allowance; standard billing applies | Review the organization or API billing configuration |
On Max and premium seats, Fable 5 shares the normal weekly pool and can use at most half of it at no extra cost. It is not a separate 50% bonus. Check the web dashboard rather than inferring your remaining allowance from a five-hour session reset.
Prerequisites
Before changing anything:
open the Claude web app with the same email or SSO identity used by Claude Code;
record the plan, seat type, weekly usage, and Fable usage shown in Settings > Usage;
save any active Claude Code work and exit the session;
keep access to your sign-in method before logging out;
back up a settings file before editing it.
This guide is for a Max or premium-seat account with unused included Fable allowance. If the dashboard confirms that your plan does not include Fable 5, the credit prompt is policy, not a client bug.
Step 1: Confirm Claude Code Is Using the Right Account
From your terminal, run:
Then open Claude Code and run:
Expected result: /status shows the same account and organization as the web dashboard. It also shows the active model, version, connectivity, and loaded settings sources.
If the terminal is signed into a different personal, Team, Enterprise, or Console account, stop here. The plan attached to the web identity cannot grant Fable access to another Claude Code identity.
Step 2: Update Claude Code and Restart It
Anthropic requires Claude Code 2.1.170 or later for Fable 5. Check and update the native installation:
Expected result: the final version is 2.1.170 or newer. Fully exit every Claude Code session, reopen the terminal or IDE, and start a fresh session.
If Claude Code was installed through a package manager, claude update may tell you to use that manager's upgrade command. Follow the reported command rather than installing a second copy. Run claude --version again afterward so you know which executable your shell resolves.
Step 3: Select Standard-Context Fable 5
Inside a fresh Claude Code session, run:
Choose the normal Fable 5 entry, not a saved one-million-token variant. Then run:
Expected result: /status names Fable 5 as the active model, /usage shows the plan allowance, and Claude Code does not open the usage-credit top-up page.
This is the smallest useful test because a detailed July 20 bug report reproduced the false credit message with the saved model value claude-fable-5[1m]. The report links the symptom to earlier alias-resolution and quota-probe issues, but Anthropic has not confirmed that proposed root cause. Treat standard-context selection as a bounded workaround, not proof that the 1M context entitlement is included.
Step 4: Remove a Persisted [1m] Model Default
If Fable works after /model but fails again in the next session, a settings layer may be restoring the bad default. Run /status and note the Setting sources line.
On macOS or Linux, inspect the ordinary user and project settings:
On Windows PowerShell, run:
If the active, editable source contains:
back up that file, remove only the model property, and validate the JSON. Do not edit an enterprise-managed setting. Do not delete the entire .claude directory or ~/.claude.json.
Start Claude Code, run /model, highlight standard Fable 5, and press d if you want the picker to save it as the default for new sessions. This uses Claude Code's supported model-selection path instead of guessing a replacement model ID.
Step 5: Refresh Authentication Only If Needed
If the account is correct, Claude Code is current, standard Fable 5 is selected, and the web dashboard still shows unused included allowance, refresh the login:
Fully close and reopen the terminal or IDE after login. Community reports say reopening a session or signing out and back in restored the correct entitlement for some users. That is evidence for a stale account or entitlement cache, not an official diagnosis.
Expected result: /status shows the intended subscription identity and /model selects Fable 5 without asking for credits.
Step 6: Verify Without Spending Credits
Leave usage credits disabled while you test. In a new session:
Run
/statusand confirm Fable 5 is active.Run
/usageand confirm the Fable allowance is below its plan cap.Ask for one short, non-agentic response.
Exit and start one more new session.
Confirm the standard Fable selection persists and no paid-credit prompt appears.
If the error returns, save the version, plan and seat type, sanitized /status details, remaining Fable allowance, selected model label, settings source, and exact timestamp. Add them to the matching Claude Code issue. Do not post authentication tokens, account identifiers, or the full contents of ~/.claude.json.
Common Failure Modes
What you see | Likely meaning | Safe next step |
|---|---|---|
Pro or a standard seat asks for credits immediately | This matches the July 20 plan rules | Switch models or make an explicit billing decision |
Max shows 50% Fable usage consumed | The included Fable allowance is exhausted | Wait for the weekly reset, switch models, or use controlled credits |
| The client is too old for Fable 5 | Update the owning installation and restart |
Standard Fable works, but | The context alias or its entitlement check may differ | Use standard context and follow the open issue |
The error returns in every new session | A model default is being reloaded from settings | Use |
| Claude Code is checking a different billing identity | Log in with the account that owns the subscription |
A premium Team seat still cannot select Fable | An organization policy or seat assignment may block it | Ask the owner to verify the seat and enabled models |
Max remains blocked after all checks | A current entitlement or routing bug is still possible | Keep credits off and attach sanitized evidence to the matching issue |
Why These Steps Work
The official plan rule and the client state are separate checks. The web dashboard establishes whether the account should receive included Fable usage. Claude Code then has to use that same identity, run a supported version, resolve the selected model correctly, and load a settings value that the entitlement check recognizes.
Updating addresses the documented minimum version. Selecting standard Fable bypasses the reported [1m] alias path. Removing only the persisted model property prevents a higher-precedence project or local setting from restoring it. Restarting and re-authenticating refresh client and account state. None of these steps changes the plan or turns on pay-as-you-go billing.
Test One Connected Action After Access Is Stable
Once Fable 5 works across two fresh sessions, give it one bounded real-world task:
Expected result: Claude Code returns one current external result, makes no repository change, and does not expose a provider credential.
Use Aident Loadout to run one connected Action after the fix. Measure success as one verified result, zero pasted secrets, and zero paid credits enabled for diagnosis.
Sources
Claude Fable 5 on your plan, Anthropic Help Center, accessed July 27, 2026
Manage usage credits for paid Claude plans, Anthropic Help Center, accessed July 27, 2026
Claude Code CLI reference, Anthropic, accessed July 27, 2026
Claude Code commands, Anthropic, accessed July 27, 2026
Claude Code settings, Anthropic, accessed July 27, 2026
Fable 5 prompts "usage credits required" on Max, GitHub issue, opened July 20, 2026
Fable 5 access restricted despite remaining quota, GitHub issue, opened July 20, 2026
"Fable 5 now uses usage credits", Reddit discussion, July 2026
