Use it now Notable
A model set in settings.json now takes precedence over the ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_MODEL environment variable at startup.
Startup model resolution now checks for a settings-provided model before falling back to ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_MODEL. The resolution order is now CLI flag, then ANTHROPIC_MODEL env var, then the model from settings, then ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_MODEL, giving a settings.json-configured default precedence over the legacy env-var default.
Names in the bundleANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_MODELANTHROPIC_MODEL
The entry above is what we published on the day. These lines were added later, as Anthropic's own pages caught up, and they sit beside the original rather than replacing it.
Confirmed since
Anthropic's documentation has since written up ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_MODEL, on Roll out an LLM gateway for your organization.
| Default model and aliases | The model that new sessions start on by default, and the models that aliases such as `opus` and `sonnet` resolve to, are [built into each version](/docs/en/model-config#pin-models-for-third-party-deployments) …llm-gateway-rollout see the edit
Confirmed since
Anthropic's documentation has since written up ANTHROPIC_MODEL, on Plugins reference.
| `--model <model>` | Model for the agent under test | Each case's `model`, else `ANTHROPIC_MODEL` if set, else Claude Code's default |plugins-reference see the edit
One source agreesOne thing we can check says the same as this entry.
Anthropic's documentation agrees
Anthropic's documentation has since written up ANTHROPIC_MODEL, on Plugins reference.