Claude in Slack gives you AI assistance right where your team collaborates. This article covers how to interact with Claude in Slack, which features are available, and tips for getting the most out of the integration.
Send a direct message to Claude
Search for "@Claude" anywhere in Slack.
Click on Claude, then the "Chat" tab at the top to open a direct message.
You'll see a welcome message with suggested prompts.
Type your question or request and press Enter.
Use the AI assistant panel
Click the Claude icon in the AI assistant header (if available in your workspace).
The Claude panel will open on the right side of your Slack window.
Type your message and press Enter.
Claude will respond in the panel.
When you close the AI assistant panel, the conversation moves to your history.
Access previous conversations by clicking the clock icon.
Mention @Claude in a thread or channel
Mention @Claude in any thread or channel where you want Claude's help.
Claude will draft a response based on the recent conversation context.
You'll see the draft privately first.
Review, edit, or regenerate the response before deciding to share it.
Click "Post to thread" to share Claude's response with your team.
This gives you control to review what Claude shares before it becomes visible to others.
What context from the thread or channel is included when using @Claude?
When mentioned in a channel, Claude will have access to the last 20 messages in that channel, including any files shared within those messages. When using @Claude in a thread, it will have access to the last 50 messages in that thread.
Forward a thread directly to Claude
You can also select “Forward message…” on a message within any Slack thread to send it directly to Claude. When shared in this way, Claude will have access to the last 100 messages in the thread.
Features and capabilities
Available features
Claude in Slack supports many of the capabilities offered by the Claude web app, including:
Web search: Get up-to-date information from the internet.
Integrations: Access connected services like Google Docs, Gmail, and Google Calendar.
File uploads: Attach files directly in your Slack conversation for Claude to analyze.
Document analysis: Upload PDFs, text files, images, and more.
How integrations work
If you've connected integrations in Claude (like Google Workspace), they work in Slack too:
Share a Google Doc link in your message to Claude.
Claude will automatically access and analyze the document based on your permissions.
You can reference emails from Gmail or events from Google Calendar the same way.
You cannot manage or connect new integrations from within Slack—set these up in your Claude settings first.
Feature limitations
The following features are not available when using Claude in Slack:
Research
Extended thinking
Creating new integration connections (you can only use integrations you’ve already connected in your Claude settings)
Common use cases
Code assistance
Share code snippets with Claude to get implementation suggestions, or help debugging errors, optimizing functions, and understanding legacy code.
Content creation
Transform team discussions into formalized documentation, draft emails and proposals in your direct message with Claude, then share the results in relevant Slack channels.
Document analysis
Upload files directly to Claude for data analysis, key point extraction/summarization, and translation. Supported file types include: PDF, TXT, DOC, DOCX, images (PNG, JPG), CSV, and more.
Meeting preparation
Before joining a call, ask Claude to summarize key topics from shared documents, analyze relevant files, review meeting agendas, and prepare talking points.
Onboarding support
Granting new team members access to channel history and shared documents in Slack helps them ramp up faster.
Quick research
Get instant answers during team discussions. Ask Claude about industry trends, technical concepts, or company information while staying in your conversation.
Best practices
Optimize your workflow
Keep Claude DMs organized: Use them for draft work before sharing in channels.
Leverage context: Claude maintains conversation context within each session.
Use clear prompts: Be specific about what you need to get the best results.
Request web search: Add "search the web" to your prompt when you need current information.
Managing conversations
Each Claude DM maintains full chat history.
In the AI assistant panel, conversations move to history when you close the panel.
Start fresh conversations when switching topics for better results.
File handling
Upload files directly in your Slack message to Claude.
Claude processes files using the same system as the Claude web app.
You can upload multiple files in a single message.
Message editing and deletion
Editing messages: Claude won't see edits to previous messages.
Deleting messages: Deleted messages remain in Claude's context but are removed from the Slack interface.
Threading: Threading is disabled in Claude DMs to maintain conversation flow.
Channel restrictions
Claude works in direct messages and threads where you explicitly mention @Claude. You control when Claude participates in conversations and can review all responses before sharing them with your team.
Troubleshooting
"Usage limit reached"
This message appears when you've hit your Claude account usage limits. Try again later or consider upgrading your Claude plan.
"I'm unable to generate a response at this time"
This generic error message can appear for various reasons:
API failures or temporary service issues
Empty responses from Claude
Network connectivity problems
Try sending your message again. If the problem persists, you can contact our Support team.
"I don't have access to our previous conversation history"
This message appears when you try to continue a conversation in Slack that has already been deleted from Claude. This can happen if:
You disconnected your Claude in Slack app.
Your organization’s retention policy deleted the conversation.
You manually deleted the conversation from the Claude web app.
Start a new conversation to continue.