Cost Guardian

Cost Guardian

The only Claude Code cost tool that tells you WHERE you're wasting money and HOW to stop.

Other tools show what you spent. Cost Guardian shows what you *wasted*, what you *got for it*, and what you *could have saved* — with an efficiency score, ROI metrics, and model savings calculator that no other tool has.

Zero setup. No Docker. No Grafana. Just install and go.

What Makes This Different

Every cost tracking tool shows you a number. Cost Guardian gives you intelligence:

Insights Engine (No Other Tool Has This)

Efficiency Score
Every session gets a score from 0-100 showing how efficiently you're spending:

Cost-Per-Line ROI
Know what you're getting for your money:

Model Savings Calculator
See how much you could save with different models:

Anomaly Detection
Catches runaway sessions before they drain your limits:

GitHub Badge
Add your AI development cost to your README:

The Problem

Every Claude Code user has been there:

- "Why did my session use 80% of my daily limit in 20 minutes?"
- "How much did that refactor actually cost me?"
- "I wish I knew this feature would cost $15 before I started"

There's no built-in way to see what you're spending as you spend it. Existing solutions require Docker, Grafana, or OpenTelemetry infrastructure. Most developers just... guess.

The Solution

Cost Guardian is a Claude Code plugin that gives you full cost visibility with zero setup:

Features

Real-Time Cost Tracking
Every tool call is automatically tracked via hooks. No manual logging. No configuration.

Budget Guardrails
Set spending limits that actually enforce themselves:
- Hard mode: Blocks tool calls when budget is exceeded
- Soft mode: Warns you but lets work continue
- Scopes: per-session, daily, weekly, monthly

Pre-Task Cost Estimation
Before…