Model Override

Model Override

Claude Code hardcodes Anthropic’s models as Opus, Sonnet, and Haiku. The env override replaces every one of those model slots with whatever you want: a different Anthropic model, a third-party provider, or a local LLM. You pick the backend, you pick the model, and Claude Code talks to it using the same Anthropic message format.

The config lives in .claude/settings.local.json (project-scoped) or ~/.claude/settings.json (global). The relevant keys all sit under the "env" block.

Z.ai Example

Drop this into .claude/settings.local.json and swap in your own Z.ai key:

NOTE: This is a full example with specific permissions applied. Don’t be alarmed if yours is different.

{
  "env": {
    "ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://api.z.ai/api/anthropic",
    "ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN": "***",
    "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "",
    "API_TIMEOUT_MS": "3000000",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_OPUS_MODEL": "glm-5.2",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL": "glm-5.2",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL": "glm-5.2",
    "ANTHROPIC_SMALL_FAST_MODEL": "glm-5.2",
    "CLAUDE_CODE_SUBAGENT_MODEL": "glm-5.2"
  },
  "permissions": {
    "allow": [
      "Bash(git:*)",
      "Bash(ls:*)",
      "Read(*)"
    ]
  }
}

Ollama Cloud Example

Same structure, different provider. Swap in your own Ollama API key:

{
  "env": {
    "ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://ollama.com/v1",
    "ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN": "***",
    "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "",
    "API_TIMEOUT_MS": "3000000",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_OPUS_MODEL": "glm-5.1:cloud",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL": "glm-5.1:cloud",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL": "minimax-m2.7:cloud",
    "ANTHROPIC_SMALL_FAST_MODEL": "minimax-m2.7:cloud",
    "CLAUDE_CODE_SUBAGENT_MODEL": "glm-5.1:cloud"
  }
}

Local Ollama (Self-Hosted)

Running Ollama on your own hardware instead of Ollama Cloud changes three things: the base URL, the auth token, and the model names. Some experimentation may be required.

{
  "env": {
    "ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "http://localhost:11434",
    "ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN": "ollama",
    "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_OPUS_MODEL": "qwen3-coder",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL": "qwen3-coder",
    "ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL": "glm-4.7-flash",
    "ANTHROPIC_SMALL_FAST_MODEL": "glm-4.7-flash",
    "CLAUDE_CODE_SUBAGENT_MODEL": "qwen3-coder"
  }
}

Where to Put This: Project-Level vs. Global

The config above goes in .claude/settings.local.json — that’s the project-level override. It only applies when you’re inside that specific project directory.

Scope File Location Affects Shared? Use For
Managed System dirs (e.g. /Library/Application Support/ClaudeCode/) All users on machine Yes (IT-deployed) Security policies, compliance
User (Global) ~/.claude/settings.json You, across ALL projects No Personal defaults, API keys
Project .claude/settings.json All collaborators Yes Team-shared settings, MCP servers
Local .claude/settings.local.json You No Personal project overrides

Precedence (highest to lowest): Managed > Command line > Local > Project > User

Project-Level (what the examples above use)

File: .claude/settings.local.json (in your project root)

This is the right choice when you want different providers per project. Your React project might use Ollama, while your Python project uses Z.ai. The .local.json file is gitignored by default so your API key stays local.

Global-Level (affects everything)

File: ~/.claude/settings.json

This applies to every Claude Code session on your machine, regardless of which directory you’re in. Same JSON structure, same env keys, but now it’s universal.

Key difference: If you set this globally, every claude command everywhere uses Ollama. If a project has its own .claude/settings.local.json, that project’s settings win over the global file because Local has higher precedence than User.

Provider Comparison

Setting Z.ai Ollama Cloud Ollama Local
ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL https://api.z.ai/api/anthropic https://ollama.com/v1 http://localhost:11434
ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN your-z-ai-key your-ollama-key ollama
ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_OPUS_MODEL glm-5.2 glm-5.1:cloud qwen3-coder
ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_SONNET_MODEL glm-5.2 glm-5.1:cloud qwen3-coder
ANTHROPIC_DEFAULT_HAIKU_MODEL glm-5.2 minimax-m2.7:cloud glm-4.7-flash
ANTHROPIC_SMALL_FAST_MODEL glm-5.2 minimax-m2.7:cloud glm-4.7-flash
CLAUDE_CODE_SUBAGENT_MODEL glm-5.2 glm-5.1:cloud qwen3-coder
Scope project project or global project or global

Key Differences: Cloud vs. Local