Claude Cowork: Hand Off a Project and Get Excel and PowerPoint Back

Describe the outcome, point Claude at a folder, step away, and come back to a spreadsheet with working formulas and a slide deck, with your approval on anything that matters.

_Checked October 27, 2026.

Heads-up: Claude Duet is a separate proactive agent app (US Pro/Max waitlist). Cowork is still the project handoff / Excel-PowerPoint story — not the same product. Claude Duet track. Researched and drafted with help from Grok Bot._

Quick answer

• Cowork is Claude's agent mode for long, multi-step work. It plans the job, splits it into smaller pieces (even running sub-agents in parallel) and delivers finished files: Excel with working formulas, PowerPoint decks and formatted documents.
• It runs in the cloud, so work keeps going when you close your laptop. Local files and your browser need the Claude Desktop app open on that computer.
• Heads-up on names: Anthropic is rolling out "Cowork is now just Claude." If your message box no longer shows Chat and Cowork, you have the new version: just ask, and Claude decides whether it's a quick answer or a task.
• Projects keep a job's files, instructions, scheduled tasks and memory together. Create one with Projects → +.
• You pick how much it asks: Manual (asks before actions), Auto (Claude safety-checks each action itself) or Skip (no checks; only for fully trusted jobs).

Pick your approval mode

Whatever the mode, Claude asks for your explicit permission before permanently deleting files.

Is Cowork worth it? The verdict

Quick questions

Which plans include Cowork? All paid plans: Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise. On the web and mobile it's on Pro, Max and Team, and on Enterprise where an admin turns it on.

Does my computer need to stay on? Not for cloud work. Claude keeps going when you close your laptop. If the task uses local files or your browser, keep the Claude Desktop app open on that computer.

Can I share a Cowork session with my team? Not the session itself. You can share individual artifacts it creates. Project sharing (view or edit) is on Team and Enterprise plans.

What files can it make? Excel spreadsheets with working formulas, PowerPoint presentations, formatted documents and charts. You can keep editing them with Claude for Excel and PowerPoint.

How do I check my usage? Settings → Usage. Group related work into one task and tell Claude when you just need a quick answer.

Before you start

• Plan: Claude Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise.
• Claude Desktop (Mac or Windows, latest version) if you'll use local files or your browser.
• One folder with only the files for this job. Claude can only read and write folders you connect.
• Copies, not originals, for anything precious.
• A clear finish line (see the brief below).

Step 1: Set your global instructions (once)

• Classic Cowork: Settings → Cowork → Global instructions → Edit, type, Save.
• New "just Claude" experience: Settings → General → Instructions for Claude.

Example:

I run a small bakery. Write in plain English for non-experts. Use US dollars. Spreadsheets: bold headers, freeze the top row, totals at the bottom. Decks: 16:9, max 4 bullets per slide, speaker notes on every slide.

Step 2: Create a project

1. In the left panel, find Projects and click +.
2. Pick one:
   • Start from scratch: a new folder with instructions and files.
   • Import from project: pull in files and instructions from an existing Claude chat project.
   • Use an existing folder: point it at a folder on your computer.
3. Name it, add project instructions (rules for every task in this project), then click Create.

Projects keep their own instructions, scheduled tasks, context and memory. Memory from one project doesn't carry into other projects.

Step 3: Start the task and pick a mode

1. Open the project. In the message box, select Cowork (skip this on the new experience).
2. Set the mode in the mode selector: start with Manual.
3. Paste your handoff brief (below) and send.

Step 4: The 5-part handoff brief

GOAL: [The finished thing, in one sentence.]
INPUTS: Use only the files in [folder]. [Anything to ignore.]
DELIVERABLES: 1) [Excel file: tabs, columns, formulas]. 2) [PowerPoint: number of slides, sections].
RULES: [Formatting, tone, numbers must match sources, no deleting files.]
DONE WHEN: [How you'll check it. Ask Claude to list anything it wasn't sure about.]

Step 5: Watch, steer, approve

• Progress indicators show each step. Claude shows its plan and reasoning so you can follow along.
• Jump in any time: "Use the 2025 prices, not 2024." It changes course mid-task.
• Check in from your phone: open the same session on another device to answer questions or redirect.
• Approve each action in Manual mode. Read deletion prompts carefully.

Step 6: Review and polish

Preview and download the outputs from the session. For small text changes in a Markdown draft, highlight the text, click Edit with Claude and type your change. For Excel and PowerPoint, open them and keep working with Claude for Excel and PowerPoint.

Project 1: Receipts to an expense workbook plus a summary deck

Folder: 40 receipt photos and PDFs from October.

GOAL: An October expense report for my bakery and a 5-slide summary for my business partner.
INPUTS: Only the files in the "Oct receipts" folder.
DELIVERABLES: 1) Excel workbook: tab "Expenses" (Date, Vendor, Category, Amount, Payment method, File name), tab "By category" with SUMIF formulas, tab "Check" listing unreadable receipts. 2) PowerPoint, 5 slides: Total spend, Top 5 vendors, Spend by category (chart), Unusual items, Next steps.
RULES: Categories: Ingredients, Packaging, Equipment, Utilities, Other. Keep amounts exact. Don't delete or rename any files.
DONE WHEN: The "By category" total equals the "Expenses" total. List anything you weren't sure about.

What good looks like: a workbook where the formulas actually calculate (not pasted numbers), a 5-slide deck with a chart, and a short "Check" list for you.

Project 2: Messy meeting notes to a board update

Folder: 3 months of meeting notes (text), one sales spreadsheet.

GOAL: A quarterly board update deck plus a one-page decisions log.
INPUTS: Files in "Q3 notes."
DELIVERABLES: 1) PowerPoint, 8 slides: Summary, Sales (chart from the spreadsheet), Wins, Problems, Decisions made, Open decisions, Asks of the board, Next quarter. 2) A one-page document: every decision with date, owner and status.
RULES: Quote numbers exactly from the spreadsheet. Plain English. Speaker notes on each slide.
DONE WHEN: Every decision in the notes appears in the log. Flag any decision with no owner.

Safety plan

Common mistakes and fixes

Prompt pack

Before you start, show me your plan as numbered steps and wait for my OK.

Split this into parallel workstreams if it helps, and tell me what each one is doing.

Open the workbook you made and check every formula. List any that return errors or hard-coded numbers.

Make the deck shorter: 6 slides max, 3 bullets each.

Turn this into a scheduled task that runs every Monday at 8 AM.

Same job in other chatbots

Next level

• A Weekly Report That Builds Itself: Claude Scheduled Tasks (coming soon): type /schedule in a Cowork task to run it on a cadence.
• Write One Custom Skill (SKILL.md) and Use It in Claude and Gemini (coming soon).