An MCP tool returns a very large result. At what point does Claude Code warn you, and where is the default ceiling?

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Last reviewed 22 Aug 2026

The cap is fixed at twenty-five thousand and cannot be raised for a server that needs more.
The warning and the hard limit are the same figure, so the warning is really the cap.
It warns past ten thousand tokens and caps output at twenty-five thousand by default.Correct answer
There is no warning at all, and anything oversized is quietly truncated as it arrives.

Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: C. It warns past ten thousand tokens and caps output at twenty-five thousand by default.

Explanation

The principle — Two separate numbers govern large tool output: one that tells you, and one that stops you.

Why the key is correct — Claude Code displays a warning when any MCP tool output exceeds ten thousand tokens, and the default maximum is twenty-five thousand. The warning arrives first, well before anything is cut.

Why the others are wrong — Truncation is not silent. The two numbers are different, not one. And the maximum is a default rather than a fixed ceiling.

Remember this — Warned at ten thousand, capped at twenty-five thousand, and the cap can move.

Sources — Anthropic's Claude Code MCP reference.

Sources

Primary sourceConnect Claude Code to tools via MCP — Anthropic · accessed 22 Aug 2026

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An MCP tool returns a very large result. At what point does Claude Code warn you, and where is the default ceiling?

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