Anthropic significantly expanded its Free Tier by providing all users with “no-cost” access to over 150+ App Connectors and Skills.
This move is widely seen as a direct competitive response to OpenAI, which began rolling out advertisements in the free version of ChatGPT just days earlier. Anthropic has committed to keeping Claude ad-free, positioning itself as the “clean space for deep work.”
What’s Included in the “Free Access” Update?
Previously, many of these integrations were locked behind the $20/month Pro subscription. Now, free users can connect Claude to their existing workflows across a massive ecosystem:
- The Connector Library (150+ Apps): Free users can now link Claude to popular third-party tools like Slack, Asana, Zapier, Canva, Notion, Figma, Stripe, and WordPress.
- Microsoft & Google Integration: You can now connect your Google Workspace (Drive, Docs, Gmail) and Microsoft 365 accounts for free, allowing Claude to read and analyze your files directly within the chat.
- Skills System: Free users can use and create “Skills”—repeatable, domain-specific instructions that teach Claude how to perform specialized tasks, such as generating perfectly formatted legal NDAs or complex financial models.
- File Creation: Claude can now natively generate and export files in formats like Excel (.xlsx), PowerPoint (.pptx), Word (.docx), and PDF for all users.
The “Claude vs. ChatGPT” 2026 Landscape
The market has split into two distinct philosophies:
| Feature | Claude (Free) | ChatGPT (Go/Free) |
| Ads | 100% Ad-Free | Sponsored “Ad-Prompts” |
| App Integrations | 150+ Connectors included | Limited (Mostly via GPT Store) |
| Primary Model | Sonnet 4.5 | GPT-5 mini |
| File Generation | Full (Excel, PPT, Word) | Basic (via Python/Data Analysis) |
Note on Usage: While the features are now free, the message limits remain. Free users still have a cap (roughly 15–20 messages per 5-hour window), and for heavy-duty agentic work, Anthropic recommends the Pro or the new Max ($100/mo) tiers.
New Feature: “Compaction”
To help free users stay within their limits, Anthropic also introduced Compaction. This technology automatically summarizes the earlier parts of a long conversation in the background, allowing you to have much longer, multi-day chats without hitting the “context window” limit that usually forces free users to start a new chat.
Getting Started
To access these apps, look for the new “Connectors” or “Skills” tab in your Claude settings. Most apps can be linked with a single click using OAuth (Sign-in with Google/Slack).
