---
source: CrewKit documentation
url: https://crewkit.io/docs/tui.md
title: "Terminal interface"
description: "crewkit's opt-in terminal interface (TUI) — a live sidebar with session metrics, git context, and AI summaries."
---


By default, `crewkit` launches the native Claude Code you already know — Claude Code owns the terminal while crewkit runs alongside it in the background. If you prefer a wrapped view, crewkit also ships an interactive terminal interface (TUI) that adds a collapsible sidebar with session metrics, git context, and AI summaries.

```bash
crewkit tui
```

On Windows, this interface is currently the default under every spelling — background observation is macOS and Linux only for now.

---

## Layout

The TUI has two panels:

- **Main panel** — Full Claude Code experience. Everything you type goes directly to Claude.
- **Sidebar** — Real-time session data, toggled with `Tab`.

The sidebar has collapsible sections. Press `j`/`k` (or arrow keys) to navigate sections when the sidebar is focused.

---

## Sidebar sections

### Context

Shows your context window usage:
- **Context window** — How full the current context is (tokens used / total window)
- **Total tokens** — Cumulative tokens across all turns in this session

### Session

- **Model** — Which Claude model is active
- **Duration** — How long the session has been running
- **Turns** — Number of conversation turns
- **Compactions** — How many times context was compacted

### Git

- **Branch** — Current git branch
- **Changes** — Uncommitted file count
- **Recent commits** — Latest commit messages

### Summary

An AI-generated summary of what's been accomplished in the session. Updates periodically as the conversation progresses.

### Conventions

Shows active playbook conventions and any challenges logged during the session.

### Plan

Tracks the active plan file if Claude is working with a structured plan.

---

## Keybindings

| Key | Action |
|-----|--------|
| `Tab` | Toggle sidebar visibility |
| `Ctrl+C` | End the session |
| `Page Up` / `Page Down` | Scroll terminal history |
| `j` / `k` | Navigate sidebar sections (when focused) |
| `Enter` | Collapse/expand sidebar section |

Everything else passes through to Claude Code.

---

## Session reset

Type `/clear new` in Claude to reset the session context. crewkit detects this and resets:

- Telemetry counters (tokens, cost)
- Summary state
- Start time and message count
- Challenge tracker
- Active plan

The session continues with a fresh context window.

---

## Cost tracking

The sidebar shows real-time cost estimates based on token usage. A brief flash animation highlights cost changes so you notice spending spikes.

---

## Next steps

- [CLI command reference](/docs/cli)
- [Dashboard overview](/docs/dashboard-overview)