Setting up Claude code on Windows

Technology and Creation AI
1

The iOS app is more or less done, so now it’s time to start on Android.

For Android, of course you’ll use Android Studio. In the past, I always used WSL for development on Windows, but this is my first time using Claude Code in pure Windows, and I found there’s no environment set up.

So I tinkered a bit to get things working.

Solution for Windows PowerShell Prompt: “claude is not recognized”

After installing Claude Code with the official script:

irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

If running claude --version gives you the “claude is not recognized” error, it’s usually because the installation directory isn’t in your PATH.

1. Check Git

Claude Code on Windows requires Git Bash:

git --version

If it’s not installed:

winget install Git.Git --source winget

After installing, reopen PowerShell.

2. Confirm Claude Code Is Installed

Test-Path "$env:USERPROFILE\.local\bin\claude.exe"

If it returns True, the installation file exists.

3. Add to PATH

Permanently add the folder to the current user’s PATH:

[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable(
  "PATH",
  "$env:PATH;$env:USERPROFILE\.local\bin",
  [EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User
)

To apply this immediately in the current PowerShell window:

$env:PATH = "$env:PATH;$env:USERPROFILE\.local\bin"

4. Verify

claude --version

If it still doesn’t work, completely close and reopen PowerShell; restart Windows if necessary.

5. Launch and Log In

claude

A browser window will open to the Anthropic login page. Complete authorization there.

Common Troubleshooting Commands

See which Claude is actually being invoked:

Get-Command claude | Format-List

Check if multiple versions are installed:

Get-Command claude -All

Run the self-diagnosis tool:

claude doctor

If you have both the Winget version and the official script version installed, you can uninstall the Winget version to avoid the older version taking precedence:

winget uninstall Anthropic.ClaudeCode

The core solution: add %USERPROFILE%\.local\bin to the user PATH.

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