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Output styles change how Claude responds, not what Claude knows. They modify the system prompt to set role, tone, and output format while keeping core capabilities like running scripts, reading and writing files, and tracking TODOs. Use one when you keep re-prompting for the same voice or format every turn, or when you want Claude to act as something other than a software engineer. For instructions about your project, conventions, or codebase, use CLAUDE.md instead.

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Built-in output styles

Claude Code’s Default output style is the existing system prompt, designed to help you complete software engineering tasks efficiently. There are three additional built-in output styles:
  • Proactive: Claude executes immediately, makes reasonable assumptions instead of pausing for routine decisions, and prefers action over planning. This applies the same guidance as auto mode without changing your permission mode, so you still see permission prompts before tools run.
  • Explanatory: Provides educational “Insights” in between helping you complete software engineering tasks. Helps you understand implementation choices and codebase patterns.
  • Learning: Collaborative, learn-by-doing mode where Claude will not only share “Insights” while coding, but also ask you to contribute small, strategic pieces of code yourself. Claude Code will add TODO(human) markers in your code for you to implement.

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How output styles work

Output styles directly modify Claude Code’s system prompt.
  • Custom output styles exclude instructions for coding (such as verifying code with tests), unless keep-coding-instructions is true.
  • All output styles have their own custom instructions added to the end of the system prompt.
  • All output styles trigger reminders for Claude to adhere to the output style instructions during the conversation.
Token usage depends on the style. Adding instructions to the system prompt increases input tokens, though prompt caching reduces this cost after the first request in a session. The built-in Explanatory and Learning styles produce longer responses than Default by design, which increases output tokens. For custom styles, output token usage depends on what your instructions tell Claude to produce.

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Change your output style

Run /config and select Output style to pick a style from a menu. Your selection is saved to .claude/settings.local.json at the local project level. To set a style without the menu, edit the outputStyle field directly in a settings file: 
{
  "outputStyle": "Explanatory"
}
Because the output style is set in the system prompt at session start, changes take effect the next time you start a new session. This keeps the system prompt stable throughout a conversation so prompt caching can reduce latency and cost.

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Create a custom output style

Custom output styles are Markdown files with frontmatter and the text that will be added to the system prompt: 
---
name: My Custom Style
description:
  A brief description of what this style does, to be displayed to the user
---

# Custom Style Instructions

You are an interactive CLI tool that helps users with software engineering
tasks. [Your custom instructions here...]

## Specific Behaviors

[Define how the assistant should behave in this style...]
You can save these files at three levels:
  • User: ~/.claude/output-styles
  • Project: .claude/output-styles
  • Managed policy: .claude/output-styles inside the managed settings directory
Plugins can also ship output styles in an output-styles/ directory.

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Frontmatter

Output style files support frontmatter for specifying metadata:
FrontmatterPurposeDefault
nameName of the output style, if not the file nameInherits from file name
descriptionDescription of the output style, shown in the /config pickerNone
keep-coding-instructionsWhether to keep the parts of Claude Code’s system prompt related to coding.false
force-for-pluginPlugin output styles only: apply this style automatically whenever the plugin is enabled, without requiring users to select it. Overrides the user’s outputStyle setting. If multiple enabled plugins set this, the first one loaded wins.false

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Output Styles vs. CLAUDE.md vs. —append-system-prompt

Output styles completely “turn off” the parts of Claude Code’s default system prompt specific to software engineering. Neither CLAUDE.md nor --append-system-prompt edit Claude Code’s default system prompt. CLAUDE.md adds the contents as a user message following Claude Code’s default system prompt. --append-system-prompt appends the content to the system prompt.

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Output Styles vs. Agents

Output styles directly affect the main agent loop and only affect the system prompt. Agents are invoked to handle specific tasks and can include additional settings like the model to use, the tools they have available, and some context about when to use the agent.

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Output Styles vs. Skills

Output styles modify how Claude responds (formatting, tone, structure) and are always active once selected. Skills are task-specific prompts that you invoke with /skill-name or that Claude loads automatically when relevant. Use output styles for consistent formatting preferences; use skills for reusable workflows and tasks.