Resume Previous Conversations

Suppose you have been working on a task with Claude Code and need to pick up where you left off in a subsequent session.

Claude Code provides two options to resume previous conversations:

--continue automatically resumes the most recent conversation
--resume shows a conversation picker

Resume the Most Recent Conversation

claude --continue

This immediately resumes your most recent conversation without any prompts.

Continue in Non-Interactive Mode

claude --continue --print "Continue with my task"

Use --print with --continue to resume the most recent conversation in non-interactive mode — ideal for scripts or automation.

Show the Conversation Picker

claude --resume

This displays an interactive conversation picker with a clear list view showing:

Session summary (or initial prompt)
Metadata: elapsed time, message count, and git branch

Use arrow keys to navigate and press Enter to select a conversation. Press Esc to exit.

Tips:

Conversation history is stored on your local machine
Use --continue for quick access to the most recent conversation
Use --resume when you need to select a specific past conversation
When resuming, you will see the entire conversation history before continuing
Resumed conversations start with the same model and configuration as the original

How It Works:

Conversation storage: All conversations are automatically saved locally with the complete message history
Message deserialization: When resuming, the entire message history is restored to maintain context
Tool state: Tool usage and results from the previous conversation are preserved
Context restoration: The conversation resumes with all previous context intact

Examples:

# Resume the most recent conversation
claude --continue
 
# Resume the most recent conversation with a specific prompt
claude --continue --print "Show me our progress"
 
# Show the conversation picker
claude --resume
 
# Resume the most recent conversation in non-interactive mode
claude --continue --print "Run the tests again"

Use Extended Thinking Run Parallel Sessions