New to this? Read it in simple words
- Anthropic sells Claude in monthly plans that limit how much you can use it.
- Its $200 plan is now called Ultra, and its $100 plan is now called Max.
- Checked Ultra accounts no longer have a limit that resets every five hours.
- A weekly limit still applies, so Ultra is not unlimited.
- Usage limit
- A cap on how much you can use a service in a set time.
- Claude Code
- Anthropic’s AI tool that writes and changes code for programmers.
- API credits
- Prepaid money for using Claude from your own software.
Anthropic sells Claude to individuals in monthly plans with usage limits. Until now, its two most expensive plans were called Max 5x and Max 20x, and both had a limit that reset every five hours. On October 30, Anthropic changed the names and lifted that limit on the top plan.
What changes
Max 5x is now called Max, and Max 20x is now called Ultra. Max still costs $100 a month and Ultra $200, before tax, for subscriptions on the web. Prices in the mobile apps may differ, Anthropic says.
“If you’re a subscriber, there’s nothing you need to do,” Anthropic wrote on X. Its help pages say Max 20x subscribers move to Ultra automatically, with no change in price.
Ultra accounts that Anthropic has verified no longer have the five-hour limit. Anthropic is lifting it “starting today with most existing subscribers”, and users get an email when it is gone.
From Anthropic’s post on X and its help pages, October 30. Prices are web prices before tax.
The check, and the weekly limit
Anthropic verifies Ultra accounts automatically, using factors such as account and payment history. It says the check helps prevent fraud and abuse. Newer accounts keep a temporary limit until they are verified.
Verifying a phone number at checkout is a separate step and does not remove the limit, according to Anthropic’s help page. There is no way to ask for the check or to speed it up, The New Stack reports.
“Weekly limits remain unchanged,” Anthropic wrote. Ultra gives 10 times the Pro plan’s usage every week, with a separate weekly limit for its Fable models. Max gives five times Pro’s usage, both every five hours and every week.
Why the name changed
When Max 20x launched in April 2025, its only limit was the five-hour window, at 20 times Pro’s usage. The weekly limit added later was 10 times Pro. An Anthropic product lead explained this on X and apologised for the confusion, TechnoEdge and Pisapapeles report.
So Ultra’s weekly cap of 10 times Pro is not a new cut, Pisapapeles notes. Both plans also include monthly credits for the Claude API: $100 with Max and $200 with Ultra, The New Stack and TechnoEdge report.
Removing the five-hour cap does not add any usage, The New Stack points out. It helps people who hit the cap with weekly usage to spare, but not those who already run out before the week ends.
Sources
Every fact in this story comes from the sources below. Open them to check our work.
- 1Primary source · October 30, 2026We’re renaming our Max plans: Max 5x → Max, Max 20x → Ultra Anthropic (Claude on X)
- 2
- 3
- 4Research · October 30, 2026Anthropic just removed one of Claude’s biggest usage limits — but not for everyone The New Stack
- 5Research · October 31, 2026Claude Ultra drops the five-hour limit for verified accounts Notebookcheck
- 6
- 7Research · October 31, 2026Claude Ultra reemplaza a Max 20x y quita el límite de 5 horas Pisapapeles
The plan details come from Anthropic’s own post and help pages. Why the old name confused people is an Anthropic product lead’s account, as two outlets report it.
Anthropic lifts Claude’s 5-hour cap for verified Ultra users. Silicon AI News, November 1, 2026. https://siliconainews.com/stories/anthropic-claude-ultra-plan
Verified Ultra users lose the five-hour cap at no extra cost, though weekly limits stay and newer accounts must wait. How we rate the mood
The mood shows how the news frames the event for the tech and AI world: as an opportunity (6 and above) or as a loss (below 5). It is not our verdict on who is right.