Feature request: session-only model override without changing global default
Status Fixed / completed
Maintainer reply ✓ Yes — bcherny
Activity 4 comments · opened Jun 17, 2026 · closed Aug 17, 2026
💡 Likely answer: A maintainer (bcherny, collaborator)
responded on this thread — see the highlighted reply below.
Problem
Currently, /model <name> saves the model as the global default for all future sessions. There's no way to switch models for just the current session without permanently changing the default.
The --model flag at launch (claude --model <name>) is the only session-scoped option, but it's only available at startup — you can't switch mid-session without affecting your global default.
Requested Behaviour
Either:
/model <name>should apply only to the current session (and not persist), or- A separate command/flag for session-scoped overrides, e.g.
/model --session <name>or/model --temp <name>
Use Case
Quickly trying a different model for one session (e.g. testing Sonnet vs Opus for a specific task) without having to remember to switch back afterwards.
4 Comments
Found 3 possible duplicate issues:
This issue will be automatically closed as a duplicate in 3 days.
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This matches my experience (#69097 ), and I hope this bug is eventually fixed.
For the love… please…
This exists today: run
/modelto open the picker, highlight the model, and presssto switch for the current session only (Enter switches and saves it as your default).claude --model <name>at launch is also session-scoped.Docs: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/model-config#setting-your-model
Closing as available.
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