Why Anthropic Renames Max Plans and Drops Ultra Session Limit

Max 5x

Now called Max, still $100 a month

Max 20x

Now called Ultra, still $200 a month

Session limit

Verified Ultra accounts no longer have the five-hour session limit

Anthropic announced the changes on October 30, 2026.

Same prices, clearer names, and fewer interruptions for the heaviest users.

Claude’s paid plans have usually had two limits: a rolling five-hour session limit and a weekly limit. Heavy users often hit the session limit mid-task and had to wait. Verified Ultra accounts now only have the weekly limit to watch.

• Anthropic verifies Ultra accounts automatically, using factors such as account and payment history
• The rollout started with most existing subscribers
• If the “Current session” bar has gone from Settings, then Usage, your account is verified

• Weekly limits remain: Ultra gets 10 times Pro’s weekly usage, Max gets 5 times
• Anthropic can still apply other caps on models or features
• The top Fable model can use up to half of the weekly limit on Max and Ultra, and runs on paid usage credits on Pro

No session limit does not mean unlimited usage.

Max

$100 a month in Claude Platform API credits

Ultra

$200 a month in Claude Platform API credits

That lets subscribers build with the API without a separate bill, up to the credit amount.

Pro

No change: $20 a month, or $17 a month billed yearly

Max

A new name; the five-hour session limit stays

Ultra

No session limit once verified; weekly limit stays

Team and Enterprise

The Ultra change applies to the individual plan only

• Simpler names: Pro, Max, and Ultra are easier to compare than 5x and 20x
• Long agent tasks in Claude Code and Cowork run better without session breaks
• Verification helps prevent account sharing and abuse

Anthropic has not explained every reason; these are the clear effects of the change.

• Open Settings, then Usage
• Look for the session and weekly bars
• If you are on Ultra and still see a session bar, the change has not reached your account yet

Pro

Daily chat, writing, and light coding

Max

Heavy daily use and regular Claude Code sessions

Ultra

All-day agent work and long coding sessions

Look at your last month: how often did you hit a limit, and what were you doing? Pick the plan that removes the limit you actually hit.

• Use smaller models for simple tasks to save weekly usage
• Start fresh chats instead of carrying huge contexts
• Turn on usage credits only if you want to pay for extra use