AIdataNewsGlobal General Briefing: Anthropic Renames Claude Max 5x and Max 20x to Max and Ultra, Lifts 5-Hour Cap
Anthropic has just announced a reshuffle of its paid Claude plans. The former Max 5x tier is now called Max, and the former Max 20x tier is now called Ultra. The monthly price for Max remains $100, while Ultra remains $200 per month. The most immediate change falls on Ultra: verified users no longer need to wait inside a 5-hour window, and the adjustment begins today.
Official information says that Ultra accounts meeting verification conditions can now use Claude continuously within the weekly allowance. Currently, most existing Ultra subscribers have started receiving the change, while newer accounts still need to be verified.
The weekly allowance itself has not changed. It remains 10 times the weekly usage level for Pro users. In other words, this is a usage-pattern change, not a weekly allowance increase. The 5-hour control affects short-session pacing; the weekly 10 times cap affects total volume.
Reaction from users was mixed. Some pointed to a contrast with the day before, when Plus users’ allowance doubled, and commented: “Just this? They should learn from the 28-day reset plan. (lol)”
Another comment translated the move in blunt terms: “Our Fable 5.5 allowance consumption is simply astonishing. So the only solution is to spend $200 to buy Ultra. (Makes sense.)”
What the two renamed tiers now include
Anthropic’s change mainly affects two high-priced subscription tiers. For people who already pay, the system will automatically migrate the corresponding plan to the new name; no manual switch is required.
For users on the former Max 5x, the adjustment is mostly a name simplification. Their price and existing usage rules have not changed in an obvious way. For them, the change is primarily administrative.
For users on the former Max 20x, now Ultra, the plan’s new positioning is more concrete. According to the official description, Ultra includes:
- 5-hour limit removal: verified accounts no longer need to wait for a 5-hour window reset and can keep working inside the weekly allowance.
- Weekly 10 times allowance: compared with Pro, Ultra provides 10 times weekly usage.
- Priority access to new features: including new models, features, and products.
- Claude Code support: users can execute code development tasks in the terminal.
- Long-task support: Claude can continue processing reports, spreadsheets, presentations, and other complex work in the background.
In plain terms, the practical effect of removing the 5-hour cap is that verified Ultra users can consume the weekly allowance at their own pace instead of pausing until a short window resets. For Ultra, the change is operational: the budget may still be capped by the week, but the day’s pacing rule is loosened.
There is still a gate. Anthropic says most existing Ultra users are already being unblocked gradually, while new users must first pass account verification. The verification is carried out automatically using account and payment history information, so users do not need to take extra steps beyond waiting for an official email notice.
To confirm whether the cap has been lifted, users can open Claude Settings → Usage. If the familiar 5-hour usage progress bar disappears, the unblocking has taken effect.
Why the “20x” label disappeared: an old allowance account
The reason the former Max 20x no longer carries “20x” in its name is connected to a long-standing confusion about how Claude allowances are counted.
Mike Overell, who is responsible for Claude subscription products at Anthropic, posted an explanation. The original “20 times” in Max 20x referred to usage within a single 5-hour window: that window allowed 20 times the usage of Pro users. Later, Anthropic added weekly allowance limits. That created a mismatch: the 5-hour allowance was 20 times, but the weekly allowance was only 10 times Pro.
Mike Overell acknowledged that the naming could mislead users and apologized for earlier communication problems. In that sense, the rename to Ultra puts an unsettled allowance account back on the table.
Claude has faced allowance disputes before. This June, the Wall Street Journal reported that one consumer sued Anthropic over limits attached to its expensive subscription, alleging that the allowance claims were misleading. One focus of the dispute was the actual usage associated with Max 5x and Max 20x. Viewed from that angle, the latest adjustment responds to a long-running stream of user feedback.
The timing also invites comparison. Just yesterday, next door at OpenAI, “Tibo the Godfather” doubled Pro users’ allowance. That contrast helps explain why some users reacted with both relief and sarcasm: the Claude change removes a window, while the OpenAI change altered allowance size.
Data points worth noting
| Item | Current wording | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Tier renamed from Max 5x | Max | Name simplified; monthly price remains $100. |
| Tier renamed from Max 20x | Ultra | Monthly price remains $200; verified users get 5-hour cap removal. |
| Weekly allowance | 10 times Pro | Unchanged, despite the removal of the 5-hour window. |
| Rollout status | Currently rolling out | Most existing Ultra users are receiving it; new accounts need verification. |
Checklist for subscribers
- If you are already on Ultra or the former Max 20x, check whether your account is verified.
- Open Settings → Usage and look for the 5-hour usage progress bar.
- If the 5-hour bar is gone, the limit removal is active.
- Keep using Claude within the weekly allowance, which remains 10 times Pro.
- Do not manually switch plans; migration to the new names happens automatically.
FAQ: what users are asking
Does Ultra still have a weekly cap?
Yes. The weekly allowance remains unchanged and is still 10 times the Pro level. The change is the removal of the 5-hour limit for verified users.
Why did Anthropic rename Max 20x to Ultra?
According to Mike Overell, the “20x” label described the 5-hour window, not the weekly allowance, and the weekly cap was 10 times Pro. That mismatch caused confusion.
Who has already received the 5-hour cap removal?
Most existing Ultra subscribers have started to receive it. New accounts need to wait for verification before the change applies.
How can a user verify the unblocking?
Open Claude Settings → Usage. If the 5-hour progress bar disappears, the account has been unblocked.
What role does Fable 5.5 play in the reaction?
Some users linked the complaint to Fable 5.5’s heavy allowance consumption, arguing that only Ultra can absorb that usage.
Why did some users compare the update with OpenAI?
The comparison appears because, just yesterday, OpenAI’s “Tibo the Godfather” doubled Pro users’ allowance.
Bottom line for AIdataNewsGlobal readers
The update is less about giving users a larger weekly budget than about clarifying how that budget may be used. Anthropic renamed two paid tiers, kept the monthly prices at $100 and $200, removed the 5-hour window for verified Ultra accounts, and left the weekly allowance at 10 times Pro. Starting today, the change is rolling out gradually, currently reaching most existing Ultra users first. Whether the market views this as generous or merely corrective will likely depend on how quickly new accounts are verified and how future naming choices avoid another allowance old account.