What are "Projects" for? (Claude and ChatGPT)

The short answer

A Project is like a labeled folder for one ongoing job. Think "Kitchen redo," "Mom's paperwork," or "My novel." Inside, you keep:

• the chats about that job,
• the files the AI should keep looking at, like quotes, contracts, and notes,
• instructions just for that job, like "act as a careful contractor's helper; keep answers short."

Then every new chat in that Project already knows the backstory. No more uploading the same files. No more retelling the whole saga.¹⁴

Why you'll like it

• No more starting over. The background lives in the Project, not in your head.
• Topics stay apart. Your medical bills don't wander into your business ideas.
• Different rules for different jobs. Formal for legal stuff. Silly for party planning.

Projects and memory are a team. Memory is "what it knows about you." A Project is "what it knows about this job." (See Why your AI needs a memory.)

Claude Projects

• Who gets them: everyone, even free accounts. Free accounts can have up to 5 Projects.¹
• Make one: click Projects on the left (or go to claude.ai/projects). Click + New Project. Give it a name and description. Fun fact: Claude can't see the name or description. They're just for you.²
• Add files: use the + in the project knowledge area, on the right side of the project page. Anything there gets used in every chat in that Project.²
• Add instructions: click Set project instructions, type them, then click Save instructions.² (On some plans, this may need a paid plan.)
• Watch out: chats in a Project don't automatically know what was said in each other. Put anything that should carry over into the project knowledge.²
• Lots of files? On paid plans, Claude switches to a search mode by itself when you add a lot. That fits up to about 10 times more. You don't set anything up.³
• Changes coming: Anthropic is rolling out a new kind of Project, starting with Claude Code. In it, a Project is one ongoing chat. It splits work into threads that run in the cloud and keeps a Library of files.¹ So these steps may change.

ChatGPT Projects

• Who gets them: all free and paid plans. Business, Enterprise, and Edu users can also share Projects with teammates.⁴
• Make one: open Projects from the left menu. Create a new project and name it. Then add files, set instructions, or move old chats into it.⁵
• Add instructions: click the three dots in the top right of the project. Then pick Project settings.⁴
• Pick a memory style: a Project can use default memory or project-only memory. Project-only keeps it in its own bubble. Its chats can see each other, but not your outside chats or saved memories. Outside chats can't peek in, either. You can switch later in Project settings.⁴⁶
• ChatGPT Work (the file-making agent) doesn't work in project-only Projects.⁴⁶ Want Work to make files there? Use default memory.
• Files on your computer: a normal ChatGPT Project can't reach folders on your computer. Upload what it needs. The desktop app also has "local projects" that can attach folders and read or change those files.⁷ If you're new, stick with uploads.

Starter Projects to try

1. "House": upload your appliance manuals and warranties. Instruction: "Answer from these documents first, and tell me which one you used." Bye-bye, junk drawer of manuals.
2. "Health admin" (use project-only memory in ChatGPT): insurance letters and bills. Instruction: "Sum up, don't diagnose. Flag deadlines."
3. "Big trip": draft plans and confirmations. Instruction: "Never book anything. Give me options with links."