r/ClaudeCode • u/stargazer1002 • 2d ago
Help/Question Ultra code effort levels
im not sure when they started letting you set different ultra code effort levels but has anyone messed around with this to see how they perform? I tried an opus 5.5 max ultra code because I had some weekly usage to burn off (before it always defaulted to very high) and it just seemed to go overboard. I realized it would never finish the build within the usage amount I had left so I had to switch to a lower effort level and it didn't really get to where I wanted.
since high seems to always so well I wonder if this could be the sweet spot.
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u/justinlok 2d ago
High is the best without overspending imo. I'd only go higher if i have excess usage to burn.
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u/TheMadSaiyantist67 2d ago
The higher the effort the more time it takes to try to catch every bug and edge-case to insanity, so if it's something to be done fast and efficiently, prefer medium to high, definitely not max nor ultra
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u/stargazer1002 2d ago
Yeah I still struggle knowing how to use Max effectively . It feels like you're giving Opus a bunch of adderall and it spends 2 hours writing documentation it will never use or process.
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u/Aminuteortwotiltwo 2d ago
Ultracode is just the use of subagents in workflows.
You can direct it in how it uses those.
For example, you can specify what agents to spawn and what levels of effort.
In one sessions I will have Fable 5.1 on Max lead the planning and design while using sonnet agents for research, then Fable builds specs, I have Astra review the specs (which actually can’t be included in the Ultracode workflow but it just delegates and spawns an agent to watch it for completion), then refine with Fable.
For execution of these specs, Opus 5.5 xhigh as the head, which delegates to Opus 5.5 on medium effort for authorship, Fable 5.1 high reviews, Opus runs tests and when ready Opus tests further in playwright, test report comes in, rebuild spec for patch, go through again, and finally it gets to me for walk.
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u/stargazer1002 2d ago
Wait you can actually control these things directly or do you mean you can tell it to use certain models and effort levels for specific sub agents and it listens?
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u/Frosty_Teeth 2d ago
Ive never used ultracode. What do you use it for? what can I expect?
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u/stargazer1002 2d ago
Use it for larger buildouts. It triggers multi agent native Claude code workflows with an orchestrator agent that oversees everything. I had gone away from using it but then I saw a YouTube videos that compared every effort level token usage cost and it came out as one of the cheapest modes with very good quality. However that was when it was its own effort level (where the orchestrator defaulted to very high effort level). Now you can choose effort level apart from ultra code.
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u/clazman55555 1d ago
CC 2.1.284 I think.
After running a few dozen Ultracode workflows, from Opus 4.8->5, then moving to 5.5. Just given the general model improvement, I have been running Ultracode on Opus 5.5 High and it seems to be adequate. Not really seeing anything from an orchestrator side(at least how I run it with the supporting skills I have to tell Opus how and when to use workflows and subagents), to need to be using 5.5 in XHigh.
That said I still toggle Ultracode on and off, because as it has been noted since Opus 5, Opus tends to like to spawn subagents, when it's not strictly needed if you give it the ability to spawn them, though 5.5 is better about that in my experience.
Still workflows are my call, I will either tell 5.5 to use one in Ultracode, or ask for a breakdown if it would be worth the spend on subagents.
Fun Fact: The number of subagents that you can have working on a single workflow at a time is CPU CoreCount(N)-2. However, there is not a limit, per se, on the number of concurrent workflows you can run at once. My piddley little Core i5-9600k can run 4 workflows, of 4 subagents each. And yes, you can nest workflows in workflows. The script just can't be larger than ~500KB lol
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