Customizing the Claude Code spinner

Claude Code shows a spinner while it works. By default it cycles through verbs like “Thinking” and “Working.” You can change those to whatever you want with a single JSON file.

The setting

Claude Code reads a settings.json file from your project’s .claude/ directory. Inside it, the spinnerVerbs key controls what the spinner says:

{
  "spinnerVerbs": {
    "mode": "replace",
    "verbs": [
      "Grilling",
      "Squeezing mustard on",
      "Toasting buns for",
      "Adding relish to",
      "Charring"
    ]
  }
}

You can customize that to your liking. Next time Claude is working, instead of “Thinking…” you’ll see “Grilling…” or “Squeezing mustard on…” The CLI picks randomly from the list.

The two modes

The mode field has two options:

• replace — throw out all the defaults and use only your verbs
• append — keep the defaults and mix yours in

Replace mode is all-or-nothing. If your list only has three verbs, you’ll see a lot of repetition. Append mode is safer if you just want to sprinkle in a few extras without losing “Thinking” and friends.

Where it goes

The setting works at three levels:

File	Scope
~/.claude/settings.json	All projects (user-level)
.claude/settings.json	This project (committed, shared with team)
.claude/settings.local.json	This project (local only, not committed)

Project settings override user settings. Local overrides project. If you want your whole team to see hot dog verbs, commit .claude/settings.json. If this is just for you, use settings.local.json and keep it out of version control.

Our config

Here’s what we’re actually running on this project:

{
  "spinnerVerbs": {
    "mode": "replace",
    "verbs": [
      "Grilling",
      "Squeezing mustard on",
      "Toasting buns for",
      "Adding relish to",
      "Charring",
      "Applying ketchup to",
      "Sprinkling onions on",
      "Steaming",
      "Warming",
      "Dressing",
      "Bunning",
      "Slathering mayo on",
      "Chicago-styling",
      "Chili-cheesing",
      "Foot-longing",
      "Ballpark-ifying",
      "Corndog-ifying",
      "Propane-accessorizing"
    ]
  }
}

When Claude is reading a file you get “Corndog-ifying…” When it’s writing code you get “Chicago-styling…” It’s completely useless and it makes me smile every time.

Making a good list

A few things I’ve noticed after trying different configs:

Keep verbs short. The spinner has limited space. “Squeezing mustard on” is about as long as you want to go. Anything longer gets truncated or looks awkward.

Use enough verbs. With replace mode, a list of five verbs gets repetitive fast. Fifteen to twenty is a good sweet spot.

End with -ing. The spinner appends “…” after the verb, so present participles (-ing words) read the most naturally. “Grilling…” works. “Grill…” doesn’t.

Commit it or don’t. If your team has a sense of humor, commit .claude/settings.json and let everyone enjoy it. If you’re not sure, use settings.local.json so it stays on your machine.

Try it

Create .claude/settings.json in your project root, drop in a spinnerVerbs config, and open Claude Code. You’ll see the difference on the next response. The feature shipped in Claude Code v2.1.23 and works in all current versions.