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Claude Code vs Codex: Differences, Pricing and Using Both

By Staffmor

Practical guides from the Staffmor team.

Claude Code is Anthropic's coding agent, and Codex is OpenAI's. Both work on the files in your project. Claude Code comes with a paid Claude plan, and Codex comes with your ChatGPT plan. The best answer to "which one?" is that you don't have to choose: start with the account you already have, then run both in one Staffmor office when you want a second set of hands. Here's how they compare, taken only from what Anthropic and OpenAI publish about their own products.

Claude Code vs Codex at a glance

	Claude Code	Codex
Made by	Anthropic	OpenAI
Account	A paid Claude plan, Pro or higher, or an Anthropic Console account. Claude Free doesn't include it (Claude pricing).	Any ChatGPT plan, from Free and Go to Plus, Pro, Business, Edu and Enterprise (Codex pricing).
Starting paid plan	Claude Pro, US$20 a month billed monthly (Claude pricing).	ChatGPT Plus, US$20 a month (Codex pricing).
Where it runs	Terminal, IDE extensions, a desktop app and the web (overview).	The web, the CLI, an IDE extension and iOS, plus cloud tasks (Codex pricing, cloud).
Safety defaults	Permission modes decide what runs without asking (permission modes).	A sandbox on your machine, with network access off by default (approvals and security).
Project instructions	CLAUDE.md, or an existing AGENTS.md (overview).	AGENTS.md (AGENTS.md guide).

What each one is

Claude Code. Anthropic calls it "an agentic coding tool that reads your codebase, edits files, runs commands, and integrates with your development tools" (Anthropic). You describe the work in plain language, and it plans and makes the change across your files.

Codex. OpenAI says Codex "supports everyday code work and deeper integrations across local and cloud environments" (OpenAI). It can work in a folder on your computer, or take a task to the cloud and work there (OpenAI).

The account and the price

Claude Code is included in Claude's paid plans. Claude Pro is US$20 a month billed monthly, or US$17 a month billed annually, and Max starts at US$100 a month. Claude Free doesn't include Claude Code (Anthropic). An Anthropic Console account also works (Anthropic).

Codex is included in every ChatGPT plan: Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Edu and Enterprise. ChatGPT Plus is US$20 a month (OpenAI).

Either way, you pay the provider for the AI, and Staffmor doesn't resell either account.

Where each one runs

Claude Code runs in the terminal, in IDE extensions, in a desktop app and on the web (Anthropic).
Codex runs on the web, in the CLI, in an IDE extension and on iOS (OpenAI). Its cloud tasks each get their own workspace and "can keep working while your computer is asleep" (OpenAI).
On your own computer, both keep their own guardrails. Claude Code's permission modes set which actions run without asking; in Manual mode it "stops and asks you before most actions that edit files, run shell commands, or reach the network" (Anthropic). Codex runs in an operating-system sandbox with network access off by default (OpenAI).

What each is best at

No benchmarks here. This is where each maker points its own tool.

Claude Code, for planned work you steer. Anthropic's pitch: "Hand Claude a bug fix, test, or multi-day migration. Steer and review from your terminal, IDE, Slack, or web" (Anthropic).
Codex, for tasks you hand off. OpenAI's pitch: "Give Codex coding tasks to work through in the cloud, from investigating bugs to building features" (OpenAI). It also offers "another high-signal review pass on GitHub pull requests" (OpenAI).

Those strengths fit together. One agent builds while the other reviews, and that's exactly how a two-agent team gets the most from both.

You don't have to choose

Most comparisons end by asking you to pick a side. You don't need to. Staffmor puts Claude Code and Codex in one office on your computer, as teammates with defined jobs:

Start with either one. Use the account you already pay for. Staffmor sets up the whole starter team around it.
Add the other later. Bring the second provider into the same office, and your team, roles and history stay.
Give them different jobs. Staffmor's company starter team is built for a mix: Revenue & Growth and the Engineering Lead start on Claude, and Marketing & SEO and the Product & Platform Engineer start on ChatGPT. You can reassign any role.
Keep one set of rules. Codex reads AGENTS.md before it starts work (OpenAI), and Claude Code can read the same file (Anthropic). Staffmor writes that shared setup for you, so both follow the same team instructions.

For the hands-on side of running both (splitting the work, separate working copies and written handoffs), read Claude Code and Codex in one AI team.

How Staffmor runs both today

Set up Claude Code or Codex with an empty folder. Staffmor does the rest: a starter team with defined roles, shared instructions and handoff rules, and one office where the team's work lives, on your computer. Codex can pick up office work on its own once you approve its local connection. With Claude Code, or both together, keep the session open and tell it "Check Staffmor for work."

Your own AI account does the work, and nothing installs or connects until you approve it. Set up your office → · See the plans →

Staffmor Office chat in an example studio: teammates’ messages, their replies to you, and the message box. — Example office. Teammates’ messages and replies to you, in one conversation.Example office. Check in from your phone.

Common questions

Is Claude Code better than Codex? Neither maker publishes a head-to-head result, and we don't invent one. They point their tools at different strengths, which is why a team with both is worth having.

Do I need both subscriptions? No. Start with the one you have, and add the other to the same Staffmor office when you want a second perspective or parallel work.

Can Claude Code and Codex work on the same project? Yes. Codex reads AGENTS.md (OpenAI), and Claude Code can read it too (Anthropic), so both can follow one set of project rules. Give each its own job and a written handoff.

Is Staffmor made by Anthropic or OpenAI? No. Staffmor is independent and isn't affiliated with or endorsed by either company.

Sources

All read October 14, 2026.