Claude Code Tokens at Startup: Why They Spike and How to Cut Them

If your Claude Code session already shows a huge token count before you type a single word, your prompts are not the problem. Claude Code tokens at startup come mostly from fixed items: the system prompt, built-in tools, memory files like CLAUDE.md, and the tool definitions of every connected MCP server. One How-To Geek writer measured about 84.6K tokens of overhead at the start of each chat and cut it with one change. That figure is the author’s own measurement, not a universal number, but the cause is common and the fix is quick. Every message you send carries a lot of hidden baggage. Claude Code re-sends the system prompt, your CLAUDE.md, MCP server instructions and earlier file and command output with each turn.

First reported by iTechify. This page is a short excerpt; the full text is theirs.