UNLV's Claude access is organized into three tiers. Every UNLV account is automatically provisioned into Tier I at no additional cost. Tiers II and III are optional, seat-based upgrades for users who need a higher, more predictable usage allowance. This article explains what each tier includes and how to request an upgrade.
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What are the Claude tiers?
What are the Claude tiers?
All three tiers include the same products: Chat, Cowork, and Claude Code. Tier I is consumption-based and automatic for all UNLV accounts. Tiers II and III are seat-based upgrades billed per user, per month.
| Tier |
Name |
Products Included |
Price |
| Tier I |
Claude Pro |
Chat, Cowork, Claude Code |
No cost to the user; capped at $200/month in usage |
| Tier II |
Claude Premium |
Chat, Cowork, Claude Code |
$100/seat/month |
| Tier III |
Claude Max |
Chat, Cowork, Claude Code |
$200/seat/month |
API access is always a separate environment and billing model. It is not included in any of the three tiers above. For more information, see Requesting Claude API Access at UNLV.
What's included in each tier?
What's included in each tier?
Tier I — Claude Pro Automatically provisioned for all UNLV faculty, staff, and students. Consumption-based usage, capped at $200 per month. Equivalent to Anthropic's consumer Pro plan.
Tier II — Claude Premium Seat-based upgrade. Equivalent to Anthropic's consumer Max 5x plan: about 5 times the usage of Tier I per session. Requires departmental funding approval.
Tier III — Claude Max Seat-based upgrade. Equivalent to Anthropic's consumer Max 20x plan: about 20 times the usage of Tier I per session. Requires departmental funding approval.
How usage works
How usage works
Tier I usage is measured by how much you use, rather than a fixed seat cost, and is capped at $200 per user each month. Once that cap is reached, Chat, Cowork, and Claude Code all stop accepting new requests at the same time. There is no separate free or lightweight model that remains available underneath the cap; when the cap is reached, all three products are unavailable until the cap resets at the start of the next month.
Tiers II and III use the same reset structure as Anthropic's consumer Max plans. Usage resets on a rolling 5-hour session window, starting from your first message, with an additional weekly cap on top (one across all models, one specifically for Sonnet models).
Anthropic does not publish exact message counts, since usage varies based on message length, attachment size, and conversation length. As a general guide, for relatively short conversations, Tier II users can typically expect at least 225 messages every 5 hours, and Tier III users at least 900, though actual usage varies. Anthropic also notes that exceeding 50 sessions per month may result in limited access, applied case-by-case rather than as a strict cutoff.
For full details, see Anthropic's guidance: About Claude's Max Plan Usage.
How to check your usage
How to check your usage
In Chat: Click your name or initials in the lower left corner, select Settings, then select Usage. This shows your session and weekly usage as a percentage.
In Claude Code: Run /usage at any time to see your current standing. If you hit a limit mid-task, Claude Code will tell you when your window resets.
Usage data is not shown inside an active conversation. You need to check Settings separately.
How to request an upgrade
How to request an upgrade
Faculty and staff can request a Tier II or Tier III upgrade through the Claude Tier Upgrade form. Requests are reviewed by Procurement for funding approval before UNLV IT activates the seat.
Faculty may also request an upgrade on behalf of a sponsored student researcher for university-related work. Students may not submit this requestport themselves; a faculty sponsor must submit on their behalf and provide the funding source.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to do anything to get Tier I access? No. All UNLV accounts are automatically provisioned into Tier I at no cost.
Will my access be cut off if I reach my Tier I usage cap? Yes, all three products (Chat, Cowork, and Claude Code) stop accepting new requests once the $200/month cap is reached. There is no separate free or lightweight model that remains available. Access resumes when the cap resets at the start of the next month.
Can I switch between Tier II and Tier III? [Note: need to confirm whether users can move between paid tiers mid-cycle, and whether downgrades are allowed the same way upgrades are.]
Is API access included in any tier? No. API access is a separate environment and billing model, and is requested independently. See Requesting Claude API Access at UNLV.
What happens if I cancel my Tier II or Tier III seat? Tier II and III seats are billed annually. If you start partway through the year, you are only charged for the remaining months. If you cancel before the year is up, there is no prorated refund for the months not used.