The Claude Field Guide
Translating technology into human language.
Front page
Claude's free plan does more than most people think
Before you pay for anything, here is what Anthropic actually includes at $0, what needs a subscription, and which online claims do not hold up.
Every week, someone online promises that a secret Claude setup will run your marketing, sales and finance for free. Some of it is true. Some of it is out of date. A lot of it quietly leaves out the price.
Here is what Anthropic's own pricing page says. Chat, web search, files, code, memory, connectors, Artifacts and Skills are all on the Free plan. Projects are capped at five.
Paid plans add the tools many influencers show on screen: Claude Design, Slides and Docs, Claude Code, Research, scheduled tasks and Opus models. Pro starts at $17 a month when billed annually.
Below, you can compare the plans side by side, browse every official skill by department, see what is available for your kind of organisation, and test the next claim that sounds too good to be true.
Want your whole team using Claude properly, not just trying it?
Train your team with AI Everywhere®Plans
Free versus paid, line by line
See exactly what you get at each level, so you only pay for what you will use.
| Feature | Free | Pro | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chat, web search, memory, voice | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Files, code, Artifacts | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Skills and connectors | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Projects | Up to 5 | Yes | Yes, shareable |
| Claude Design, Slides, Docs | No | Yes | Yes |
| Claude Code | No | Yes | Yes |
| Research | No | Yes | Yes |
| Scheduled and handed off tasks | No | Yes | Yes |
| Claude in Chrome, Microsoft 365 | No | Yes | Yes |
| Opus models | No | Yes | Yes |
| Usage per session | Base | At least 5x Free | More than Pro |
| Organization wide skills, admin, single sign on | No | No | Yes |
Prices and features were last checked on 2 October 2026 against claude.com/pricing and can change. Prices exclude applicable tax. Usage limits reset on a rolling five hour window, and there is no fixed message count.
Skills 101
Skills, connectors and plugins in plain language
Three words get mixed up constantly. Here is the difference.
Skills
Folders of instructions Claude loads when a task matches, such as building a Word file or following your brand voice. Know how.
Connectors
Links between Claude and your apps, such as Gmail, Google Calendar, Drive, Notion and HubSpot. Access.
Plugins
Bundles of skills, connectors and shortcuts for one job, such as Sales or Marketing. Anthropic's are open source. Both, packaged for a role.
Anthropic publishes a short, curated set of official skills: Word, PowerPoint, Excel and PDF skills, creative and design skills, and builder tools. Be wary of online collections that promise 1,000 or more skills. Those are community made, not official. Anthropic describes its role plugins as starting points, so expect to adapt them to your own tools and process.
Departments
Every official skill, grouped by department
Find your team, see what Anthropic has already built. Tap a department or search a task.
No skills match that search.
Every skill listed here comes from Anthropic itself. Community and partner built skills are not included. Anthropic adds new ones often, so check claude.com/plugins for the latest.
Not sure which skills fit your team? We turn them into daily habits.
Train your team with AI Everywhere®Sector desk
Nonprofits, finance and accounting, architecture and design
See what is available for your kind of organisation.
Up to 75% off for your organisation
If you run a nonprofit, you can get up to 75% off Team and Enterprise plans. Anthropic's nonprofit guide lists $8 per user per month for Team and $10 for Enterprise. You also get connectors for Blackbaud, Candid and Benevity, and a free course, AI Fluency for Nonprofits. Check Anthropic's nonprofit page for current prices and eligibility.
Built for your close
The Finance plugin covers journal entries, reconciliation, statements, variance analysis, month end close and audit support. A separate Financial Services library adds agents such as month end closer, GL reconciler, statement auditor and model builder. They run in Cowork or Claude Code, so you will need a paid plan. Use them as templates to review, and keep your accountant in the loop.
Built for design teams
If your studio designs screens and products, Anthropic's Design plugin covers critique, design systems, UX writing, accessibility review and developer handoff. Claude Design, for mockups and visuals, needs a Pro plan.
Hype check
Claims you may see online, tested
Heard something that sounds too good to be true? Tap a claim to see what Anthropic's pricing actually shows.
"Claude Code is free"
"Slides, Docs and Design are free"
"Skills need a paid plan"
"Connectors need Pro"
"Unlimited free messages"
"1,000 plus official skills"
"One plugin runs your whole department"
"Free Pro trial or promo codes"
What the hype gets right
Free is generous: Skills, connectors, Artifacts, web search, memory and file creation are all included. Anthropic's plugins add no fee on top of your plan. And Claude products are ad free.
Check any claim in 60 seconds
Pricing
Open claude.com/pricing and read the comparison table for your plan.
Skills and plugins
Official ones live under github.com/anthropics. Anything else is community made.
Date
Plans change often. Find the post's date and compare it with today's pricing page.
Ask
Which plan is that on: Free, Pro, Team or a nonprofit plan?
Train your team
Turn Claude into a habit your whole team shares
Free tools only help when people know how to use them. AI Everywhere® trains marketing, sales and leadership teams to use Claude on real work, in plain language, with skills set up for your business.
www.aieverywhere.io | [email protected]