How to Install Claude Cowork on Mac and Windows

Before you can run your first Cowork task, you need the Claude desktop app installed, a paid account signed in, and a rough sense of what you are looking at when Cowork opens. This lesson covers all three. It does not cover running tasks or writing prompts; those come in later parts of this series.

What you need before you start

Cowork is part of the Claude desktop app, so the first requirement is a paid Claude plan. According to Anthropic, all paid plans qualify: Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise. The free plan does not. If you are unsure which plan you have, check your account settings at claude.ai before going further. There is no point downloading the app on a free account because the Cowork tab simply will not appear.

Operating system matters too. Cowork works on macOS 11 (Big Sur) or any newer version of macOS, and on Windows with the latest Claude desktop app installed. Linux is not supported. For a longer comparison of platform behavior, see Claude Cowork on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Cowork is desktop only. The web version of Claude at claude.ai and the mobile apps do not include it. There is one partial exception, called Dispatch, covered briefly at the end of this lesson.

Download and install the desktop app

Go to https://claude.com/download and download the installer for your operating system.

On Mac: the download is a .dmg file. Open it, drag the Claude app to your Applications folder, and launch it. macOS may ask you to confirm that you want to open an app downloaded from the internet; click Open. No additional configuration is needed.

On Windows: the download is a standard .exe installer. Run it and follow the prompts. Windows may show a User Account Control dialog asking for permission to install. Accept it. The app installs to your user profile by default, so administrator rights are not required on most machines.

Both installers are small and the process typically finishes in under two minutes.

Sign in with your paid account

When Claude opens for the first time, it presents a sign-in screen. Use the same email and password you use at claude.ai. If your organization uses single sign-on through a Team or Enterprise plan, use that flow instead.

After signing in, the app checks your plan. If your account is on a paid plan, you will see three tabs across the top of the window: Chat, Code, and Cowork. If you only see Chat and Code, your account is either on the free plan or the app needs an update. Check Claude Cowork access requirements for a full breakdown of what each plan includes.

What you see when you open Cowork

Click the Cowork tab. The first time you do this, the app will ask you to connect a folder on your computer. This is how Cowork gets access to your files. It reads and writes only inside the folders you connect, and any code it runs executes inside an isolated virtual machine, not directly on your system. Pick a folder that makes sense for the work you want to do. A dedicated project folder works better than your entire home directory. The next lesson in this series walks through choosing a folder and running your first task.

Once a folder is connected, the Cowork interface shows a prompt area where you describe what you want done. To the side or below (depending on window size) you will see a panel that displays what Cowork is doing: files it reads, steps it takes, and any output it produces. Nothing runs until you send a prompt.

A note on Dispatch

If you have the Claude mobile app on your phone and a paid Pro or Max plan, you can pair it with your desktop app using a feature called Dispatch. This lets you send a task from your phone that runs on your desktop while you are away from your computer. Dispatch is in research preview as of this writing, meaning it is available but may change. Details are on the Claude Cowork product page. For now, if you are just getting started, ignore it and work from the desktop directly.

Before the next lesson

At this point you should have the desktop app installed, a paid account signed in, and the Cowork tab visible. You have connected or are ready to connect a folder. The next lesson covers running your first real task so you can see how Cowork actually operates.