How to Create a Free Claude Account

This is a quick walkthrough to sign up for Claude so you're ready for your workshop or coaching session. It takes about 2 minutes.

Before you start

You'll need:

1. An email address (or a Google account if you prefer to sign up with that)
2. A phone number for verification (Anthropic sends a one-time code)

Step 1, Go to Claude

Open claude.ai →

1. Open your browser and go to claude.ai.
2. Click the Sign up button.

Note. This is for the Claude chatbot at claude.ai. If you need an API key for connecting Claude to other tools, that's a separate account at console.anthropic.com. See our Claude API Key guide.

Step 2, Create your account

1. You can sign up with your Google account or a regular email address.
2. If you use email, you'll verify it with a code sent to your inbox.
3. Verify your phone number when prompted. Anthropic sends a text message with a code.
4. Accept the terms of service.

Tip. Signing up with Google is the fastest option. Just a couple of clicks and you're in.

Step 3, Start using Claude

1. Once your account is created, you'll see the Claude chat interface.
2. Type a message in the box and press Enter. That's it.
3. Your free account gives you access to Claude Sonnet 4.6 with daily usage limits.

Good to know. The free tier is plenty for getting started and workshop prep. You only need a paid plan (Claude Pro) if you want more daily messages and access to the most powerful model, Claude Opus.

Step 4, Bookmark it

Save claude.ai as a bookmark. You can also download the Claude app for your phone:

• iPhone. Search "Claude" in the App Store.
• Android. Search "Claude" in the Google Play Store.

Verify it worked

If you can see the Claude chat interface with a text box at the bottom, you're in. Try typing "hello" and pressing Enter. If Claude responds, your account is fully set up.

Optional, turn off AI training

By default, Anthropic may use your conversations to improve Claude. If you're working with client information or sensitive business data, you can turn this off.

We have a separate guide for that: How to Turn Off Training in Claude.