Claude Cowork: what it is and how to use it
Anthropic describes Cowork as its agentic workspace. It uses the same agentic architecture that powers Claude Code, inside Claude Desktop, without opening a terminal. You describe the outcome you want, then come back to finished work.
What Cowork can do
Works on your computer
Claude reads and writes local files without manual uploads or downloads.
Splits up big jobs
Complex work is divided into smaller tasks that run as parallel workstreams.
Makes real deliverables
Anthropic lists Excel spreadsheets with working formulas, PowerPoint presentations and formatted documents.
Pairs with Claude in Chrome
Use it together with Cowork to automate tasks on websites.
Getting started: a beginner walkthrough
1. Open Cowork in Claude Desktop
Cowork lives in the Claude Desktop app. Describe the result you want the way you would brief a colleague, then let Claude work through the steps.
2. Put recurring work in a project
Open Projects in the left navigation and choose +. You can start from scratch, import a claude.ai project, or use an existing folder. A project holds your folders, standing instructions, links and a memory that persists across sessions. Projects live on your computer and are not shared with other people.
3. Add plugins for the work you repeat
Open Customize, then Plugins, then Browse plugins, and click Install. A plugin can add skills, connectors, subagents, slash commands or hooks. See the marketplace guide for adding other marketplaces.
4. Run long tasks in the background
Dispatch takes a high-level instruction and runs it as separate sessions while you do something else. It requires a Pro or Max plan and the latest Claude Desktop on macOS or Windows.
For marketers: a plugin-first start
Anthropic's open-source plugin set includes a Marketing plugin, described as drafting content, planning campaigns and managing launches. Install it from the official catalog, create a project with your brand and campaign folders and instructions, then start a session in that project so Claude begins with that context. Browse more in our best plugins by category and the official plugins list.
Where plugins work
Per Anthropic, plugins are available in Cowork and Claude Code and are not used in Chat. Compare the two on our Cowork vs Claude Code page, or see real use cases.
Sources: Cowork overview, Organize work with projects, Install plugins, Run tasks in the background with Dispatch, Plugins overview.