What is Claude Cowork?

Claude Cowork brings Claude Code's agentic capabilities to knowledge work without a terminal: you describe an outcome and Claude plans and carries out multi-step work in an isolated cloud environment, reaching local files and the browser through Claude Desktop. Anthropic is merging Cowork and chat into one experience for Pro and Max.

Which plans include Claude Cowork?

Paid plans: Pro ($20/month), Max ($100 or $200), Team (standard $25, premium $125 per seat per month) and Enterprise where an admin enables it. It is not on the Free plan. Usage is shared with Claude chat and Claude Code.

Is Claude Cowork safe?

Sessions run in isolated sandboxes that cannot reach your network, Auto mode screens actions, untrusted content is scanned for prompt injection, and deletions always need approval. Isolation does not limit what Claude can do through the access you grant, so Anthropic advises selective file access, Manual mode for consequential work and caution with scheduled tasks and computer use.

Last updated: 2026-10-09

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Claude Cowork

Claude's agent mode for knowledge work. Describe an outcome and Claude plans the steps, works in the cloud, and hands back finished files, with no terminal required.

Paid plans: Pro · Max · Team · Enterprise Desktop (macOS, Windows) · web & mobile beta Runs in Anthropic's cloud Manual · Auto · Skip approvals Same usage limit as Claude & Claude Code

Claude Cowork brings Claude Code's agent abilities to everyday work. It can organise folders, research and write reports, build spreadsheets with working formulas, make slide decks, and run tasks on a schedule. Each session runs in an isolated environment on Anthropic's servers and keeps going when you close your laptop. Claude reaches your local files, its built-in browser and, in beta, your screen through the Claude Desktop app. Anthropic is now folding Cowork and chat into a single "just Claude" experience, starting with Pro and Max. This hub covers Cowork and Claude Code, which share plans, usage limits, skills and plugins.

This section was rebuilt on 2026-09-27 from Anthropic's own docs

Earlier versions described Cowork as a separate team "workspace" product with its own tiers (Free/Pro/Business/Enterprise), roles and artifact retention rules. That isn't how Cowork works. Every guide below is now sourced from the Claude Help Center, claude.com/pricing and Claude Code docs.

Guides

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Getting Started

Plans and apps that have Cowork, starting a task, the Manual/Auto/Skip approval modes, instructions, connectors, scheduled tasks and admin controls.

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Projects

Create from scratch, from a chat project or a local folder; per-project instructions, scheduled tasks and memory; sharing and artifacts.

Live

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Instructions & Memory

Global, project and folder instructions, how memory is scoped, when to use a skill instead, and the Claude Code equivalents.

Live

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Plans & Pricing

Pro $20, Max $100/$200, Team $25/$125 seats, Enterprise; what includes Cowork and Claude Code; shared usage limits and resets.

Live

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Skills & Plugins

Anthropic, custom, organisation and partner skills; writing or recording a skill; plugins and their sync to Claude Code.

Live

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Connectors, Skills & Plugins Directory

Where the official catalogues are and how to vet what you add.

Live

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Claude Design

Designs, prototypes and decks from a prompt (Anthropic Labs, 2026-04-17): in chat, the Artifacts tab, Claude Code /design and claude.ai/design.

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Cowork vs Claude API vs OpenClaw

Hosted agent, build-your-own or self-hosted, plus the risks Anthropic documents for Cowork.

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Cowork & Claude Code FAQ

Sixteen common questions answered from Anthropic's Help Center and Claude Code docs: effort levels, CLAUDE.md, hooks, parallel agents and more.

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Cowork + Hermes Together

Use Cowork for high-judgment work and a self-hosted Hermes agent for always-on chores.

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Need more than Cowork offers?

Cowork uses Claude models only and works through the Claude apps. For a choice of models, messaging-app channels (Telegram, WhatsApp, Discord) or everything on your own hardware, see OpenClaw, Hermes or IronClaw. The trade-offs are in Cowork vs API vs OpenClaw.

At a Glance

What it is	Claude's agent mode for multi-step knowledge work, in the Claude apps
Plans	Pro ($20/mo), Max ($100/$200), Team ($25/$125 seats), Enterprise; not on Free
Surfaces	Claude Desktop (macOS, Windows); web and mobile (beta); Claude in Chrome side panel
Where it runs	An isolated per-session sandbox on Anthropic's servers; local files, browser and computer use through Claude Desktop
Approvals	Manual (default), Auto (safety-checked), Skip; deletions always ask
Extend it	Connectors, skills, plugins (also sync to Claude Code), projects, scheduled tasks
Usage	Shared with Claude chat and Claude Code; 5-hour session limit plus a weekly limit
Admin	Organisation toggles for Cowork, cloud sessions, browser and Auto mode; Compliance API and OpenTelemetry
Claude Code	Included in the same plans; current release 2.1.295

Cowork & Claude Code Troubleshooting

Rate limit 429 — what to do when you hit per-minute caps
MCP server not responding — diagnose .mcp.json + claude mcp logs
All troubleshooting entries →

Cowork Use Cases & Security

Code review automation — Claude Code runs automated security and code reviews
Release notes generator — a scheduled Cowork task can draft them on a cadence
Social content engine — Claude Design builds decks and one-pagers
Don't paste secrets into chats or tasks — and read Anthropic's Use Cowork safely
15-minute hardening checklist for any agent setup

Claude Cowork

At a Glance

Cowork & Claude Code Troubleshooting

Cowork Use Cases & Security

Latest Claude Cowork News