Set Up
Claude Code
No coding experience needed. Follow along step by step and you'll be building with AI in about 30 minutes.
By the end, you'll be able to
- Open a terminal and feel comfortable using it
- Tell Claude Code to build you a website, app, or automation
- Understand what's happening well enough to steer it
Wait — why do I need 9 tools just to use Claude Code?
Fair question. Claude Code can build entire apps, automate workflows, and write production code. But to do all that, it needs to actually run code on your machine, manage files, and talk to services like GitHub. Each tool in this list gives Claude Code a superpower: Node.js lets it execute code, Git lets it track and save your work, Homebrew makes installing everything painless. Without them, Claude Code would be like a chef with no kitchen.
The good news? You only do this once, and we'll walk you through every single step.
What we'll set up
| # | Tool | Why you need it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Terminal | Where Claude Code lives |
| 2 | Xcode CLI Tools | Behind-the-scenes developer tools |
| 3 | Homebrew | Makes installing things easy |
| 4 | VS Code | See what Claude builds in real time |
| 5 | Node.js | Claude Code is built on this |
| 6 | Python | Lots of tools depend on it |
| 7 | Git & GitHub | Track changes and store code online |
| 8 | Anthropic Account | Powers the AI behind Claude |
| 9 | Claude Code | Your AI coding assistant |
Personalize your setup (optional)
Why? To auto-fill Git commands later so you can just copy-paste.
This stays in your browser — nothing is collected or sent anywhere.
Skip this if you prefer to type them yourself.