claude-code-token-saver
The only Claude Code plugin that actually reads CC's source code to find where your tokens go — and fixes it automatically. Spend less, code longer.
Measured result: 45% cost reduction on a real $326/day workload → $180/day. Cache expiry prevention, automatic SubTask delegation, zero-cost context restoration, and a full analytics dashboard — in one install, zero config.
Works with Max Plan ($200/mo) and API pay-per-use. Same plugin, same features. Stronger for every user — especially when every token is real money.
What it does in 30 seconds
| Feature | What happens | Impact |
|---|
| 🛡️ Token Guardian | Detects cache expiry, blocks $9 re-sends before they happen | Prevents the #1 silent cost spike |
| 🧠 Session Architect | Auto-delegates to SubTasks (37.5% cheaper) + parallelizes tool calls to cut round-trips | Context stays small, round-trips drop, costs compound down |
| 🪶 Concise Mode | Decision-focused responses: essential context + choices, nothing else | Fewer output tokens, faster user decisions |
| 🔄 /continue | Replaces /compact — zero LLM calls, zero cost, zero info loss | Free context restoration |
| 📊 Status Line | Real-time cost, context size, rate limit — under 50ms | See problems before they cost you |
| 📈 /usage-view | Interactive HTML dashboard with AI-powered analysis | Full cost forensics in one click |
| ✂️ /setup-git-lite | Removes 2,200 hidden tokens CC injects every session | ~$48/mo saved on git instructions alone |
😤 The Problem
Cache expiry. You come back from lunch. Cache is gone. One prompt re-sends 900K tokens at full price. $9 in a single shot.
Invisible costs. No real-time visibility. No "your context is at 800K" warning. No "cache expired 3 minutes ago" alert. You find out after the damage is done.
Context bloat. The same prompt at 200K vs 800K context costs 4x more. Every Read, Grep, Edit re-sends the full context. One complex prompt triggers 15+ API calls, each multiplied by your context size.
All manual. Context management, cache expiry timing, SubTask delegation, session cleanup. Nobody can track all this while actually coding.
Max Plan ($200/mo)? All of the above, plus a 5-hour rate limit that kills your flow with no timer and no ETA.
API pay-per-use? All of the above, except there's no ceiling. One cache miss = $9 of real money. Ten times a week = $360/mo on accidents alone. A bad Tuesday with bloated context can cost more than a Max Plan subscriber pays in a month.
claude-code-token-saver handles all of it automatically. Install once. Done.
🚀 Installation
/plugin marketplace add ww-w-ai/marketplace
/plugin install claude-code-token-saver@ww-w-ai
Works automatically after install. Zero config. Requires Claude Code v2.1.71+.
For live monitoring:
/setup-statusline install
To trim 2,200 hidden tokens from CC's built-in git instructions (details):
/setup-git-lite install
🛡️ Feature 1: Token Guardian
Detects cache expiry and automatically blocks expensive re-sends.
Claude Code's prompt cache TTL is 1 hour. Step away for more than an hour and the cache expires. Your next message re-sends the entire context at full price. At 900K tokens, that's $9 in one shot.
Token Guardian tracks when the last response was received. If more than 3,590 seconds have passed (TTL minus 10-second buffer), it blocks the prompt and shows a warning.
🚨 Cache expired (68m 23s idle)
The prompt cache has expired. Continuing will resend the full context.
Cost may increase significantly.
👉 /context — Check current context usage before deciding
👉 /clear → /continue — Reset, then restore previous context (recommended, cheapest)
👉 Re-send — Continue as-is (full re-cache cost incurred)
Just re-send the same prompt after the warning -- it goes through. The warning only fires once per idle period, so it never nags. Warning messages display in 23 languages based on your OS locale.
Result: Every cache expiry caught = $9 saved. At one catch per day, that's $270/mo of pure waste eliminated.
If you're on API pay-per-use, this hits harder. Max Plan subscribers lose $9 inside a $200 buffer. You lose $9 of real money — silently, repeatedly, every time you step away. Token Guardian catches it every time.
🧠 Feature 2: Smart Session Architecture
Install it and cost-optimized work patterns kick in automatically.
Most users do everything in the Main session. File reads, code generation, test runs. Every output piles into context and is re-sent with every message. The session bloats. Costs snowball.
Session Architect automatically injects two cost strategies at session start:
