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Start here · Beginner · 5 lessons, about 49 minutes in total

Claude for beginners

Get started with Claude, Anthropic’s AI assistant, on a free account. You’ll log in and ask your first questions, pick the right settings for the job, hand Claude a document to summarise, keep your instructions in one place and ask for a small tool that does one job.

Written by Jack Stovell · Published 9 October 2026 · Updated 9 October 2026

Course cover: a printed web page with a compost cost splitter showing a result of 12.22 pounds each, torn orange and blue paper, and a hand sketching beside it
Course cover. The page is the real one from lesson 5; the allotment society is a fictional example.

What you build

A small web page that splits the cost of a shared compost order between plot holders, written by Claude from one prompt and checked by you with real numbers. Our worked example belongs to the Maple Street Allotment Society, a made-up allotment society.

Fictional example society

Maple Street Allotment Society does not exist. We wrote the newsletter and the prompts, and every reply quoted in this course is exactly what Claude sent back.

Not for: Developers building with the Claude API or Claude Code. This course is about the chat on claude.ai and the apps.

The finished compost cost-splitter: two boxes, a button, and a result of 12.22 pounds each for 7 people sharing 85.50 pounds.
The finished page from the course, printed as it came back from Claude.

Before you start

Time
5 lessons, about 49 minutes in total
Level
Beginner
Cost
Free.
Certificate
Certificate of completion, with its own verification link

Tools and what they cost

  • Claude (Free plan)Every lesson in the courseChecked 9 October 2026 · sourceFree

What you need

  • A computer, phone or tablet with a web browser
  • An email address, or a Google account, to log in with
  • A document of your own for lesson 3 (a newsletter, a letter or a report, in a format Claude can read)
  • No technical knowledge

Who it’s for

  • Anyone who wants to learn Claude specifically, rather than AI in general
  • People who have done “AI for beginners” and want to use more of what Claude can do
  • Clubs, societies and small businesses with newsletters, notices and regular emails to write

The lessons

Module 1

Get started

Module badge: Claude starter

  1. Lesson 1: Meet Claude and ask your first questionWhat Claude is, who can use it and how to log in, then your first question and five kinds of job to try.10 minReady to read
  2. Lesson 2: Pick a model and know your limitsFind the model menu, choose an effort level, see what the Free plan includes and what makes your usage run out sooner.9 minReady to read

Module 2

Put Claude to work

Module badge: Claude at work

  1. Lesson 3: Give Claude a file to work onAdd a document to a chat, ask for a summary and a list of dates, then check what it says is in the file.10 minReady to read
  2. Lesson 4: Keep your instructions in one placeWrite instructions once, so every notice or email comes out the way you want, and see where Claude keeps them.10 minReady to read
  3. Lesson 5: Make a small tool with an artifactAsk Claude for a small web page that does one job, try it with real numbers and know what to do when it goes wrong.10 minReady to read

At the end

Finish all 5 lessons and you’ll get a certificate of completion, with its own verification link and an “Add certificate to LinkedIn profile” button.

Completion is self-reported: we do not check your work. It is not an exam result, a qualification or an accreditation. How certificates work.

Questions about this course

Is Claude free?

Claude has a Free plan, listed on its plans page as “Free for everyone”. It’s got usage limits, so a long session can run out. The paid plans give more usage.

Who can use Claude?

You’ll need to be at least 18, and in a location Claude supports. You can use it in a web browser, in the desktop app for Mac or Windows, or in the mobile apps.

Do I need to know how to write prompts first?

No, you don’t. You write to Claude in plain English, like you’d talk to a coworker or a friend. If you want to get better at it afterwards, “Prompting for beginners” covers it.

Can I trust what Claude tells me?

Check it. In lesson 3 our summary was right, but its date table put March ahead of January, and in lesson 4 it added a rule we never gave it. So read every line that matters.

Should I put private details into Claude?

Be careful. Anthropic recommends being thoughtful about sharing highly sensitive details such as financial information, health records, passwords and confidential documents.

Sources, checked 9 October 2026