Can You Use Claude on 2 PCs? Sync, Cowork Limitations, and Setup Guide
Wanting to use Claude on both your home PC and your work PC, or sharing the same account between a MacBook and a Windows desktop — these are common scenarios. This article answers the question "Can I use Claude on two PCs?" based on official information, then covers the installation steps for the desktop app, what data is and isn't synced across devices, and key considerations for running Cowork and Claude Code in a two-device setup.
Bottom line: Claude can be used on two or more PCs under the same account. The Claude Desktop app can be installed on any number of Windows or Mac devices, and once you sign in, your conversations, projects, memory, and settings are automatically synced across devicessource.
However, Cowork local sessions remain on the device they were created on. Using two PCs together to execute a single task in coordination is not currently possible with Cowork alone. Claude Code is intended to be installed independently on each PC and used separately.
Usage limits (message count, operation count) are managed at the account level, so using Claude simultaneously from two devices will consume your quota faster — something to be aware of in advance.
目次 (8)
- Is Using Claude on 2 PCs Allowed Under the Terms of Service?
- How to Install Claude Desktop on a Second PC
- What Is and Isn't Synced Between Devices
- Limitations and Workarounds for Using Cowork on 2 PCs
- How to Install Claude Code on Two PCs
- Using Projects to Bridge Work Across Two PCs
- Usage Limits Are Shared Across Both PCs at the Account Level
- Frequently Asked Questions
Is Using Claude on 2 PCs Allowed Under the Terms of Service?
Anthropic's Consumer Terms state that "you must not share your account login credentials with others"source. This prohibits sharing your account with third parties, but does not restrict installing the app on multiple devices you personally own.
In fact, the FAQ on the official Claude Desktop download page (claude.com/download) states the followingsource:
"Your conversations, projects, memory, and preferences sync across all devices when you're signed in."
The phrase "sync across all devices when you're signed in" indicates that the design explicitly anticipates multi-device use.
How to Install Claude Desktop on a Second PC
The steps to install on a second device are the same as for the first.
- Open
claude.com/downloadin your browser - Select your OS (Windows or Mac) and download the installer
- Run the
.exeon Windows, or the universal.dmgon Mac, to complete the installation - Launch the app and sign in with the same Anthropic account you used on your first device
- After signing in, your conversation history, Projects, and settings will automatically appear
Dedicated builds are available for Windows x64 / arm64, and a universal build is available for Mac supporting both Intel and Apple Silicon. You can use the same account across different OS combinations — for example, a Mac at home and Windows at work — without any issuessource.
What Is and Isn't Synced Between Devices
Understanding what is and isn't synced as you move between two PCs is fundamental to a smooth workflow.
Synced data (cloud-stored)
| Type | Details |
|---|---|
| Conversation history | All chat history shared across devices |
| Projects | Project names, instructions (System Prompts), and attached documents |
| Memory | Personal settings and background information saved to Claude's memory |
| App settings | Theme, language settings, etc. |
Not synced (device-local)
| Type | Details |
|---|---|
| Cowork sessions | Local PC screen-control sessions (not accessible from other devices) |
| Local files | Files stored on your desktop or in local folders |
| Claude Code settings | Settings under ~/.claude/ and project CLAUDE.md files |
The official FAQ explicitly states: "In Claude Cowork, local sessions stay on-device."source
Limitations and Workarounds for Using Cowork on 2 PCs
Cowork is a feature in Claude Desktop (Pro / Max plans) that lets Claude control your PC. The fact that local sessions are device-specific is the most common pain point when running a two-device setup.
Steps to enable Cowork on each of your two PCs
- Install Claude Desktop (Pro plan or above) on your second PC as well
- Grant accessibility permissions in your system settings
- Launch Claude Desktop and enable Cowork
- An independent Cowork session will start on each PC
Note that you cannot "hand off" a session from one PC to another. Running Cowork on both PCs simultaneously is possible, but each instance operates independently. "Starting a Cowork task on your home PC and picking it up on your work PC" as a continuous session is not currently supported.
A practical workflow for linking two PCs is to save your task instructions and intermediate results to Claude's Projects, then open the same Project on the other PC to continue from where you left off.
How to Install Claude Code on Two PCs
Claude Code is a CLI tool that must be installed individually on each PC. Conversation history is synced to the cloud, but local repository files and project settings (CLAUDE.md, files under ~/.claude/) are managed independently per device.
Installing via npm (Windows / Mac)
npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
After installing, run claude login to sign in and you're ready to go. Managing your project-specific configuration file (CLAUDE.md) in a Git repository makes it easy to share settings between your two devices.
Tips for sharing Claude Code settings between two PCs
- Include
CLAUDE.mdin your Git repository - Managing global settings (
~/.claude/) via a dotfiles repository is a common approach claude loginis required on each PC; credentials are stored locally
Using Projects to Bridge Work Across Two PCs
Unlike Cowork's local sessions, Projects are fully synced across devices. For a workflow where you can resume work from any PC without losing context, using Projects is the most effective approach.
- Set a project name and System Prompt (role instructions for Claude) in your Project
- Upload attachments inside the project for cloud storage
- Pick up a conversation you started on your work PC seamlessly from your home PC
When transferring files between PCs, using cloud storage services like Google Drive or Dropbox — rather than local storage — integrates more smoothly with Claude's sync capabilities.
Usage Limits Are Shared Across Both PCs at the Account Level
Message limits for Claude Pro / Max, Cowork operation counts, and other usage restrictions are calculated at the account level. This means using Claude simultaneously from two devices increases the speed at which you consume your quota.
If you run large, lengthy prompts or Cowork operations in parallel from both PCs, you may hit rate limits quickly. A practical approach for efficient two-device use is to dedicate one PC to heavy tasks and use the other primarily for light lookups and reference work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Can I be logged in and use Claude from both PCs at the same time?
Yes. You can send chats from both devices simultaneously. The Terms of Service do not state an explicit limit on the number of concurrent sessions, but the message limits for Pro / Max are shared across the entire accountsource.
Q. Can I share my account with a family member or colleague and use it on two PCs?
This would violate the Terms of Service. Anthropic's terms explicitly prohibit sharing your account login credentials with otherssource. For use by multiple people, each person should obtain their own individual account, or consider the Claude Team plan for team use.
Q. Do I need to back up my settings?
Your Claude.ai account data (conversations, Projects, memory) is stored in the cloud, so it will be restored by logging in again even after replacing your PC or reinstalling your OS. However, Claude Code settings (~/.claude/) are stored locally on each device, so manage them via a dotfiles repository or manual copying as needed.
Q. Can I carry over my Cowork settings to a second PC?
No. Cowork local sessions and accessibility permission settings must be configured on each device individuallysource. On your second PC, grant the necessary permissions through your system settings using the same steps, then enable Cowork.
Using Claude on two PCs is an officially supported multi-device use case. The installation and sign-in process is the same as for your first device, and your conversations, Projects, and memory are automatically connected via the cloud. As long as you understand two key points — the local session limitation of Cowork and the fact that usage limits are shared at the account level — you can smoothly switch between multiple environments such as home and work, or Mac and Windows.
