Run Claude Code for Free Using NVIDIA NIM

If you want to use Claude Code with a free locally running NVIDIA NIM backend, follow these steps carefully.

This setup works by running a local API server that Claude Code connects to instead of the default Anthropic API.

Step 1 — Install UV

First, install UV from the official documentation:

https://docs.astral.sh/uv/getting-started/installation/

After installing UV, install Python 3.14:

uv python install 3.14

Step 2 — Clone the Repository

Clone the repository and move into the project directory:

git clone https://github.com/Alishahryar1/free-claude-code.git nvidia-nim
cd nvidia-nim

Step 3 — Create the Environment File

Copy the example environment file to .env.

macOS/Linux

cp .env.example .env

PowerShell

Copy-Item .env.example .env

Step 4 — Configure NVIDIA NIM

To get your API key, visit https://build.nvidia.com/models, verify your mobile number, and generate your API key.

Open the .env file and add your NVIDIA NIM API key and model name.

Example:

NVIDIA_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
MODEL_NAME=your_model_name_here

Save the file after editing.

Step 5 — Start the NVIDIA NIM API Server

Run the following command to start the API server:

uv run uvicorn server:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8082

The API server must stay running in the background while using Claude Code.

Step 6 — Install Claude Code

Install Claude Code using:

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

Step 7 — Run Claude Code with NVIDIA NIM

PowerShell

$env:ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="freecc";
$env:ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="http://localhost:8082";
claude

Bash

ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="freecc" ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="http://localhost:8082" claude

Claude Code will now use the locally running NVIDIA NIM API server.

Optional — Create a Single Startup Script

Instead of manually running both commands every time, you can automate the process using a startup script.

Linux/macOS Startup Script

Create a file named start.sh:

#!/bin/bash

echo "[+] Starting NVIDIA NIM API Server..."

uv run uvicorn server:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8082 &

sleep 5

echo "[+] Launching Claude Code..."

ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="freecc" \
ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="http://localhost:8082" \
claude

Make it executable:

chmod +x start.sh

Run it using:

./start.sh

Windows PowerShell Startup Script

Create a file named start.ps1:

Write-Host "[+] Starting NVIDIA NIM API Server..."

Start-Process powershell -ArgumentList "uv run uvicorn server:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8082"

Start-Sleep -Seconds 5

Write-Host "[+] Launching Claude Code..."

$env:ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN="freecc"
$env:ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="http://localhost:8082"

claude

Run it using:

.\start.ps1

This allows you to start both the API server and Claude Code with a single command.

Important Note

Each time you want to use Claude Code with NVIDIA NIM, make sure:

• The API server is running
• The environment variables are set correctly
• Claude Code is launched using the commands above

If the API server stops, Claude Code will not be able to connect.