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How to use Claude in Google Docs, Sheets and Slides

Claude now opens as a sidebar inside Google Docs, Sheets and Slides. Here is who gets it, how to install it in two minutes, and five jobs to try first.

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WHAT THIS ADDSMost posts call this "Claude in Google Docs" and stop there. The part that matters for a small team is the edit mode: by default Claude asks before it changes your file, and every change it makes is saved in version history under your own name. So you can let it work on a live price sheet or proposal and still undo any single change.

What it is

Claude for Google Workspace adds a Claude sidebar to Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Slides. Claude reads the file you have open and edits it right there, so you do not copy text back and forth between tabs.

Anthropic calls it a beta. It is available on the paid Claude plans: Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise. One install covers all three apps.

Before you start

A paid Claude plan: Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise.
A Google account that is allowed to install Google Workspace Marketplace apps. On a work account your admin may need to allow it.
Chrome, Edge or Safari. Firefox is not supported in this beta.

Step 1: install it from the Marketplace

Open the Claude listing in the Google Workspace Marketplace: workspace.google.com/marketplace/app/claude.
Click Install, choose your Google account and click Continue.
Review the permissions and click Allow.
Reload any Docs, Sheets or Slides file you already had open.

For a whole team: a Google Workspace super admin can open the same listing, click Admin install, then choose Everyone or certain groups. Then ask people to reload their files.

Step 2: open the sidebar

Open any Google Doc, Sheet or Slides deck.
In the menu, go to Extensions > Claude > Open Claude.
Sign in with your Claude account.

Keep the sidebar open while Claude is working.

Step 3: five jobs to try first

App	Ask Claude to…
Docs	Turn my notes in this doc into a clean table.
Docs	Rewrite the intro to be shorter and friendlier. Keep the formatting.
Sheets	Explain how the total in this sheet is calculated, then fix any broken formulas.
Sheets	Make the dates and phone numbers in column B the same format.
Slides	Draft slides from the speaker notes in this deck, using the existing theme.

These match what Anthropic's help article lists for each app: rewriting and converting notes to tables in Docs, explaining calculations, fixing formulas and normalizing data in Sheets, and drafting slides from speaker notes and restyling decks in Slides. You can also just ask questions about the file without editing it.

How edits work (and how to undo them)

Ask before edits is the default. Claude shows a plain-language proposal of what it wants to change, and waits for you to approve it.
Accept all edits lets Claude make ordinary edits without pausing. It still asks before adding links, external images or web addresses, or changing who has access.
Every edit shows up under your name in File > Version history, and you can undo individual changes.

Limits to know

Claude works only on the file it is opened in. It cannot open, create or copy other files in your Drive.
One long operation can run for up to six minutes before Google stops it. For big jobs, ask Claude to work in stages.
In Slides, charts Claude creates are static images, not linked charts.
It cannot share the file or change who has access.

DO THISIf you pay for Claude, install it from the Google Workspace Marketplace, open it with Extensions > Claude > Open Claude, and start with one small job like turning notes into a table. Leave "Ask before edits" on until you trust it, and use Version history to undo anything.

Questions people also ask

Is Claude for Google Docs free?

No. Anthropic lists it as a beta for the paid Claude plans: Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise.

How do I open Claude in Google Docs?

After installing it from the Google Workspace Marketplace, open a file and go to Extensions > Claude > Open Claude.

Does Claude change my file without asking?

Not by default. The default mode is Ask before edits, where Claude shows a proposal and waits for approval. Every edit is saved under your name in File > Version history.

Does it work in Firefox?

No. Anthropic's help article lists Chrome, Edge and Safari, and says Firefox is not supported in this beta.

Can Claude read my other Drive files?

No. In the sidebar it works only on the file it is opened in, and cannot open, create or copy other files in Drive.

Sources

What Fynl.io is, and where it fits

Fynl.io is one portal a small business runs itself on, instead of five subscriptions that do not talk to each other.

✓A CRM and pipeline that shows every lead and where it stopped

✓A calendar clients can book straight into

✓Quotes, contracts and invoices, with deposits taken up front

✓A website and form builder, so the enquiry lands in the same place

✓Your Gmail connected, so the whole thread sits on the contact

✓Automations for the follow-up you keep forgetting to send

The AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT API key. You keep the key, you pay the model provider directly, and there is no markup on top of it. There is no SMS or phone calling yet, and we would rather say so than let you find out later.

If your quotes, proposals and price lists live in Google Docs and Sheets, Fynl.io keeps the leads, quotes and invoices they turn into in one place, and its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT API key with no markup.

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