Resume a Claude Code session, or start fresh?
Keep using a conversation while it serves the task. When you want a clean thread or a different coding tool, bring the decisions, exact requirements and next steps with you.
By Crosshead · Updated October 17, 2026
Reopen the conversation
claude --continueclaude --resume--continue reopens the latest session in the current directory. --resume lets you choose a saved session; /resume is available inside Claude Code. These behaviors are documented in Anthropic’s session workflow.
Before changing files, check that you resumed the right project and task. A saved conversation can describe a repository that has changed since the last run. Ask the agent to inspect the current diff and rerun the relevant check.
Choose based on what you need to retain
| Situation | Start here | Check |
|---|---|---|
| Same task, same tool, conversation still useful | Native resume | Current files still match the discussion |
| Long conversation with a useful active thread | Native compaction | Exact requirements survive the summary |
| Fresh thread after unrelated work | Written handoff or Crosshead | Relevant findings and corrections arrive |
| Switching to Codex | Portable handoff or shared memory | The destination tool receives context |
A new thread still has access to the repository and configured instructions. It does not automatically receive every decision from the previous conversation. The missing information is often a failed approach, a user correction or a finding that was never committed.
What resume does—and what still needs a handoff
Resuming a compacted Claude conversation restores the latest summary, messages left unsummarized, and later messages. It does not reload every original message. An exact requirement omitted from the summary may need transcript recovery. See what a resumed session restores.
Resume also keeps you in that host’s session format. Moving to Codex, or deliberately opening a clean thread after unrelated work, calls for selected context to cross the boundary. Built-in memory can help across sessions in its own tool; a written handoff or Crosshead can carry task state between tools. See the workflow comparison.
Make a fresh thread useful
At a natural stopping point, save a short checkpoint. Update it when the work changes; avoid copying every turn. This template works with an ordinary Markdown file:
Goal and current status:
Exact requirements and corrected decisions:
Files changed and why:
Commands run and observed results:
Unresolved questions:
Next action and how to verify it:In the next session, ask the agent to read that checkpoint, verify it against the workspace and state the next action. With Crosshead, the managed hooks save bounded working state and deliver selected context on the next prompt. Follow the installation and verification guide.
Does a fresh thread cost less?
It depends on the method and workload. In our October 2026 regression suite, native resume was cheaper tha Crosshead with the same observed completion score. Crosshead used less API spend than the tested written handoffs. That supports a fresh-session use case, not a universal reason to abandon resume. Read the cost tables and limitations.
Next: what to check around compaction or move work between Claude Code and Codex.