Claude Dispatch: What It Is, How It Works and Who Can Use It

Claude Dispatch is one of those features people hear about, go looking for, and then can't find. There's a good reason for that, and it's the first thing to know: Anthropic has closed Dispatch to new users. If you already had it, you can keep using it for now. If you didn't, the button won't be there.

So this guide does two jobs. It explains what Dispatch is and how it works, using Anthropic's own help pages, and it tells you what to use instead if you can't switch it on. I've also added the business jobs it suits and the risks I'd weigh before handing it anything that matters.

What is Claude Dispatch?

Dispatch is a feature inside Claude Cowork. Anthropic describes it as one ongoing conversation with Claude that you can reach from your phone or your desktop, and that runs the work on your computer. You give it an outcome, such as "pull this week's sales numbers into a summary", and it carries the job out in the background while you get on with something else.

The clever part is the hand-off. You can be away from your desk, describe the job on your phone, and Claude does it on your desktop with your files and apps. The results show up on both devices.

Is Claude Dispatch still available?

Only to some people. Anthropic's help centre says Dispatch is in a limited beta for some Pro and Max users and isn't open to new users. Existing users can keep using it for now. Anthropic's docs also say it isn't available on Team or Enterprise plans.

There's a wider change happening at the same time. The same help page says Claude Cowork is becoming simply Claude, rolling out gradually to Pro and Max, with cloud sessions that run on Anthropic's servers when your computer is off. That's worth watching, because it covers some of what people wanted Dispatch for.

What do you need to use Dispatch?

• A Pro or Max plan with Dispatch already switched on for your account.
• The latest Claude Desktop app on your computer.
• The latest Claude mobile app on iOS or Android.
• An internet connection on both devices.
• A computer that stays awake with the Desktop app open while Claude works, because the work runs on your machine.

Anthropic's pages don't fully agree on operating systems. The Dispatch guide names macOS and Windows; the help centre also lists Linux for the desktop app, but says computer use isn't available in the Linux beta.

How do you set up Claude Dispatch?

If your account has it, setup takes a minute. Anthropic's steps are:

1. Open Claude Cowork in the Desktop app.
2. Select Dispatch in the left side panel.
3. Click Get started.
4. Choose whether Claude can access your files and whether to keep your computer awake.
5. Click Finish setup, then open Dispatch on your phone to send your first task.

How does Dispatch work once it's running?

You describe the job on your phone. Dispatch breaks it into smaller child tasks and sends coding work to Claude Code and knowledge work to Cowork. Each child task shows a status in the sidebar, so you can see what's happening at a glance:

Status	What it means
Running	Claude is working on it
Awaiting input	Claude needs something from you to continue
Awaiting answer	Claude has asked you a question
Completed	The task is done and the result is ready
Error	Something went wrong and the task stopped
Archived	The task has been put away

Claude reports the results, such as a finished file or a pull request, rather than every step. You get push notifications when a task finishes or needs approval.

There's one Dispatch thread, and only one. You can't run several threads side by side, and a child task can't start more children of its own. That keeps it simple, but it also means Dispatch isn't a full project manager.

What happens when Dispatch needs permission?

Permission requests come to you on your phone. If you don't answer within ten minutes, the request is denied and the task carries on without that action. I like that default. Silence means no, which is the right way round for anything touching your business.

Dispatch also pairs with computer use, which lets Claude click and type in desktop apps. Anthropic launched computer use as a research preview for Pro and Max on macOS and Windows.

What can you use Claude Dispatch for?

Anthropic's own examples are a morning email check, pulling weekly metrics, or kicking off a report or a pull request. For a small business, the jobs I'd consider first are low risk and easy to check:

• A morning summary of new enquiries in your inbox, without replying to anyone.
• Pulling last week's numbers from a spreadsheet into a short report.
• Tidying a folder of downloads into named subfolders.
• Drafting a weekly update for your team from your notes.

Copy this prompt

Check my inbox for messages from the last day that look like new customer enquiries.
List the sender, what they want and how urgent it seems.
Don't reply, delete or move anything. Send me the list.

Copy and paste this prompt

Open the sales spreadsheet in my Documents folder.
Summarise last week's totals by product in a short table,
then save it as a new file called weekly-summary in the same folder and tell me when it's done.

What are the risks of Claude Dispatch?

Anthropic is clear that instructions sent from your phone can trigger real actions on your computer, and some of those are hard to undo. It also warns that manipulated instructions or phishing links could cascade into further actions. In practice, that means:

• Keep Dispatch away from banking, payments and anything you can't reverse.
• Be specific about what Claude must not do, as in the prompts above.
• Check results before you send them on to a client.
• Don't forward an email to Dispatch and ask it to follow the instructions inside.

What can you use if you don't have Dispatch?

If Dispatch isn't on your account, start with Claude Cowork on your desktop, which handles the same kind of file and app work while you're at your computer. Keep an eye on the move from Cowork to Claude, too: Anthropic's cloud sessions are designed to keep working when your computer is off.

Whichever route you take, the habit that makes these agents useful is the same. Write down the jobs you repeat every week, pick the dullest one, and describe it to Claude in plain words with clear limits on what it mustn't touch. Once that runs smoothly for a fortnight, add the next one. It's a slower start than handing over everything at once, but it's the version that sticks.

Tools that work with Claude Dispatch

Dispatch works through the apps already on your computer. The ones it's most often pointed at are Gmail or Outlook for inbox summaries, Excel or Google Sheets for weekly numbers, Finder or File Explorer for tidying folders, and GitHub for coding work routed through Claude Code. Slack is a common place to share the result once you've checked it.

If you'd like someone to sit with you and work out which jobs are safe to hand to an AI agent, one to one AI coaching is where I'd start, or see how I work with business owners.

Frequently asked questions

What is Claude Dispatch?

Dispatch is a Claude Cowork feature that gives you one ongoing conversation with Claude, reachable from your phone or desktop, which runs tasks on your computer in the background and reports the results.

Can I still get Claude Dispatch?

Anthropic says Dispatch is in a limited beta for some Pro and Max users and isn't open to new users. Existing users can keep using it for now.

Does Claude Dispatch work on Team or Enterprise plans?

No. Anthropic's docs say Dispatch isn't available on Team or Enterprise plans. It requires a Pro or Max plan.

Does my computer need to stay on for Dispatch?

Yes. The work runs on your desktop, so your computer has to stay awake with the Claude Desktop app open while Claude works.

What happens if I miss a Dispatch permission request?

If you don't respond within ten minutes, the request is denied and the task continues without that action.