I’ve been wondering about how Codex compares to Claude Code for a while and keep hearing how the Codex models are better since 5.5. With constant resets and the promise of Sol 5.6 I thought I’d give it a try. After 2 weeks I thought I’d share my take with others. About Me: Software Engineer for over a decade, been trying out AI coding models and tools since Cursor and Sonnet 3.5. Claude History: Claude Code ever since around Sonnet 4 I think, definitely since Opus 4.5 there was no looking back. I’ve set up my own workflows and skills around feature development, design, copy editing, marketing etc. Cutover: I switched over all my skills, adapted them multiple times to be more well suited to Codex. Had to explicitly call out several things that Claude often inferred that Codex would not. That’s understandable, the models are different. So here’s the comparison: In Favor of Codex Usage Limits: Far more generous limits - you can do a LOT with Pro x20, resets multiply this that’s about it, for my usage pattern that’s all Codex wins at but its a pretty big difference in usage. In Favor of Claude Code App: I use CLI for CC because it’s feature complete with the app and I prefer it to Codex’s CLI. The codex app on Windows is a computer incinerator and makes my powerful gaming computer unusable . Building UI: Opus is still far better at UI even with Codex’s frontend-design skill, I usually had to redo UIs with Opus rather than stick to what Codex creates. Implementation Quality: I often had to do 4-6 revisions of a feature with Codex when CC has only ever taken me 1-2. This may be because of the UI weaknesses of Codex but also just bugs. Proactive: Opus is far more proactive than Codex, it infers the spirit of my request rather than being a lawyer and only following the letter. This would be a problem if Opus were wrong about my intent but it rarely is. Remote Control: CC remote control is seamless, easy to activate, and works well now (had some issues months ago though). Codex does not have remote control in CLI mode, only in the app, and it tends to load slower and queued requests don’t make it if you’re not on the app. (also the Windows app being unusable that creates a problem) Skills: Codex often invokes skills at all the wrong times even after I cleaned up all the instructions to clearly state when they should not be used. I’d have to steer it away quite regularly. Context Window: Codex only has 250-300k context window compared to 1M of CC, and often compacts mid task. Loop: The loop feature allows me to have a session check on a wiggum loop regularly while keeping a blank context window, and fire off a subagent to investigate if something goes wrong. Or allows me to have a session waiting until another completes. Codex doesn’t have loop. Note: This is all with Opus 4.8, I haven’t had enough time with Opus 5 yet. How have you all been finding the difference? Have folks switched over? Are you switching back? submitted by /u/djacksondev
Originally posted by u/djacksondev on r/ClaudeCode
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