How to Use Claude AI in Slack: Complete Setup Guide (2026)

You can now use Claude AI directly inside Slack. Summarize long threads, ask Claude questions in a DM, get help drafting messages, all without leaving the workspace you already have open. This is the official Slack integration from Anthropic, set up in about five minutes.

This is the setup video. If you want the version that covers Claude Code (the developer-tool) inside Slack with five free automations, that is a separate post: Claude Code in Slack tutorial. This post is about plain Claude (the chat AI) inside any Slack workspace.

What You Need

A Slack workspace where you can install apps (you need install permission, or a workspace admin who can approve)
A Claude account (free tier works for the integration)
A web browser

Step 1: Find the Slack App from Claude

Open Claude in your browser at claude.ai. The desktop application does not show the Slack option yet, so the web version is the right place.

In the left sidebar, look for the Code section. Inside it you will see "Try the Slack app" with an Install button. Click it.

Step 2: Sign In to Authorize

Slack will open a sign-in screen. Sign in to the Slack workspace you want to add Claude to. The "Allow" button appears once you are signed in.

If your workspace requires admin approval for new apps, you will see a request screen instead. Submit the request and ping your admin to approve.

Step 3: Pick the Workspace and Click Allow

Slack shows you the permissions Claude is requesting:

Read message content from channels you add Claude to
Post replies in those channels
Receive direct messages
See user names and profile data

Click Allow. You are now done with the install.

Step 4: Find Claude in Your Slack Sidebar

Open Slack. In the sidebar under Apps, you will see Claude. Click it to open a DM with Claude.

How to Use Claude in DMs

The DM with Claude works just like any chat with the Claude web app. Type a question, get an answer. Some examples I use it for:

"Rewrite this announcement to sound more concise: [paste]"
"Summarize the key points from this article: [paste]"
"Write a polite reply declining this meeting invite"
"What is the difference between OAuth 2.0 and OIDC?"

Everything stays in your DM with Claude. The conversation history is saved across sessions.

How to Summarize a Thread

This is the killer use case for me. Open any thread in any channel where Claude is invited. Click the three-dot menu on a message in the thread, then pick Summarize with Claude (or invoke Claude via @mention).

Claude reads the thread and posts a summary back in the same channel (or as a DM, depending on your settings). The "47 unread messages in a thread you got @-ed into last week" problem is solved.

How to Add Claude to a Channel

Type /invite @Claude in any channel. From that point, you can @mention Claude in messages and it will reply in the channel. Useful for shared workflows where the whole team can see Claude's help.

Privacy note: Claude only reads messages from channels you explicitly add it to. It does not have access to channels you have not invited it into.

What Claude Knows About Your Workspace

Claude sees the content of channels where it is invited and DMs sent to it. That is it. It does not crawl your entire workspace, does not read DMs between other people, does not see channels it is not in. Treat the integration like inviting a thoughtful coworker who only reads what is shared with them.

Removing Claude (Two Ways)

From a single channel: /remove @Claude
From the workspace entirely: Slack > Settings & administration > Manage apps > Claude > Remove app

The Common Use Cases I Have Settled Into

Pre-meeting catch-up. "Summarize this channel's discussion since Monday." Saves 15 minutes of scrolling.
Draft messages. "Help me write a polite chase-up to the design team about the missing assets."
Code questions in technical channels. Invite Claude to your dev channel, ask quick syntax or API questions inline.
Standup compression. Long async standup thread? Claude summarizes who said what in 5 bullet points.

Privacy and Pricing

The Slack integration is free for Claude account holders. Heavy usage falls under the same rate limits as the web app. Enterprise plans have higher limits and SSO support.

Anthropic's policy: messages sent to Claude through Slack are subject to their standard privacy and data handling rules. Workspace owners should review before installing if you handle sensitive data.

Claude Code in Slack: Complete Setup + 5 Free AI Automations (the developer-tool version)
Claude AI in Slack: Summarize Threads, Review Code, and Fix Bugs with a PR (deeper feature walkthrough)

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