The best Claude Code GUIs for Windows

Claude Code is a terminal program, and a terminal is a fine place for one session. The trouble starts with three. Which one is waiting for you? Which one finished twenty minutes ago? A graphical app answers that at a glance, and on Windows the choice is smaller than the GitHub search results suggest.

One of the apps below is AigoPilot, our own Claude Code GUI for Windows. It is listed last and held to the same rules as the others. If you came here from a Mac app that does not run on Windows, our Conductor alternative page compares the two directly.

How we chose

Every tool here had to pass three checks on 4 October 2026:

1. It runs natively on Windows today, from an installer or a single command. "Build it from source" does not count.
2. It is maintained, with a release or a commit in the last three months.
3. Every fact comes from the tool's own site, docs or release page. Links are at the end. We did not use review sites or other tools' comparison pages.

At a glance

1. The Claude desktop app, Code tab

Anthropic's own app has three tabs: Chat, Cowork and Code. The Code tab is Claude Code with a window around it, and it ships with Claude Code inside, so you do not need to install the CLI or Node.js. There are installers for x64 and ARM64 Windows.

• Several sessions in a sidebar, and two side by side in a split view.
• Panes for the diff, a built-in browser, a terminal and a file editor.
• Sessions can run locally, in the cloud, over SSH or inside WSL 2.
• It sends a Windows notification when a session finishes a task and you are not looking at it.
• Worktree sessions need Git for Windows.

Good for: anyone who uses only Claude Code and wants the official route. Keep in mind: it needs a paid Claude plan, it runs only Claude, and some Pro users on Windows have reported the Code tab missing in open GitHub issues.

2. Claude Code for VS Code

Not a separate app, but for many people the simplest graphical option. Anthropic's extension needs VS Code 1.94 or later and also installs in Cursor and other VS Code forks. Each conversation opens in its own tab or window, and the tab icon shows a blue dot when a permission request is waiting and an orange dot when Claude finished while the tab was hidden.

Good for: people who already spend the day in VS Code or Cursor. Keep in mind: the dots only help when the editor is in front of you; the docs describe no Windows notification, and there is no view across projects.

3. Nimbalyst

Nimbalyst is a free, open-source (MIT) workspace for Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode, with native Windows installers for x64 and ARM64 and Windows 10 or later as the stated minimum. It is the successor of Crystal, which its makers replaced with Nimbalyst in February 2026.

• Visual editors for Markdown, mockups, diagrams, CSV files and data models, next to the agent.
• A kanban board for tasks and sessions.
• File edits tracked per session; any session can get its own git worktree with one click.
• Push notifications when an agent needs you, and an iOS app.

Good for: people who plan and design next to their agents. Releases are frequent; the latest at the time of writing came out on 30 September 2026.

4. Pane

Pane is a free, open-source (AGPL 3.0) app that runs any terminal agent: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor Agent, Aider, Goose and others. It has native x64 and ARM64 builds for Windows, works with WSL too, and installs with one PowerShell line:

irm https://runpane.com/install.ps1 | iex

• Keyboard-first panes, one agent per pane, each in its own git worktree.
• A diff viewer with commit, push, rebase, squash and merge.
• Each pane gets its own range of ports, so two dev servers do not collide.
• Status cues: a red dot when an agent is blocked waiting for approval, an amber pulse while it works.

Good for: developers who think in git branches and want every agent in one place for free. Keep in mind: Pane's own docs say a direct download may trigger a SmartScreen warning.

5. CodeAgentSwarm

A closed-source desktop app for Windows 10 and 11 (x64 and ARM64), macOS and Linux, which needs an account. It supports a long list of agents, including Claude Code, Codex, Grok Build and Cursor Agent.

• Supervised terminals with a live diff for each.
• A kanban board that the agents update themselves over MCP.
• A worktree per session, a usage indicator, and desktop notifications when an agent finishes or needs input.

Keep in mind: it is free during its open beta and will cost 6.99 euros a month afterwards, according to its own pages.

Also worth a look

• Claudette: free and open source (MIT), built on Tauri, with Windows installers. A worktree, a session and a terminal per branch, a Monaco editor, and diffs with hunk staging. It plays a sound and shows a tray icon on events. A small project, but active.
• Poracode: free and open source (Apache 2.0), Windows x64 and ARM64, many agents through the ACP registry, branches side by side in worktrees, and system notifications when a thread finishes or needs you.

Popular, but not on Windows today

• Conductor: Mac only. Its docs say it is not available for Windows or Linux yet, with a form to be told when it is. See our Conductor alternative for Windows page.
• Claude Squad: ships Windows builds, but an open issue reports that the Windows binary fails as soon as you start a session, because a library it depends on does not support Windows. People run it under WSL. More in Claude Squad alternative for Windows.
• opcode (formerly Claudia): its README lists Windows, but only when you build it from source. The latest release, from August 2025, has macOS and Linux downloads and no Windows one.
• Vibe Kanban: the company behind it shut down on 10 April 2026. The open-source project continues under community care, and its README says it is sunsetting. More in Vibe Kanban alternative.
• Crystal: replaced by Nimbalyst, above.

6. AigoPilot (ours)

We make this one, so read this part knowing that. AigoPilot is a paid Windows app, 49 US dollars a year or 99 once for a lifetime plan, for Windows 10 and 11. It runs your own Claude Code, Codex and Grok sessions through their official command-line tools.

• Every session of every project in one window, with what each one is doing and which ones wait for you.
• A Windows notification when a session finishes, stops midway, or waits for your answer or permission, chosen per project.
• Answer and approve from the same window, without opening each project's terminal.
• Then the part none of the tools above try: social posts, email campaigns, ads, keyword research, leads, Stripe sales and a support inbox, attached to the same project.

More on the Claude Code GUI for Windows page.

Good for: people who build products with agents and then have to market, sell and support them. Keep in mind: if you only need the agent half, the free tools above cost nothing, and it does not run on Mac or Linux.

Which one should you use?

• Only Claude Code, official route: the Claude desktop app.
• You live in VS Code or Cursor: the Claude Code extension.
• Several agents, free: Nimbalyst if you also plan and design, Pane if you think in branches.
• Several products, and the business around them: AigoPilot.

Still deciding between agents rather than apps? Read Codex vs Claude Code. Not installed yet? Start with Claude Code on Windows.

Questions people ask

Sources

• Claude desktop app: code.claude.com/docs/en/desktop; Code tab issue on Windows: anthropics/claude-code#95987
• Claude Code for VS Code: code.claude.com/docs/en/vs-code
• Nimbalyst: nimbalyst.com and github.com/nimbalyst/nimbalyst
• Crystal, now Nimbalyst: github.com/stravu/crystal
• Pane: runpane.com, pricing and github.com/greenfield-inc/Pane
• CodeAgentSwarm: codeagentswarm.com and its beta page
• Claudette: github.com/utensils/claudette
• Poracode: poracode.com
• Conductor installation: conductor.build/docs/installation
• Claude Squad Windows issue: smtg-ai/claude-squad#275
• opcode releases: github.com/winfunc/opcode
• Vibe Kanban shutdown: vibekanban.com/blog/shutdown