Claude Code Kanban: Visualize What Claude Code Is Doing in Real Time
By Devy · AI Tools for Developers
If you use Claude Code for complex projects — especially with multiple agents or parallel tasks — you probably know that feeling of wondering “what is it doing right now?”. Claude Code Kanban solves exactly that: a real-time dashboard that turns Claude Code’s internal activity into a visual Kanban board, with no configuration and no interference with your workflow.
What is Claude Code Kanban?
It’s an open source tool (MIT license) that watches what Claude Code is doing and displays it on a visual board with columns Pending → In Progress → Completed. The important part: it’s completely read-only. It doesn’t control Claude, doesn’t modify task files, doesn’t interfere with anything. It just observes and reports.
Technically, it works by monitoring the ~/.claude/tasks/ and ~/.claude/projects/ directories that Claude Code natively writes to, and sending updates to the browser via Server-Sent Events (SSE) — no polling, no delays.
Getting Started: Three Commands
1. Install the hooks (one-time setup)
npx claude-code-kanban --install
This step is optional but highly recommended. The hooks are small shell scripts installed in ~/.claude/hooks/ and registered in your Claude Code configuration. They enable complete visibility into what’s happening beyond basic tasks.
2. Start the dashboard
npx claude-code-kanban --open
Automatically opens http://localhost:3456 in your browser. If the port is busy, the server automatically finds an available one.
3. Use Claude Code as always
claude
Nothing changes in your regular workflow. Tasks, agents, and messages appear on the board automatically.
What You See With and Without the Hooks?
| Feature | Without hooks | With hooks |
|---|---|---|
| Kanban board (tasks) |  |
|
| Pending / In Progress / Completed columns | |
|
| Subagent log (start time, duration, prompt) |  |
|
| Amber “waiting for your input” indicator | |
|
| Inactive session detection | |
|
| Context window monitor | |
|
The “waiting for your input” indicator deserves special attention: when Claude pauses because it needs a permission or response from you, the session highlights in amber on the board. For those running Claude in the background while doing other things, this is a game changer.
Key Features
Agent Teams — If you use Claude Code’s native team orchestration, the dashboard automatically detects team members with differentiated colors, owner filters, and member counts.
Task Dependencies — Shows blockedBy/blocks relationships and the critical path. Useful for understanding what tasks are blocking progress in complex sessions.
Context Window Monitor — A usage bar per session with color thresholds (green → yellow → orange → red) and a marker at 200K tokens. Also shows input/output token breakdown, cache tokens, estimated cost, and model name.
Keyboard Navigation — Press ? to see all shortcuts. Shift+M activates live message tracking; Shift+L opens the session log.
Search and Cleanup — Fuzzy search for sessions, delete individual tasks (with dependency validation) or bulk delete entire sessions.
Additional Configuration
PORT=8080 npx claude-code-kanban # Custom port
npx claude-code-kanban --dir=~/.claude-work # Custom Claude directory
npm install -g claude-code-kanban # Global installation
npx claude-code-kanban --uninstall # Remove hooks (clean and non-destructive)
To Uninstall
If you ever want to remove the hooks:
npx claude-code-kanban --uninstall
Installation and uninstallation are non-destructive — your existing Claude Code configuration is preserved in both cases.
Is It Worth Installing?
If you use Claude Code only for simple, short tasks, the basic board (without hooks) already gives you enough visibility. If instead you work with long sessions, multiple agents in parallel, or simply want to know where Claude is in its work at any moment, the hooks add real value.
The project is active — v2.0.1 was released on March 14, 2026 — and it’s MIT licensed, so you can review it, modify it, or contribute.
Demo and docs:
npm: npmjs.com/package/claude-code-kanban
Have you tried it yet? Tell us about your experience in the comments.