Interrupt Claude in the middle of a task
keyboard shortcuts
// what it does
Press Esc to stop the current response or tool call mid-turn so you can redirect Claude; the work done so far is kept. When a dialog such as a permission prompt is open, Esc closes that dialog instead of interrupting. Ctrl+C is the harsher stop: it interrupts a running operation, and on an empty prompt a second press exits Claude Code.
// shortcut
Esc