Cowork Cheatsheet

Cowork Cheatsheet

🌐 Languages: English | Français

One-page quick reference — Print-friendly

Requires: Pro ($20/mo) or Max ($100-200/mo) subscription, macOS or Windows

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Quick Start

# 1. Create workspace
mkdir -p ~/Cowork-Workspace/{input,output}

# 2. Enable Cowork in Claude Desktop → Settings → Features

# 3. Grant folder access when prompted

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Essential Prompt Pattern

Task: [clear single objective]
Input: ~/Cowork-Workspace/input/
Output: ~/Cowork-Workspace/output/[filename.ext]
Format: [specific format requirements]

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Model Selection

Model	Use For	Speed	Context
Haiku	Very simple tasks, quick queries	Very Fast	Standard
Sonnet 4.6 ⭐	All Cowork workflows, agentic tasks	Fast	1M tokens (beta)
Opus 4.6	Deep reasoning, legal/scientific analysis	Slower	1M tokens (beta)

Default: Sonnet 4.6 for everything. Sonnet 4.6 = #1 for agentic/computer use tasks at 5x lower cost than Opus. Switch to Opus only for: expert legal reasoning, scientific analysis, complex multi-agent coordination. Both models: 1M token context window (beta), 128K output, adaptive thinking.

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Personalize Your Profile

Create my-profile.md in your workspace:

## Tone & Style
- Formal / Casual
- Concise bullet points

## Things I NEVER Do
- Use exclamation marks
- Promise specific deadlines

Usage: “Read my-profile.md first. Then [your request]“

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Can Do / Cannot Do

✅ CAN DO	❌ CANNOT DO
Read/write files	Execute code
Create Office docs	Run scripts
Extract data from images	Process audio/video
Organize folders	Decrypt files
Web research (Chrome)	Access network resources (except Chrome)
Generate PDFs	Run on Linux
11 plugins (Asana, GitHub, Notion, Slack…)
Scheduled tasks
Direct Excel/PowerPoint integrations

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Customize Tab & Skills

Feature	How to Access	Example Usage
Skills	Customize tab → Skills	/pdf, /docx, /xlsx
Skill chaining	Chain two skills in a prompt	/pdf then /xlsx in sequence
Connectors	Customize tab → Connectors	Web search, local files, custom JSON
Permissions	Per-tool: Allow / Ask / Block	Set web search to “Ask”
Memory	Desktop Commander + memory.md	”Read memory.md first, then…”
Scheduled tasks	Settings → Scheduled Tasks	Daily brief, weekly report

Skills Ecosystem

• Official skills: github.com/anthropics/skills
• Community: claudemarketplaces.com | skills.sh | skillhub.club
• Install via: Customize tab → search by name or paste URL

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Output Formats

Format	Extension	Notes
Word	.docx	Headers, tables, formatting
Excel	.xlsx	Formulas, multiple sheets
PowerPoint	.pptx	Slides, basic formatting
PDF	.pdf	Generated from content
Text	.txt, .md	Any text format
Data	.csv, .json	Structured data

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Prompt Examples

File Organization

Organize files in ~/Cowork-Workspace/input/ by type.
Create folders: Documents, Images, Spreadsheets, Other.
Save summary to ~/Cowork-Workspace/output/organization-report.txt

Data Extraction

Extract expenses from receipt images in ~/Cowork-Workspace/input/receipts/
Create Excel file with: Date, Vendor, Amount, Category
Add totals row. Save to ~/Cowork-Workspace/output/expenses.xlsx

⚠️ OCR: 97% field accuracy, 63% line-items. Always verify totals.

Document Synthesis

Combine notes in ~/Cowork-Workspace/input/notes/ into a status report.
Structure: Executive Summary, Progress, Risks, Next Steps.
Save as ~/Cowork-Workspace/output/status-report.docx

Web Research

Research top 5 project management tools.
Create comparison table with: Name, Price, Key Features, Pros, Cons.
Save to ~/Cowork-Workspace/output/pm-tools.md

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Security Quick Rules

🔴 CRITICAL	🟠 HIGH
Dedicated workspace only	Review every plan
No credentials in workspace	Backup before destructive ops
Verify file sources	Manage Chrome permissions

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Common Issues → Quick Fixes

Issue	Fix
Can’t see Cowork	Update app + restart
Permission denied	System Preferences → Privacy → re-grant
Task stops	Break into smaller batches
Excel formulas broken	Specify regional syntax
Chrome not working	Grant Accessibility permission

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Dangerous Patterns to Avoid

❌ "Process all files in ~/"
❌ "You have access to Documents"
❌ "Here's my password file"
❌ "Delete all duplicates" (without backup)
❌ Skip plan review

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Decision Flow

Need code execution? → Use Claude Code
Need file manipulation? → Use Cowork
Just conversation? → Use Projects

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Regional Excel Settings

Region	Formula Syntax
US/UK	=SUM(A1,A2) (comma)
EU	=SUM(A1;A2) (semicolon)

Specify in prompt: “Use European/US formula syntax”

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Workflow Cycle

Request → Analysis → Plan → ⚠️ Review → Approve → Execute → Verify
                            ↑
                     READ THIS CAREFULLY

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Context Limits

Content	Approximate Capacity (Opus 4.6, 1M beta)
Text pages	600-2000+ pages
Documents	200-400+ docs
Images (OCR)	200-400+ images

Context compaction (beta) extends effective session length. Hit limit? → Break into smaller batches

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Usage Limits

Tier	Intensive Use	Reset
Pro	~1-1.5 hours	Every 5 hours
Max	5x-20x Pro	Every 5 hours

⚠️ File/document tasks consume quota rapidly. Plan large batches accordingly.

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Token Budget by Task

Task Type	Typical Tokens	Pro Sessions
Simple Q&A	5K-10K	Many
File inventory	20K-30K	6-8
Small file org (10-20 files)	30K-50K	3-5
Large file org (50+ files)	80K-150K	1-2
Multi-doc synthesis	50K-100K	2-3
OCR batch (10+ receipts)	60K-100K	2-3

Agentic overhead: Plan→Execute→Check cycles add 15-30% tokens.

Optimization Tips

Strategy	Savings
Batch 10-20 files per request	Optimal efficiency
Checkpoint after each batch	Enables recovery
Clear context for new tasks	Fresh 200K window
Reuse previous outputs	Avoids re-processing

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Keyboard Shortcuts

Action	Method
Stop execution	Type “Stop”
New conversation	Cmd+N
Clear context	Start new conversation

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Links

Resource	URL
Full Docs	README.md
Security Guide	guide/03-security.md
Prompt Library	prompts/
Troubleshooting	guide/04-troubleshooting.md

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Cowork v1.5.0 (Research Preview) | Part of Claude Cowork Guide