magpie vs CC Switch: how to choose
As of 2026-10-27, CC Switch by default rewrites the configs of Claude Code, Codex and other clients so each client connects directly to the provider you pick (an optional routing mode forwards through your machine); magpie runs a gateway on your machine at 127.0.0.1:3425, and clients connect to that gateway, which forwards requests and translates between OpenAI Chat, OpenAI Responses, Anthropic Messages and Gemini.
Updated 2026-10-27
Point this tool at the QCode endpoint — one key for Claude, GPT and Chinese models.
- Billed per token — live rates on /models
- Pay by card (Visa / Mastercard / AMEX), Apple Pay, Google Pay or crypto
- Self-service: top up and activate instantly
Four things to know
magpie's local gateway
Clients send requests to this local address, and magpie forwards them to the provider you added.
Two CC Switch modes
By default, Direct connects the client straight to the provider; Routing forwards through your machine and converts API formats.
Same license
Both projects are MIT open source; each repository carries its own license.
Check date
Versions and features follow the official pages fetched on this day.
What each tool does
CC Switch is a desktop app that manages API provider configs for Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex and other tools; a switch replaces only the connection details in the target config file (endpoint, key, model), so plugins, hooks, MCP and your own comments stay as they are. magpie also rewrites each agent's config file, but it runs a local gateway: requests go to the gateway first, then to the provider you added in magpie, with protocol translation where needed.
What the official pages say
The CC Switch README says “The Only Official Website: ccswitch.io”, and explains that Direct connects the client straight to the provider while Routing forwards on your machine with automatic failover; the magpie README says its gateway speaks OpenAI Chat, OpenAI Responses, Anthropic Messages and Gemini, and translates between them, streaming, tool calls and reasoning included.
Timeline
The magpie GitHub repository is created; its repository metadata lists the MIT license.
CC Switch publishes v4.0.21, recorded in its CHANGELOG on 2026-10-26.
magpie publishes v0.1.1680; this page checks both tools on the same day.
Confirmed vs. unconfirmed
Confirmed (verifiable in official pages)
ccswitch.io is the only official CC Switch site, and installers come from GitHub Releases; Direct connects straight to the provider while Routing forwards locally and converts API formats, with a failover queue. magpie has no server of its own in the request path, and its privacy masking is off by default and must be turned on in Settings → Privacy.
Unconfirmed and not published
As of 2026-10-27, the official docs of the two projects do not give a joint procedure for installing both. The CC Switch author Jason Young replied on X on 2026-10-14 that they can be installed together, but their routing features cannot run at the same time: magpie routes everything, while CC Switch's routing and aggregation also turn routing on (an author post, not formal documentation).
Comparison
CC Switch
How it works: a desktop app that rewrites client configs. Local forwarding: Routing mode only; Direct connects the client straight to the provider. Clients: the README says “One App, Twelve Tools”, including Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI and OpenCode. Protocol translation: Routing converts among Anthropic Messages, OpenAI Chat Completions, OpenAI Responses and Gemini Native. Failover: a failover queue can be configured in Routing. Privacy masking: not listed in the official README. License: MIT. Platforms: Windows, macOS and Linux (a Tauri 2 desktop app). Download: the official site ccswitch.io, with installers on GitHub Releases. Latest version: v4.0.21 (published 2026-10-26, checked 2026-10-27). QCode: add a Claude provider, set ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL to https://api.qcode.cc/api and ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN to your key, then click Enable.
magpie
How it works: desktop app, terminal, CLI and a local gateway that rewrite each agent's model config. Local forwarding: yes, client requests go to 127.0.0.1:3425. Clients: the official docs say magpie knows Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, OpenCode and others; see the official docs for the full list. Protocol translation: the gateway speaks OpenAI Chat, OpenAI Responses, Anthropic Messages and Gemini and translates among them. Failover: a routing group can move on to another model or provider, so the agent never sees the error. Privacy masking: built-in masking is off by default and must be turned on in Settings → Privacy. License: MIT. Platforms: macOS, Windows and Linux, plus Docker and Termux. Download: the official site usemagpie.ai, with installers on GitHub Releases. Latest version: v0.1.1680 (published 2026-10-27). QCode: add a custom provider with an import link or magpie provider add.
How to choose
Want to change the endpoint and key for Claude Code or Codex without running another forwarding process on your machine → CC Switch (Direct mode by default; turn on Routing to use GPT models in Claude Code). Want every agent's requests to pass through one local gateway that handles protocol translation and multi-provider routing → magpie. Want both → see the note below on running them together.
