Tmux + Claude Code CLI Cheatsheet

TMUX — ESSENTIALS // prefix key, session lifecycle, attach/detach

Prefix Key

Ctrl-b Default prefix — press before any tmux shortcut

Ctrl-a Common remap — add set -g prefix C-a to .tmux.conf

Session Lifecycle

tmux new -s name Create a named session

prefix d Detach — session keeps running

tmux attach -t name Reattach to a named session

tmux a Attach to last session

tmux ls List all active sessions

tmux kill-session -t name Kill a specific session

tmux kill-server Kill tmux server — destroys all sessions

TMUX — WINDOW MANAGEMENT // create, switch, rename, close

Create & Close

prefix c Create a new window

prefix & Close current window (confirm)

prefix , Rename current window

Switch Windows

prefix n Next window

prefix p Previous window

prefix 0-9 Jump to window by number

prefix l Toggle to last active window

prefix w List all windows — interactive picker

TMUX — PANE MANAGEMENT // split, navigate, resize, zoom

Split & Close

prefix % Split pane vertically (left/right)

prefix " Split pane horizontally (top/bottom)

prefix x Close current pane (confirm)

Navigate & Resize

prefix ←↑→↓ Move to adjacent pane

prefix o Cycle to next pane

prefix z Zoom toggle — fullscreen current pane

prefix Ctrl-←↑→↓ Resize pane in arrow direction

prefix Space Cycle through preset layouts

prefix { / } Swap pane with previous / next

TMUX — MULTI-PROJECT WORKFLOW // named sessions per project, session switching

Session Per Project

tmux new -s api -c ~/code/api New session with working directory

prefix s Interactive session picker

prefix ( / ) Switch to previous / next session

prefix $ Rename current session

Recommended Layout

# One session per project, named windows per concern
tmux new -s api -c ~/code/api
tmux new -s frontend -c ~/code/frontend
tmux new -s infra -c ~/code/infra

# Inside each session: window 0 = editor, window 1 = claude, window 2 = shell
# Switch projects: prefix s → pick session
# Switch concerns: prefix 0/1/2 → pick window

CLAUDE CODE — CLI BASICS // launching, flags, core slash commands

Launch & Start

claude Start interactive session in current directory

claude --continue Resume the last conversation

claude --resume <id> Resume a specific conversation by ID

claude -p "prompt" One-shot prompt — non-interactive, pipe-friendly

claude --model opus Start with a specific model

claude --version Show current version

Key Slash Commands

/help Show all available commands

/clear Clear conversation context

/compact Compress conversation to save context

/model Switch model mid-conversation

/cost Show token usage and cost

/config Open settings configuration

/vim Toggle vim keybindings

CLAUDE CODE — SESSION MANAGEMENT // multiple sessions, context, conversation control

Multiple Sessions

claude Each terminal/pane runs an independent session

claude -c Short form — continue last conversation

claude --conversations List past conversations

Context Control

/add-file path Add a file or image to context

! command Run a shell command in-session

/memory View and manage saved memories

/permissions Manage tool permissions

Keyboard Shortcuts

Esc Cancel current operation

Tab Autocomplete file paths and commands

Up Arrow Cycle through prompt history

CLAUDE CODE — AGENTS & TASKS // background agents, task tracking, parallel work

Subagents

Agent tool Claude spawns subagents for parallel tasks

Agent (worktree) Subagent in isolated git worktree

Agent (background) Run agent in background — notified on complete

Headless & Daemon Mode

claude -p "task" Headless — run task, output result, exit

cat file | claude -p "review" Pipe content in for processing

claude -p "task" --output-format json Get structured JSON output

Task Patterns

/plan Enter plan mode — design before coding

/compact [focus] Compress context with optional focus area

/fast Toggle fast mode — faster output, same model

COMBINED WORKFLOWS // tmux + claude patterns for multi-project dev

Multi-Agent Setup

pane 0 · claude · feature-auth

✓ Created AuthMiddleware

Writing tests...

pane 1 · claude · bugfix-api

✓ Found root cause

Applying fix...

pane 2 · shell · monitoring

$ git log --oneline -5

Recipe: Parallel Claude Sessions

# 1. Create a tmux session for the project
tmux new -s myproject -c ~/code/myproject

# 2. Split into panes for parallel Claude sessions
#    prefix % → vertical split, prefix " → horizontal split

# 3. In pane 0: work on feature
claude    # → "implement auth middleware"

# 4. In pane 1 (prefix %): work on bugfix
claude    # → "fix the race condition in user service"

# 5. In pane 2 (prefix "): keep a shell for git, tests
npm test

# 6. Zoom into a pane to focus: prefix z
# 7. Switch panes: prefix o  or  prefix ←/→

Cross-Project Pattern

prefix s → select project Jump between projects via session picker

prefix 0/1/2 Switch concern — editor / claude / shell

prefix d → tmux a -t other Detach & switch — Claude keeps running

Tips

💡 Use prefix z to zoom into one Claude pane for detailed reading, prefix z again to unzoom.

⚠ Each Claude pane is independent — they don't share context. Use /compact to save tokens in long sessions.

TMUX — COPY MODE & SCROLLBACK // searching output, copying text

Enter & Navigate

prefix [ Enter copy mode — scroll with arrows/PgUp

q Exit copy mode

? Search backward through output

/ Search forward through output

Select & Copy

Space Start selection (in copy mode)

Enter Copy selection to tmux buffer

prefix ] Paste from tmux buffer

set -g history-limit 50000 Increase scrollback buffer in .tmux.conf