How To Use Claude

Getting Started (2 minutes)

Go to claude.ai and click Sign up. Google or email both work.
You'll see a clean chat window with a text box at the bottom. Type anything and hit Enter.
Try uploading a document , click the paperclip and drop in a PDF, Word doc, or text file. Claude is especially good at reading and analyzing long documents.
Click New Project in the sidebar to create a workspace where you can add reference files and instructions that stick across multiple chats.

Copy and paste these , swap the brackets for your details.

Analyze a document: "Read this document and give me: 1) A 3-sentence summary, 2) The 5 most important points, 3) Any red flags or concerns I should know about. [attach your file]"
Write with personality: "Write a LinkedIn post about [topic] in a conversational, slightly irreverent tone. Keep it under 200 words. End with a question to drive engagement."
Compare two options: "Compare [option A] vs [option B] for someone who [your situation]. Be specific and opinionated , which would you recommend and why?"
Think through a decision: "I need to make a decision about [topic]. Walk me through it step by step: What are the key factors? What am I probably not considering? What would you recommend?"
Review code: "Review this code for bugs, security issues, and readability. Suggest specific improvements with examples. [paste code]"

Projects are your secret weapon. Create a Project, drop in your company's style guide or reference docs, and set custom instructions. Every chat inside that project knows your context , like giving Claude a permanent briefing before each conversation.
Extended thinking for hard problems. On the Pro plan, Claude can "think" before answering. This produces noticeably better results for complex analysis, math, and nuanced questions.
Artifacts for visual output. Ask Claude to "create a React component" or "make a chart" and it'll render an interactive preview right in the chat. Great for seeing ideas come to life.

Generating images. Unlike ChatGPT or Gemini, Claude can't create pictures. It's a text-and-analysis tool , and it's really good at that part.
Real-time information on the free plan. Claude can search the web, but on the free tier you may hit limits. For breaking news or live data, paste the info directly into your chat.