Every slash command, CLI flag, keyboard shortcut, and input mode — explained, with copy-paste examples.
Claude Code Commands — The Complete Field Guide
This book documents the full Claude Code command surface as three families: slash commands used inside a session (Part II), CLI commands and flags used at your shell (Part III), and keyboard shortcuts and input-mode prefixes used mid-keystroke (Part IV). It then teaches you to write your own commands (Part V), combine them into workflows (Part VI), and troubleshoot when something misbehaves (Part VII). Every command entry follows the same four-part template — what it does, syntax, example, notes — so you can either read cover to cover or jump straight to a lookup.
NOT Do
This book does not replace the official documentation, and it will not pretend the command surface is frozen — because it isn't. Claude Code updates often; commands are added, and a few are renamed or retired. So this book teaches the durable pattern and the stable core, and repeatedly points you back to the one place that is always exactly right for your machine: /help in a session and claude --help at the shell. It also does not cover writing application code with Claude, prompt technique, or the Claude API — those are their own books.
Roadmap
- Part I — the mental model: what "commands" are and why there are three surfaces. - Part II — every built-in slash command, grouped by what you use it for. - Part III — the claude CLI: starting, resuming, scripting, and configuring from the shell. - Part IV — keyboard shortcuts and the !, @, # input prefixes. - Part V — authoring your own slash commands and skills. - Part VI — real workflows that chain commands together. - Part VII — troubleshooting and the mistakes that trip everyone up once. - Appendices — a one-page cheat sheet and a glossary.
For
Developers and technical people who want to stop using ten percent of the tool. Beginners who want the whole map before the details. Team leads who need to know what's configurable and how to lock it down. Anyone who learns by trying a command and watching what it does.