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GitHub Copilot Free Now Uses Claude Haiku 4.5: What Changed & How to Use It

Dillip Chowdary
Dillip Chowdary
November 12, 2025 • 8 min read

What Changed on November 10, 2025

Key Updates

  • Claude Sonnet 3.5 deprecated across all GitHub Copilot experiences
  • Claude Haiku 4.5 now available in Copilot Free tier
  • Performance upgrade: Haiku 4.5 scores 73.3% on SWE-bench Verified (one of the world's best coding models)

⚡ Impact: If you're using GitHub Copilot Free, you automatically got upgraded to a significantly more powerful model without any action needed!

Model Comparison

Model SWE-bench Score Speed Cost Best For
Claude Haiku 4.5 73.3% ⚡⚡⚡ Ultra-fast $0.25/1M tokens Code completion, refactoring
Claude Sonnet 4.5 ~78% ⚡⚡ Fast $3/1M tokens Complex architecture, debugging
Claude Sonnet 3.5 ~70% ⚡ Moderate $3/1M tokens Deprecated
GPT-4 Turbo ~68% ⚡ Moderate $10/1M tokens General purpose

Key takeaway: Claude Haiku 4.5 offers flagship-level coding performance at 1/12th the cost of GPT-4 Turbo, making it perfect for high-frequency use cases like code completion.

How to Use Claude Haiku 4.5 in GitHub Copilot

Step 1: Access GitHub Copilot Free

Enable Copilot Free in VS Code:

  1. Open VS Code
  2. Install GitHub Copilot extension
  3. Sign in with your GitHub account
  4. Free tier activates automatically (2,000 completions/month, 50 chat messages/month)

Step 2: Verify Claude Haiku 4.5 is Active

# In VS Code, open GitHub Copilot Chat

# Type: "What model are you using?"

Response:

"I'm Claude Haiku 4.5 from Anthropic, optimized for fast and accurate code assistance."

Step 3: Optimize Your Prompts

✅ Good Prompt Example

// Write a TypeScript function that validates email addresses

// Requirements: RFC 5322 compliant, return boolean

function validateEmail(

Why it works: Clear requirements, specific output type, language specified

❌ Weak Prompt Example

// email validation

function validate(

Why it's weak: Vague name, no requirements, unclear validation rules

Real-World Code Examples

Example 1: React Component Generation

// Prompt: Create a React SearchBar component with debounced input
// Requirements: TypeScript, 300ms debounce, onSearch callback

import React, { useState, useCallback } from 'react';
import { debounce } from 'lodash';

interface SearchBarProps {
  onSearch: (query: string) => void;
  placeholder?: string;
}

export const SearchBar: React.FC = ({
  onSearch,
  placeholder = 'Search...'
}) => {
  const [query, setQuery] = useState('');

  // Debounce the search callback
  const debouncedSearch = useCallback(
    debounce((searchQuery: string) => {
      onSearch(searchQuery);
    }, 300),
    [onSearch]
  );

  const handleChange = (e: React.ChangeEvent) => {
    const value = e.target.value;
    setQuery(value);
    debouncedSearch(value);
  };

  return (
    
  );
};

Example 2: API Error Handling

// Prompt: Add comprehensive error handling to this fetch call

async function fetchUserData(userId) {
  try {
    const response = await fetch(`/api/users/${userId}`);

    // Handle HTTP errors
    if (!response.ok) {
      if (response.status === 404) {
        throw new Error(`User ${userId} not found`);
      }
      if (response.status === 401) {
        throw new Error('Unauthorized: Please log in');
      }
      if (response.status >= 500) {
        throw new Error('Server error: Please try again later');
      }
      throw new Error(`HTTP ${response.status}: ${response.statusText}`);
    }

    const data = await response.json();
    return data;

  } catch (error) {
    // Network errors
    if (error instanceof TypeError) {
      console.error('Network error:', error);
      throw new Error('Network error: Check your connection');
    }

    // Re-throw other errors
    throw error;
  }
}

Free vs Paid Copilot

Copilot Free (Claude Haiku 4.5)

  • ✅ 2,000 code completions/month
  • ✅ 50 chat messages/month
  • ✅ Claude Haiku 4.5 model
  • ✅ VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains
  • ✅ Public & private repos
  • ❌ No multi-file context
  • ❌ No CLI assistance
Best for:
Individual developers, learning, side projects

Copilot Pro ($10/month)

  • ✅ Unlimited completions
  • ✅ Unlimited chat
  • ✅ Claude Sonnet 4.5, GPT-4, Gemini
  • ✅ Model switching
  • ✅ Multi-file editing
  • ✅ CLI & GitHub Mobile
  • ✅ Priority access during high demand
Best for:
Professional developers, teams, production code

Pro Tips for Claude Haiku 4.5

💡 Tip 1: Use Specific Comments

Claude Haiku 4.5 excels with detailed inline comments. Write requirements as comments above your function.

💡 Tip 2: Leverage TypeScript

Haiku 4.5 has excellent TypeScript support. Define types first, then let it generate type-safe implementations.

💡 Tip 3: Iterate on Completions

If the first suggestion isn't perfect, press Alt + ] (Windows/Linux) or Option + ] (Mac) to cycle through alternatives.

Conclusion

The upgrade to Claude Haiku 4.5 makes GitHub Copilot Free one of the most powerful free AI coding assistants available. With a 73.3% SWE-bench score, it rivals paid solutions and provides exceptional value for individual developers.

✅ Key Takeaways

  • • Claude Haiku 4.5 available in Copilot Free as of Nov 10, 2025
  • • 73.3% SWE-bench score - world-class coding performance
  • • 2,000 completions/month + 50 chat messages free
  • • Works in VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs
  • • No action needed - automatically upgraded if using Copilot Free

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