Claude Duet shares Pro and Max usage limits with the rest of Claude, background checks included

What Claude Duet changes for Pro and Max usage

Anthropic opened a research preview of Claude Duet on October 21, 2026. Duet is a new app in which Claude works as a proactive agent. It is available as a standalone app on iOS and Android, and on claude.ai. During the research preview, Duet is included in Pro and Max plans and uses the same usage limits as the rest of Claude. Anthropic is starting with Pro and Max users in the US, and you get access through a waitlist.

Anthropic says it designed Duet around Claude Opus 5.5. For now, Duet runs in its own app, separate from the main Claude app.

Sources: Introducing Claude Duet | Claude by Anthropic

What it means for your usage limits

Duet does not get a separate allowance. During the preview it shares your plan's usage limits with the rest of Claude, so anything Duet uses comes out of the same limits as the rest of your Claude use on that plan.

Anthropic says Duet uses those limits differently than a typical conversation does. Its background checks count toward the limits. Larger tasks, such as building a financial model or a deck, need more model turns and more background work. Duet checks your connected accounts every few hours, and Anthropic says checking nonstop would use up your plan's limits much faster. You can also tell Duet what you want to hear about and how often.

The announcement does not say how much of your limits one background check or one larger task uses. The only plans it names are Pro and Max.

Sources: Introducing Claude Duet | Claude by Anthropic

How to get access

To get access, join the waitlist. Anthropic says it will email you when Duet is ready for you. It calls this an early version that might still misread a thread or misjudge what is urgent. It also says what it learns from early users will shape how Duet and the main Claude app work together.

Sources: Introducing Claude Duet | Claude by Anthropic