Claude Code Users Can Extend Subagent Prompt Cache to One Hour, Reducing Token Costs

Claude Code users can now extend their subagent prompt cache lifetime from the default five minutes to one hour by configuring a single setting, a move that can materially reduce token consumption for long-running workflows. By default, Claude Code's main conversation gets a one-hour prompt cache on Claude subscriptions, but subagents, workflows, and background requests expire after five minutes—causing the context to recompute and re-read on the next call. A simple configuration change in ~/.claude/settings.json allows users to match subagents to the main conversation's caching behavior.