Studio Code

Studio Code is an agentic coding tool built into the Studio desktop app and Studio CLI.

It gives you an interactive chat where you can build, customize, and manage WordPress sites conversationally, creating themes and plugins, editing files, running WP-CLI commands, deploying previews and publishing your site.

Getting started

Studio Code is available in the Studio desktop app and as part of the standalone Studio CLI npm package.

Studio Code in Studio Desktop

Studio Code in the Studio desktop app is built into a friendly, familiar interface and doesn’t require npm dependencies.

Open your WordPress Studio desktop app, click on a site (or add a new site), and then click on the “Studio Code” tab.

Studio Code in Studio CLI

If you have the Studio desktop app installed with the CLI enabled, you can directly use studio code from the terminal.

Otherwise, you can run it directly with npx:

npx wp-studio@latest code

And can install it globally to use studio code directly:

npm i -g wp-studio@latest
studio code

Press the ↓ arrow to work in your local Studio sites, or ↓ and → to work in your WordPress.com- or Jetpack-connected sites.

Connect to WordPress.com

By default, Studio Code uses WordPress.com infrastructure to generate AI responses. Log in to WordPress.com to get started — in the desktop app or in your terminal by following the instructions below:

1. Run studio code in your terminal.
2. Type /login in the chat.
3. A browser window will open. Log into your WordPress.com account and approve the connection.
4. Paste the authorization token back into the terminal to complete the login.

Alternatively, you can use your own Anthropic API key by typing /api-key in the chat.

Using Studio Code

Type your request in natural language and the AI agent will execute for you, creating files, running commands, and making changes to your site.

Example workflows

Create a new site and customize it:

• Create a new WordPress site called “My Portfolio” with PHP 8.2
• Build a minimal portfolio theme with a dark color scheme
• Add a homepage with a hero section and project grid

Share your work:

• Create a preview site so I can share this with my client
• Update the preview site with my latest changes

Publish your work:

• Publish “My Portfolio” site to examplesite.com

The agent can read and write files in your site directory, run WP-CLI commands, take screenshots of your site, and push changes to WordPress.com, all based on your instructions.

Slash commands

While chatting, you can use slash commands for quick actions:

AI models

Studio Code supports three AI models:

• Claude Sonnet 5 (default): fast and efficient for most tasks
• Claude Opus 4.8: more capable for complex, multi-step tasks
• GPT 5.6 Sol: fast and efficient for most tasks, using OpenAI

Switch models at any time:

• Desktop: select it from the bottom of the chat in the drop-down menu
• Terminal: run the /model command

Uploads

Upload images and files into Studio Code to use across your project:

• Desktop: drag into the chat or click the paperclip icon
• Terminal: drag into the chat or point to a specific local file or folder

New conversations

Clear your conversation and start a new one:

• Desktop: click the “New conversation” button
• Terminal: run the /clear command

Terminal-specific guidance

The terminal version of Studio Code has a few additional capabilities:

AI providers

You can choose how AI responses are generated:

• WordPress.com (default): uses your WordPress.com account. No additional setup required beyond logging in. Limits will change after early access.
• Anthropic API key: uses your own API key for direct access to Claude. Set it with the /api-key command.

Switch providers with the /provider command.

Sessions

Studio Code automatically saves your conversation history so you can pick up where you left off.

Resume a session

studio code sessions list                  # View all saved sessions

studio code sessions resume                # Interactive picker

studio code sessions resume latest         # Resume the most recent session

studio code sessions resume <id>           # Resume a specific session by ID

Delete a session

studio code sessions delete                # Interactive picker

studio code sessions delete <id>           # Delete a specific session

Disable session recording

If you prefer not to save conversations, use the –no-session-persistence flag:

studio code --no-session-persistence

Command references

studio code                                # Start a new chat session

studio code --path /path/to/site           # Start with a specific site directory

studio code --no-session-persistence       # Start without saving the session

studio code sessions list                  # List saved sessions

studio code sessions resume [id]           # Resume a session

studio code sessions delete [id]           # Delete a session

For the full set of options:

studio code --help

Usage limits

Studio Code is currently free while in beta. Usage limits and pricing may change as it evolves.

When you use the default WordPress.com provider that ships with Studio Code, it has a monthly AI usage limit per WordPress.com account. Usage is measured by the cost of the AI requests you make, and it resets at the beginning of each month.

When you use the Anthropic provider option… More on that below.

Check your usage

• Desktop: open Settings -> Account, and look at the percentage of your Studio Code monthly limit used and the date it resets.
• Terminal: if you hit the limit, the reset date is shown in the chat.

What happens when you reach the limit

When you reach your monthly limit, the Studio Code chat interface: You've reached your monthly AI usage limit. It resets on [date].

AI responses are paused until the limit resets. Your local sites keep running normally — only the AI agent is unavailable.

When that happens, you have two options:

1. Wait for the reset — your limit renews automatically at the start of the next month.
2. Use your own Anthropic API key — available in the terminal version of Studio Code, with no WordPress.com usage limit. (See below.)

Use your own Anthropic API key

You can connect Studio Code directly to Anthropic at any time using your own API key. This option is available in the CLI version of Studio Code only. The desktop app always uses WordPress.com.

1. Create an API key at console.anthropic.com (requires an Anthropic account with billing set up).
2. Start Studio Code in your terminal:

studio code --help

3. Type /provider , and select “Anthropic · API key” in the chat and paste your key when prompted. The key is saved locally for future sessions.
5. To switch back and forth between providers at any time, use the /provider command and choose WordPress.com or Anthropic · API key.
6. To change your API key, use the /api-key command, which will prompt you to enter a new key.