---
title: "Is there a reason you recommend Claude Code over others?"
author: "@justin"
author_url: https://elements.dev/u/@justin
published: 2026-10-22T21:17:59.176Z
url: https://elements.dev/p/is-there-a-reason-you-recommend-claude-code-over-others-zn5lc5vx
kind: post
format: article
---

# Is there a reason you recommend Claude Code over others?

by [@justin](https://elements.dev/u/@justin) · 2026-10-22

I notice that Elements encourages me to use Claude Code in particular, but shouldn't it work just as well with Codex or others? In fact, thanks to Elements's design and affordances, I'm guessing you could get away with using free/fast/cheap harnesses and models even better than you might with other systems. Perhaps the advice should not be to get Claude Code but save $200/mo by cancelling Claude Code, and use Pi + a cheap and faster model? Not sure but seems worth investigating. I have a strong sense that a lot of new vibecoders are using unnecessarily powerful models (wasting time and money) for many personal software use-cases...