Claude Timestamps is a free VS Code extension by ClawSecure that adds a live, timestamped transcript log to every Claude Code session. Every message you send and every response Claude gives is captured with an exact timestamp, displayed in a persistent sidebar panel that works across all your workspaces. When you run Claude Code sessions for hours, days, or even weeks, you finally know when every exchange happened.
The Claude Code VS Code extension does not show timestamps on any message. The Claude.ai browser and desktop apps show timestamps natively; the VS Code extension does not. Claude Timestamps solves this by reading directly from Claude Code's own JSONL session transcripts, which contain exact ISO timestamps for every message, and displaying them in a clean sidebar panel with your full conversation history, searchable and always live.
Last updated: May 2026
If you have worked in Claude Code inside VS Code for any extended session, you have run into this problem. You open a session in the morning, work through it across two days, and have no idea which messages were from yesterday versus today. You run long agent sessions with multiple tool calls and cannot tell when an operation started. You hand off work to another session and realize your context has no timestamps to anchor the timeline.
The Claude.ai browser interface shows timestamps on every message. The Claude desktop app shows timestamps. The VS Code extension shows nothing. This is a known limitation that affects every developer who uses Claude Code for longer than a single sitting.
Claude Timestamps by ClawSecure fills that gap by reading Claude Code's own session data and surfacing it where you actually work, directly inside VS Code.
- Timestamps on every message -- Every user message and every Claude response shows an exact timestamp in bright, readable red. No more guessing when something was said or done
- Full conversation transcript -- A dedicated sidebar panel shows your complete session history: every message, every tool call, every response, in order
- Live updates -- The transcript updates in real time as the session progresses. No refresh needed; new messages appear as they happen
- Tool call visibility -- Tool calls (file reads, writes, bash commands, web searches) are shown inline under the Claude message that triggered them, with the tool name and input summary
- Session list -- Switch between recent sessions from the sidebar. All your sessions across all workspaces are listed, sorted newest first with message count and relative time
- Search -- Full-text search across any session. Find any message, any tool call, any decision point instantly
- Works across all workspaces -- Install once globally. The extension reads from
~/.claude/projects/, which captures sessions from every workspace automatically - Configurable display -- Choose absolute timestamps, relative timestamps ("3h ago"), or both. Toggle tool call visibility. Set max messages per session
Claude Timestamps is free and installs in seconds. Choose one of these methods:
- VS Code Marketplace (recommended) -- Install from the VS Code Marketplace. Search "Claude Timestamps" in the Extensions panel or press
Ctrl+Shift+Xand type "claude timestamps." - Open VSX Registry -- Install from the Open VSX Registry for editors that use Open VSX, including Google Antigravity and Windsurf.
- Manual .vsix install -- Download the
.vsixfrom the GitHub Releases page, then in your editor go to Extensions >...> Install from VSIX.
Claude Timestamps works with every editor built on the VS Code platform. Because it reads from Claude Code's JSONL transcript files directly and uses standard VS Code webview APIs, any editor that supports the VS Code extension model will work out of the box.
| Editor | Works? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| VS Code | Yes | Primary target |
| Cursor | Yes | Full support |
| Windsurf | Yes | Full support |
| Google Antigravity | Yes | Full support |
| Roo Code | Yes | Full support |
| Cline | Yes | Full support |
| Kilo Code | Yes | Full support |
| All VS Code forks | Yes | Any editor using the VS Code extension API |
Claude Timestamps reads directly from Claude Code's own session transcript files -- no custom hooks, no injected code, no modifications to Claude Code itself.
- Transcript discovery -- On activation, Claude Timestamps scans
~/.claude/projects/for all JSONL transcript files. Each file is one Claude Code session, and each line is one event: a user message, a Claude response, a tool call, or a system event. - Parse and display -- Each JSONL entry is parsed for its type, timestamp, and content. User messages, assistant responses, and tool calls are extracted and displayed in the sidebar with their exact ISO timestamps formatted to your preference.
