CC Switch

Quick Verdict

CC Switch 3.18 is an MIT-licensed Tauri desktop configuration manager for eight AI coding tools: Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Gemini CLI, Grok Build, OpenCode, OpenClaw, and Hermes. It imports, stores, and switches provider configurations; manages MCP, skills, and prompt files; and adds sessions, usage records, project profiles, cloud synchronization, and local proxy takeover. It fits advanced developers who use several clients or endpoints and are tired of maintaining JSON, TOML, environment variables, and application-specific directories manually.

It is also high-trust software. Its database can contain provider, MCP, prompt, and skill configuration. The local proxy may observe requests, responses, token usage, and routing state. Cloud sync can copy provider records into Dropbox, OneDrive, iCloud, or WebDAV. Deep links and third-party skills can write configuration, and some OAuth paths persist refresh tokens. Version 3.18 improved redaction and permissions, but a local desktop label does not remove these risks. CC Switch is not marked as recommended. Teams should review source and release artifacts, test with isolated accounts, and prefer official login or direct official APIs rather than selecting a third-party relay because it appears in a sponsored README section.

Best For

• Developers maintaining several AI coding CLIs and desktop clients who need one configuration surface.
• Teams switching among approved official APIs, self-hosted gateways, or enterprise endpoints with explicit usage tracking.
• Advanced users willing to read release notes, back up configuration, inspect credential files, and test recovery.
• People unifying MCP, skills, prompts, and sessions while retaining each client’s native files.
• Not ideal for organizations unable to review third-party endpoints, protect production keys, or accept the absence of centralized enterprise identity and audit controls.

Key Features

• Eight managed tools: Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Gemini CLI, Grok Build, OpenCode, OpenClaw, and Hermes.
• Provider management: Imports official, custom, and compatible endpoints and switches them from the desktop UI or system tray.
• MCP, skills, and prompt sync: Synchronizes MCP servers, Agent Skills, and files such as CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, and GEMINI.md where supported.
• Local proxy and conversion: Adds takeover, protocol conversion, hot switching, failover, circuit breaking, health monitoring, and request correction.
• Usage and sessions: Reads supported local session sources and records requests, tokens, and custom model pricing for trends and estimates.
• Project profiles: Saves provider, MCP, skills, and prompt state for switching among project workflows.
• Cloud sync and backup: Uses a synchronized directory or WebDAV and maintains local database and configuration backups.
• Cross-platform artifacts: Publishes Windows, macOS, and Linux builds; macOS is described as signed and notarized, selected artifacts have .sig files, and GitHub displays SHA-256 digests.

Use Cases

The safest pilot uses one non-production provider and one client. Back up the native configuration, install CC Switch, inspect the database, settings, backup, and log paths under ~/.cc-switch/, then test import, switch, exit, and restoration of official login. Diff live configuration before and after switching. Confirm that shared snippets do not copy a key, endpoint, or model from one provider into another client. Claude Code can hot-switch some provider data; most other tools need a restart, so an enabled badge does not prove a running process has adopted new settings.

The local proxy can solve compatibility and failover problems, but it becomes a sensitive intermediary. Bind only required local interfaces, disable unnecessary request records, inspect rotation and redaction, and do not allow unapproved failover to move customer code onto another provider. The usage dashboard is a local estimate and session-log aggregation, not a provider invoice. Model aliases, cached tokens, replayed sessions, and custom prices can all differ from upstream accounting. Reconcile material cost with provider consoles.

Pricing

As of July 21, 2026, the current release is 3.18.0. CC Switch is MIT licensed and free; there is no legitimate requirement to add funds to a CC Switch account. Its official channels are ccswitch.io, github.com/farion1231/cc-switch, and that repository’s GitHub Releases. Model APIs, external providers, cloud or WebDAV storage, network services, and team operations are separate costs.

Version 3.18 made Grok Build the eighth managed tool and added xAI OAuth, usage reconstruction, and log-security fixes. Some managed OAuth integrations reuse another official client’s public identity, and the release notes explicitly warn that an upstream may not support this use and could restrict an account. That optional path is not equivalent to a normal API-key configuration. Upgrades migrate the local database, while historical logs are not retroactively scrubbed. Back up ~/.cc-switch/cc-switch.db and configuration, read upgrade notes, and inspect old logs before sharing them.

Pros

• One interface covers eight current AI coding tools and reduces manual editing across configuration formats.
• MIT source allows security and operations teams to inspect the Tauri, React, and Rust implementation.
• Provider, MCP, skills, prompts, and project profiles form a broad configuration workspace.
• Local proxy conversion, circuit breaking, and failover can support controlled compatibility testing.
• Version 3.18 improved persistent-log redaction, crash evidence, and duplicate usage accounting.
• GitHub shows SHA-256 digests, selected platforms include signature files, and macOS builds are described as signed and notarized.

Cons

• Consolidating secrets, OAuth, configurations, proxying, logs, and sessions increases the blast radius of a failure.
• Cloud sync can replicate provider and credential data across devices and third-party storage.
• Proxy conversion can expose or misroute code and prompts to an unintended provider.
• Old pre-upgrade logs are not automatically scrubbed and need manual review before disclosure.
• The README contains many sponsored third-party relay links; those services are not CC Switch products or endorsed by this directory.
• OAuth reuse, conversion, and subscription routing can conflict with upstream terms or create account risk.
• A community desktop app does not replace enterprise secret management, RBAC, central audit, or vendor governance.

Alternatives

FAQ

How many tools does CC Switch 3.18 manage?

Eight: Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, Gemini CLI, Grok Build, OpenCode, OpenClaw, and Hermes. The older seven-tool description is obsolete.

Is CC Switch free and open source?

Yes. The current source uses MIT and the official application is free. Model APIs, external providers, and cloud storage can still charge. A site impersonating CC Switch and requesting a software balance is not an official product.

Where are API keys and OAuth tokens stored?

Provider, MCP, prompt, and skill records primarily live in ~/.cc-switch/cc-switch.db, with settings and backups in the same directory family. Some OAuth features use separate refresh-token files. Protect the entire directory as sensitive credential material.

How should release artifacts be verified?

Download only from official GitHub Releases and compare the file with GitHub’s displayed SHA-256. For AppImage, Windows MSI, or macOS tar artifacts that include .sig, use the project’s updater/signature procedure; on macOS also inspect code signing and notarization. A matching digest confirms the release file, not the safety of all source or dependencies.

Are the third-party relays in the README official CC Switch services?

No. They are sponsors, presets, or external referral links with independent operations, billing, and data processing. Appearance in the README does not establish model authenticity, compliance, security, or an official SLA.

Should every configuration be cloud-synchronized?

Not by default. First determine whether the database or synchronized directory contains keys, OAuth data, or organization endpoints. Teams should use approved secret and sync policies rather than placing complete databases and logs in personal cloud storage.

Bottom Line

CC Switch 3.18 addresses genuine configuration fragmentation across eight AI coding tools. Its unified workspace can reduce substantial manual work, but it is simultaneously a credential store, local proxy, logging system, synchronization client, and configuration writer. Adoption requires official artifact verification, backup and recovery tests, minimal secret and log retention, constrained routing, cloud-sync review, and independent assessment of every third-party relay. Individual multi-tool users can pilot it with low-value credentials. Enterprises should complete vendor, identity, secret, logging, and data-flow review first.