TL;DR
Anthropic is offering $50 in Extra Usage credits (or equivalent in local currency) to existing Pro/Max subscribers to celebrate the launch of Claude Opus 4.6. You must claim it by February 16, and it's valid for 60 days. However, claiming it activates Extra Usage, so be careful about charges after the credit runs out.
Why the $50 Credit?
On February 5, Anthropic released Claude Opus 4.6. It's been about 3 months since Opus 4.5 launched last November. But something stood out more than the model release itself.
If you go to Settings > Usage, you'll see a banner saying "Explore Opus 4.6 with extra wiggle room." One click on the Claim button applies the $50 credit immediately.
Who is Eligible?
The offer applies to users subscribed to Pro or Max plans before February 4. Team, Enterprise, and API/Console users are not eligible. The official docs state there are no exceptions.
Claiming is simple. Just click the Claim button on the banner in Settings > Usage. If you already have Extra Usage enabled, it applies automatically without any extra steps.
One thing to note: you cannot activate Extra Usage in the mobile app. You must do it on the web version.
Scope and Deadline
The $50 credit isn't just for Opus 4.6. It applies to all models and features available in your plan, including Claude, Claude Code, and Cowork. They're giving it out to try Opus 4.6, but you can use it for anything.
The claim period is from February 5, 10:00 AM PT to February 16, 11:59 PM PT. Credits expire 60 days after claiming, and unused amounts are forfeited. There is no rollover.
Beware of Extra Usage and Auto-Reload
This is the key point. Clicking the Claim button automatically activates Extra Usage. Even after the $50 credit is used up or 60 days pass, Extra Usage remains on.
Be especially careful with Auto-Reload settings. If Auto-Reload is enabled in the Extra usage section of Settings > Usage, you will be charged standard Extra Usage rates when you exceed your plan limits after the credit is gone.
After using the credit, it's safest to turn off Extra Usage entirely, or at least disable Auto-Reload. It's easy to forget and get hit with unexpected charges, so putting a reminder on your calendar is a good idea.
Opus 4.6 Key Changes
Since you got the credit, what should you test? Briefly, Opus 4.6 has improved coding capabilities. It reportedly has better planning, more stable operation in large codebases, and improved self-correction.
However, after using it all day, I didn't feel a huge difference. Opus 4.5 was already good enough, so the difference might be subtle.
The most notable feature is the 1M token context window (beta). That's a 5x expansion from Opus 4.5's 200K. Since inputs over 200K incur premium charges, testing this with your $50 credit is a good use case.
Also, Agent Teams has been released as an API research preview. It splits tasks among multiple agents for parallel processing, promising significantly faster results than sequential processing.
Conclusion
The $50 credit itself is welcome news. But keep in mind it's also marketing to get you to activate Extra Usage.
Understanding the billing structure after the credit runs out, and remembering to turn off Extra Usage after testing—consider that the full package. If you're an existing Pro/Max subscriber, I recommend claiming it for now.