Model switch now probes availability before showing the picker

/model now shows a checking-availability step before displaying model choices.

You'll noticeTier: how much it should matter to you

2Useful: my rating, 1 to 5

1Signal: worth watching, 1 to 5

ModelsArea: what it touches

ImprovementsKind: in v2.1.260, 03 Sep 26

ImprovementsSection of the release

The /model picker now shows a Checking model availability… interstitial before displaying model choices, running an availability check first instead of rendering the menu immediately.

Read from

Names in the bundle/model

Since it was published

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 10 Sep 2026 Anthropic's documentation has since written up /model, on All settings. Cap the [effort level](/docs/en/model-config#adjust-effort-level) a session can use, leaving lower levels available. Any higher level runs at the cap instead, including one from `/effort`, the `/model` picker, `--effort`, [`CLAUDE_CODE_EFF… settings-reference see the edit

Added since 10 Sep 2026 A small documentation edit on Agent SDK reference - TypeScript touched a line naming /model after this was published. `effortLevel` accepts an [effort level](/docs/en/model-config#adjust-effort-level) name. It also accepts `"ultracode"`, which requests `xhigh` effort with [ultracode](/docs/en/workflows#let-claude-decide-with-ultracode) on. `applyFlagSetti… agent-sdk/typescript see the edit

How sure we are

Two sources agreeTwo things we can check say the same as this entry.

Anthropic's documentation agreesA small documentation edit on Agent SDK reference - TypeScript touched a line naming /model after this was published.

Anthropic's release notes agreeFixed the /model picker not showing Fable 5.1 for organizations that can use it, which was only accepted when typed as /model…

See this entry in the whole of v2.1.260 →

The build it came inv2.1.260

3 Sep 2026 · 383 entries, this one is #124.

Use it now55
You'll notice151
Nothing to try yet34
Under the hood143

Either side of it

v2.1.259Older
v2.1.261Newer

Open the release →

Names in this entry

slash/model
Switch the AI model and save it as your default for new sessions. For models that support it, use left/right arrows to adjust effort level. With no argument, opens a picker; press s on a row to switch for the current session only. See when Claude Code asks you to confirm the switch. Once you confirm the switch, if Claude Code asks, Claude Code applies the change without waiting for the current response to finish. Before v2.1.242, Claude Code decided from a feature flag it fetched from Anthropic whether to run the command mid-turn or queue it until the turn finished, and always queued it in a session that doesn't fetch feature flags, such as on a third-party provider. Also available in non-interactive mode (-p) with a model argument instead of the picker, where it applies to the current session only and isn't saved as your default; requires Claude Code v2.1.205 or later

Anthropic's note

Upstream's own release notes for v2.1.260 name something this entry names, so the two are probably about the same change. Probably: the pairing is made on a shared name rather than on the words around it.

Fixed the /model picker not showing Fable 5.1 for organizations that can use it, which was only accepted when typed as /model claude-fable-5-1

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