Anthropic’s assistant, strongest on long-form writing, analysis and coding.
- Starting price
- $17/month (Pro, billed annually)
- Pricing model
- Freemium
- User rating
- 4.6 / 5
- Best for
- Long documents, careful writing and coding
Claude is Anthropic’s AI assistant. It is used most for long-document work, careful writing and coding. The free plan covers everyday chat; paid plans raise usage and add Claude Code, Cowork, Design and Science.
Who Claude is for
Claude suits people who work with long documents and code. It holds large files in context well and follows detailed instructions closely.
The free plan is fine for occasional questions. Usage is metered in rolling five-hour sessions, so anyone working steadily hits the ceiling within a day.
Which Claude plan should you pick?
Pro at $20 a month is the standard choice. It gives at least five times the free usage per session, and bundles Claude Code, unlimited projects and access to more models. Annual billing brings it down to $17 a month.
Max exists for one reason: headroom. You pick 5x or 20x Pro’s limits, from $100 a month. Anthropic documents how that usage is measured, and it is worth reading before you upgrade.
Teams pay per seat from $25 a month, or $20 billed annually. A premium seat at $125 monthly gives five times a standard seat’s usage.
Claude pricing and plans
Free
$0
per month
Everyday chat with limited usage per session.
- Web, iOS, Android and desktop apps
- Web search and extended thinking
- File creation with code execution
- Memory and connectors
Pro
$20
per month
$17 per month billed annually at $200 up front.
- At least 5x free usage per session
- Claude Code, Cowork, Design and Science
- Unlimited projects
- Microsoft 365 integration
Max
From $100
per month
Choose 5x or 20x Pro usage.
- Higher output limits
- Early access to new features
- Priority access at busy times
- Everything in Pro
Team
$25
per user, per month
$20 per user billed annually. For 2 to 150 people.
- Premium seat gives 5x standard usage
- Enterprise search
- SSO and admin controls
- Claude Code included
Enterprise
$20
per seat, per month
Billed annually, plus usage at API rates.
- Role-based access and SCIM
- Audit logs and compliance API
- Custom data retention
- HIPAA-ready option
Pricing checked against the official Claude pricing page on 5 September 2026. Vendors change plans often, so confirm before you buy.
What Claude actually does
- Long-document analysis with a large context window
- Claude Code for terminal and repository work
- Projects that keep files and instructions together
- Extended thinking for harder problems
- Web search with citations
- File creation, including spreadsheets and documents
- Connectors to tools such as Microsoft 365
- Memory that carries across conversations
- Web, desktop and mobile apps
Pros and cons
What works well
- Strong on long documents and code
- Pro includes Claude Code at no extra cost
- Annual billing brings Pro down to $17 a month
- Clear, well-structured writing with little prompting
- Zero data retention available on Enterprise
What to watch out for
- Usage is metered in five-hour sessions and runs out fast
- Max costs $100 to $200 a month for headroom alone
- Fewer third-party integrations than ChatGPT
- No high-usage free tier
Claude FAQs
Is Claude free?
Yes. The free plan covers chat, web search, extended thinking, memory and file creation, with limited usage in each five-hour session.
How much is Claude Pro?
$20 a month billed monthly, or $17 a month if you pay $200 up front for the year.
What are Claude’s usage limits?
Usage is measured in rolling five-hour sessions rather than a fixed daily message count. Pro gives at least five times the free allowance, and Max gives five or twenty times Pro.
Is Claude Max worth it?
Only if you regularly run out of Pro usage. Max adds headroom, higher output limits and priority access, but the underlying models are the same.
Does Claude Pro include Claude Code?
Yes. Claude Code, Cowork, Design and Science are all included with Pro at no extra cost.
What is the difference between Pro and Team?
Team adds shared admin controls, SSO and enterprise search across a workspace. Pro is a single-user plan.
Can I use Claude for commercial work?
Yes. Paid plans allow commercial use, and Anthropic offers zero data retention options on Enterprise.
Is there an annual discount?
Yes. Pro drops from $20 to $17 a month on annual billing, and Team seats drop from $25 to $20.
Where does the 4.6 rating come from?
It is the aggregate score from 427 reviewers on G2, checked 12 August 2026. It is not our own hands-on test score.
Weighing up other options? Read the 8 best Claude alternatives.
Ready to try Claude?
Go to Claude