Switching to Rebates.
Moving from another terminal-ad tool, or just turning ads off? Here’s how to cleanly remove what you have and — if you want to keep earning — switch to Rebates in one command, with a backup so nothing breaks.
How do you switch terminal-ad tools cleanly?
Switching cleanly is a three-step sequence, and the order matters. First, remove the current tool, so two sponsored footers never render in the same session. Second, install Rebates, which asks for consent and backs up Claude Code and Codex settings byte-for-byte before writing anything. Third, preview the result with the plan command before earning starts. Skipping the first step is the common mistake. Two terminal-ad tools installed at once will both try to write the same agent settings, and the second install can silently overwrite what the first one added, which makes a later uninstall messier than it needed to be.
Remove your current tool
Kickbacks is an editor extension, so uninstall Kickbacks from the Extensions panel and restart the editor afterwards. IdleDev is a global npm CLI, so run npm uninstall -g idledev-cli and confirm the package is gone with npm list -g --depth=0. Already running Rebates and simply want the footer off? Run rebate off instead — no uninstall required.
Install Rebates
One command. It asks for consent and backs up your settings byte-for-byte before anything changes.
curl -fsSL https://rebates.ai/install | bashPreview, then earn
Run rebate plan to print every local change before it is applied, then sign in. From that point the sponsored footer renders during normal sessions and pays you 90% of the ad revenue each visible impression generates, settled daily and capped at $1 a day. Nothing needs clicking. Changing your mind takes one command: rebate off disables the footer and restores the byte-for-byte backup taken during install.
Removing and switching, answered.
How do I remove Kickbacks?
Kickbacks installs as an editor extension, distributed as a VSIX package. Removing Kickbacks means uninstalling that extension from the editor Extensions panel, or running "code --uninstall-extension" with the extension id. Either route stops the spinner and CLI ads Kickbacks renders. After removal, restart the editor so any running extension host exits, then start a Claude Code session and confirm no sponsored line appears. Removing an editor extension does not touch Claude Code or Codex settings files, so nothing else needs undoing. Kickbacks documentation on kickbacks.ai is the authority on its own uninstall steps, and checking there first is worth the minute it takes.
How do I uninstall IdleDev?
IdleDev installs as a global npm CLI, so running "npm uninstall -g idledev-cli" removes IdleDev. That single command stops the sidebar ads IdleDev shows while an agent pauses. Because IdleDev is a global npm package rather than an editor extension, verifying removal is straightforward: run "npm list -g --depth=0" and confirm idledev-cli no longer appears in the list. IdleDev supports several agents beyond Claude Code, including Codex, Gemini, OpenCode, Aider, Hermes, and OpenClaw, so check each agent that was in use rather than only the one where the ads were noticed.
How do I turn off ads in Claude Code?
Turning off ads in Claude Code depends on which tool added them, because Claude Code ships with no advertising of its own. If Rebates added the line, run "rebate off" to disable the footer and restore Claude Code and Codex settings byte-for-byte. For another tool, remove the editor extension or uninstall the CLI as described above. Afterwards, open the Claude Code settings file and check for leftover hook entries, since a tool removed by hand can leave configuration behind that a package manager never touches. A clean removal leaves no sponsored line and no orphaned hook.
Will switching to Rebates change my settings?
Rebates backs up Claude Code and Codex settings byte-for-byte before changing anything. Running "rebate plan" prints every change the installer would make, so the whole edit is reviewable before a single file is touched. Running "rebate off" later restores that backup exactly, which means the switch is reversible rather than merely undoable in principle. The installer also asks for consent before it writes. Between the preview, the backup, and the one-command restore, the worst realistic outcome of trying Rebates is returning to precisely the configuration that existed beforehand.
Switch in one command.
Rebates backs up your setup byte-for-byte, so switching is safe and rebate off always puts it back.
curl -fsSL https://rebates.ai/install | bash