Connect each one to QCode
CC Switch: add a Claude provider, set ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL to https://api.qcode.cc/api and ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN to your QCode key, then click Enable; for Codex, set the base URL to https://api.qcode.cc/openai and wire_api to responses. Details: https://docs.qcode.cc/en/docs/ide/cc-switch. magpie: the import link (without a key) and the terminal commands are at https://docs.qcode.cc/en/docs/ide/magpie; after importing in the desktop app, paste your key in magpie's dialog and press Add, as the official notes say; terminal users use magpie provider add. Three addresses: Claude → https://api.qcode.cc/api (anthropic); GPT and Chinese models → https://api.qcode.cc/openai/v1 (chat); Codex / Responses → https://api.qcode.cc/openai (responses). For the Asia and North America access points, replace the domain with asia.qcode.cc / us.qcode.cc; the paths stay the same. Checked on 2026-10-27 with magpie 0.1.1677: Claude requests sent through magpie are essentially the same as going directly to QCode, and prompt caching works as usual. Billing is per token, with per-model rates on /models. Want to try a new model for a few days? Pay-as-you-go Packs begin at $4 for a one-time quota you use within 7 days; if you already have a Personal Plan, add a booster pack when you need more quota.
Frequently asked questions
Can magpie and CC Switch be used together?
Yes, they can be installed together, but their routing features cannot run at the same time: in an X reply on 2026-10-14, the CC Switch author said magpie routes everything while CC Switch's routing and aggregation also turn routing on. That is an author post, not formal documentation; follow each project's docs for actual settings.
Is a 400 on the chat and responses lines of magpie provider test a misconfiguration?
No. When the first model is a Claude model, a 400 on the chat and responses lines is normal for QCode, because Claude is served only through the anthropic address; if the anthropic line shows ✓, Claude works. Checked on 2026-10-27 with magpie 0.1.1677.
Does routing through magpie cost more or lose the prompt cache?
Checked on 2026-10-27: Claude requests sent through magpie are essentially the same as going directly to QCode, and prompt caching works as usual. QCode bills per token, with per-model rates on /models.
How do I add QCode in magpie?
Use the import link from the QCode docs in the desktop app, or add a custom provider with magpie provider add: url= takes an OpenAI-compatible base, anthropic= an Anthropic-compatible base, plus responses= when the vendor has a separate Responses endpoint (official reference). The three QCode addresses are above; begin with claude-opus-5-5, claude-sonnet-5-5, claude-haiku-5-5, gpt-6.1-sol and gpt-5.6-sol.
Which site is the official CC Switch website?
The README states that ccswitch.io is the only official website; source code and installers are in Releases of the GitHub repository farion1231/cc-switch.
Does magpie send my prompts to anyone else?
The official docs say magpie has no server of its own in the path, so prompts go only to the provider you choose. Privacy masking is off by default and must be turned on in Settings → Privacy; once on, it replaces keys, passwords and emails with placeholders on your computer. You can also turn off the anonymous usage count in Settings → Privacy, or set DO_NOT_TRACK=1 / MAGPIE_NO_STATS=1.
Sources
CC Switch official README, CHANGELOG and GitHub Releases; magpie official README, docs/reference.md, usemagpie.ai/docs and docs/import, and GitHub Releases; the CC Switch author's X post of 2026-10-14; the QCode docs CC Switch page and endpoints page, qcode.cc/models and qcode.cc/pay-as-you-go. All fetched on 2026-10-27.
Connect magpie or CC Switch to QCode
Billed per token; per-model rates are listed on qcode.cc/models.
Related reading
Claude Code Pay-as-you-go Packs: No Subscription, 7 Days
Buy quota once and use it within 7 days, no subscription; the same models as Personal Plans.
CC Switch official site, download and install (2026)
The only official site ccswitch.io, install methods for Windows, macOS and Linux, and the GitHub Releases download entry.
CC Switch Guide: Switch APIs in Claude Code and Codex
Create Claude and Codex entries in CC Switch with the QCode endpoint and key, then switch with one click.
Crypto payment guide
Nine coins, 56 networks, zero platform fee for AI coding API credits.
magpie and CC Switch details on this page were checked on 2026-10-27 against their official READMEs, docs and GitHub Releases; QCode access and billing details were checked on 2026-10-27 against docs.qcode.cc and /models; model availability and rates follow /models. Official changes are not announced separately.