See the intent before anything changes
Plan mode reads your project and writes down what it would do. No file changes. Read it, then run it if you agree.
What the plan contains
Plan mode only reads. It comes back with four things, in plain language.
It is written for a person, not as a file list. Each step says what it does and why.
- A one-line summary of what would be built or changed
- The steps, in order
- The files it expects to touch
- The credits the real run would cost
Read the file list first
The files reveal more than the steps do. A request that spreads further than you expected shows up there before anywhere else.
- More files than you expected
- Tables holding customer details
- An estimate you are willing to spend
Why nothing can change
We do not simply instruct the model to behave. In plan mode the write tools are not available, and a write attempt is refused where it is made.
That distinction matters. Instructions are followed most of the time; a removed capability is followed every time.
What it costs
A plan turn is 0.2 credits — a fraction of the work it describes.
If the plan is wrong, rewrite the request and ask again. Nothing was changed, so there is nothing to undo.
Even three rounds of refining stay cheaper than one real run.
Turning a plan into a run
Approving the plan hands it to agent mode as the request.
From there it behaves like any run: it gets a task class, and a large change still asks you to confirm.
You are not obliged to take all of it. Picking two steps and asking for those in chat works too.
When it earns its keep
Plan mode is worth the extra step whenever the cost of a surprise is higher than the cost of reading.
- The app already has customers using it
- The request is broad and you cannot guess how far it spreads
- You inherited the project from someone else