Overview of 6 Permission Modes

Claude Code provides 6 distinct permission modes to balance security and velocity.

The 6 Modes

Mode	What can run without asking	Use Case
default	Read-only tools only	Starting out, sensitive work
acceptEdits	Read + File edits + basic FS commands	Iterating code after review
plan	Read-only tools + Planning	Researching before making changes
auto	Almost everything (with safety classifier)	Long tasks, reducing prompt fatigue
dontAsk	Pre-approved tools only	CI/CD and scripts
bypassPermissions	Everything (Skips all checks)	Isolated containers / VMs only

Important Shared Rules

1. Protected Paths: Except for bypassPermissions, no mode automatically allows writing to protected paths (e.g., .git, .claude, .bashrc).
2. Rules Precedence: Custom allow/ask/deny rules still apply in all modes except bypassPermissions.
3. Read-only Whitelist: Basic read-only commands like ls, cat, and grep never prompt in any mode.