I have been using GitHub Copilot and Copilot CLI for about one year. During that time, I also experimented with several developer tools and AI-assisted coding technologies. Recently I became interested in exploring Claude Code and related tools such as Claude Cowork. However, I did not want to immediately commit to a subscription before understanding whether Claude Code actually fits my workflow. So I spent some time experimenting with different ways to run Claude Code without paying for a subscription first.