Using Claude Code Through AWS Bedrock or GCP Vertex AI

Using Claude Code Through AWS Bedrock or GCP Vertex AI

If your organization uses AWS or Google Cloud, you can run Claude Code through their managed AI services instead of using a direct Anthropic API key. This lesson covers both options.

Option A: AWS Bedrock

AWS Bedrock gives you Claude access through your existing AWS account with enterprise-grade security and compliance.

Step 1: Enable Claude Models in Bedrock

1. Open the AWS Console and navigate to Amazon Bedrock
2. Go to Model access in the left sidebar
3. Request access to Anthropic Claude models
4. Wait for approval (usually instant for most models)

Step 2: Configure Claude Code for Bedrock

# Set the provider to Bedrock
export CLAUDE_CODE_USE_BEDROCK=1

# Configure your AWS credentials (if not already set)
export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID="your-access-key"
export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="your-secret-key"
export AWS_REGION="us-east-1"

# Or use AWS SSO / IAM roles (recommended)
aws configure sso

Step 3: Verify the Connection

claude
> Hello, which model and provider am I connected to?

Bedrock Pricing Considerations:

• Bedrock pricing differs from direct API pricing
• You can use Provisioned Throughput for predictable costs
• Cross-region inference is available for higher availability

Option B: GCP Vertex AI

Google Cloud Vertex AI provides Claude access integrated with GCP IAM and billing.

Step 1: Enable the Vertex AI API

gcloud services enable aiplatform.googleapis.com

Step 2: Configure Claude Code for Vertex AI

# Set the provider to Vertex AI
export CLAUDE_CODE_USE_VERTEX=1

# Configure your GCP project
export CLOUD_ML_PROJECT_ID="your-project-id"
export CLOUD_ML_REGION="us-east5"

# Authenticate
gcloud auth application-default login

Step 3: Verify the Connection

claude
> Confirm my connection details

When to Use Each Option

Key Takeaways

• Claude Code works with direct API, AWS Bedrock, and GCP Vertex AI
• Enterprise teams benefit from cloud provider integration for compliance and billing
• Configuration requires setting environment variables for your chosen provider
• All three options provide identical Claude Code functionality