[Bug] Incorrectly Prompts for API Credits Despite Active Subscription Usage Limit

same problem:
Usage credits are required for this model.
even though Fable is available in the normal subscription until the 19th without usage credits.

yep mines just kicked me out mid conversation suddenly - I had even checked about 10 minutes ago and I was only at 45% fable usage.

same.. happened mid conversation!

Same issue. Was working fine all morning and now it's gone.

Same!
but it's probably a backend failure and not the claude code, because Fable is also unavailable on the website (same error message)

Same here. Fable 5 usage tracker disappeared. And I got the "Usage credits are required for this model." message.

Same here, just been kicked out of using fable even though I had 50% usage left until 19th. The fable meter had disappeared from the usage stats, which I thought was odd, then the prompt saying I'd used all my credits popped up

Same issue on Windows desktop / Claude Code cloud sessions.

• Fable 5 was available under the active subscription and expected to remain available until July 19.
• The Fable usage meter disappeared unexpectedly.
• An active Fable session was interrupted mid-task.
• Subsequent attempts showed: Usage credits are required for this model.
• The account still had subscription usage remaining before the model disappeared.
• The failure affected both an existing running session and a newly resumed task.

This appears to be a backend entitlement/model-availability regression rather than normal quota exhaustion.

You're right to flag this — you caught the same thing several of us did today. Quick justification for the cross-link, so it doesn't read as me swiping your issue: it's the same root cause, and the team will move faster on one clear consolidated thread than on a scatter of "usage credits" reports.

My read is it isn't a billing glitch — Fable 5 looks to have been intentionally moved to API-only billing, so it returns "Usage credits are required for this model" even with subscription usage left.

I've written that up at #78613 with the case for keeping a subscription path (or at least publishing the rationale). If it'd help you, a 👍 and a note on your use case there would concentrate the signal — full credit to you for reporting it first.

https://status.claude.com/

I am experiencing the same issue.

Also reproducing on macOS.

Claude Code displays the notice that Claude Fable 5 access on paid plans is extended through July 19 and that up to half of the weekly usage limit can be used on Fable 5. Attempting to use the model then returns:

Usage credits are required for this model.

Related discussion: #78613

Promotion details shown by the CLI: https://support.claude.com/en/articles/15424964-claude-fable-5-promotional-access

Monitoring - We have applied a fix to resolve the erroneous requirement for usage credits on Fable 5, and are monitoring to ensure no further issues. You may need to relaunch Claude.ai or Claude Code to restore access as expected.

Jul 17, 2026 - 18:48 UTC

https://status.claude.com/

Billing follow-up from the same July 17 entitlement failure:

I had Extra Usage enabled when the erroneous Usage credits are required for this model state occurred. A complete invoice reconstruction now shows seven receipts marked Paid July 17 totaling USD 704.71: six automatic extra-usage recharges totaling USD 604.71, plus one separate USD 100 usage-credit purchase.

Anthropic later applied only a USD 3.11 account credit tied to 18:16–18:47 UTC. I am not claiming the visible outage lasted the entire day. I am asking Anthropic to reconcile the entire July 17 billing ledger, because the short service-status window does not prove that every incident-caused paid-credit debit and auto-recharge was identified or reversed.

Dedicated billing tracker: #81703

Public source matrix, including this incident cluster and contemporaneous user reports:
https://coolak.github.io/anthropic-claude-billing-incident/july-17-mass-report-matrix.html

If anyone here had Extra Usage or auto-reload enabled, please compare the whole July 17 invoice/credit ledger rather than only the visible outage minutes. Do not post private receipt, card, or support identifiers.

Anthropic: please assign a human Billing Platform/payment-operations owner, reconcile included-plan entitlement against paid-credit consumption and auto-recharges for the full day, and identify with timestamped evidence any disputed charge you contend is unrelated.