- File watching -- Claude Timestamps watches each JSONL file for changes using Node.js
fs.watch. As new lines are appended to the active session, they appear in the sidebar immediately. - Workspace auto-detection -- When you open a workspace, Claude Timestamps auto-selects the most recent session from that workspace's directory, so you are always looking at the right session without manual selection.
Claude Timestamps has four settings, all accessible from File > Preferences > Settings (search "Claude Timestamps"):
| Setting | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
claudeTimestamps.timestampFormat |
both |
absolute (May 24, 3:42 PM), relative (3h ago), or both |
claudeTimestamps.showToolCalls |
true |
Show tool calls (file reads, writes, bash, etc.) in the transcript |
claudeTimestamps.maxMessages |
500 |
Max messages per session (0 = unlimited) |
claudeTimestamps.transcriptPath |
"" |
Override the transcript directory (default: ~/.claude/projects/) |
| Command | What It Does |
|---|---|
Claude Timestamps: Refresh |
Force reload all sessions from disk |
Claude Timestamps: Show All Sessions |
Clear any workspace filter and show all sessions |
Does Claude Timestamps work with the Claude Code VS Code extension?
Yes. Claude Timestamps reads the JSONL transcript files that Claude Code writes to ~/.claude/projects/. It does not modify Claude Code, inject into its webview, or require any configuration changes. Install Claude Timestamps alongside Claude Code and it works automatically.
Does it capture every message, or just tool calls? Every message. User messages (your prompts), assistant messages (Claude's responses), and tool calls are all captured. The JSONL transcript files contain the complete conversation including all content blocks, so Claude Timestamps can surface everything.
Do I need to configure a separate transcript path for each workspace?
No. All Claude Code sessions across all workspaces write to the same ~/.claude/projects/ directory. Claude Timestamps reads that directory and auto-detects which sessions belong to which workspace based on the cwd field in each transcript.
What if I run multi-day sessions? Can I see messages from different days? Yes. This is the core use case Claude Timestamps was built for. Sessions spanning hours, days, or weeks are displayed with exact timestamps on every message, so you can see precisely when each exchange happened.
Does Claude Timestamps work in Cursor, Windsurf, or other VS Code forks? Yes, as long as you are using Claude Code (the Anthropic CLI) inside those editors. Claude Timestamps reads the JSONL files that Claude Code writes; it does not depend on VS Code-specific behavior beyond the extension API itself.
Does it slow down VS Code or Claude Code? No. Claude Timestamps uses lightweight file watchers and reads files incrementally. It has no impact on Claude Code's performance and does not run any background processes beyond what VS Code's extension host already manages.
Is my conversation data sent anywhere? Never. Claude Timestamps reads your session files locally and displays them in the VS Code webview. No data leaves your machine. No telemetry, no analytics, no external requests.
Can I search across multiple sessions? The search bar filters messages within the currently selected session. To search a different session, switch to it in the session list on the left.
What version of VS Code is required? VS Code 1.85.0 or later. Any recent version of VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, or compatible fork will work.
ClawSecure is the integrity layer for AI agent skills and workflows. ClawSecure has audited 3,000+ AI agent skills, provides AI-powered runtime monitoring, and ships free developer tools that fix the everyday problems of working with AI coding assistants. Claude Timestamps is part of the ClawSecure free tools collection, built for developers who want more visibility and control over their AI agent workflows.
Claude Timestamps is one of three free tools in the ClawSecure developer tools collection. All are MIT-licensed and free forever.
| Tool | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Claude Timestamps | Live timestamped transcripts for every Claude Code session in VS Code. |
| ShutUp Tabs | Auto-closes Claude Code diff tabs in VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Antigravity, and all VS Code forks. |
| Railgun | Deterministic agent orchestration engine. YAML-defined pipelines with runtime limits, concurrency caps, and per-step observability. |
Claude Timestamps is open source and MIT-licensed. Issues, feedback, and pull requests are welcome at github.com/ClawSecure/claude-timestamps.
MIT License. Free forever. See LICENSE for details.