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Module 2 · Lesson 2.4 · 13 min

Installing Claude Code on Windows

Install, log in and verify Claude Code on Windows using PowerShell, step by step.

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Module 2

Fearless Setup on Mac and Windows

Every click shown, nothing skipped

Bruno Ashford

2.1 Plans and costs

Which plans include what

Plan	Claude Code	Cowork	Best for
Free	No	No	Trying Claude chat
Pro	Yes	Yes	Most owners, to start
Max	Yes	Yes	Heavy daily use
Team / Enterprise	Yes	Yes	Staff seats, admin control
Console (API)	Yes	No	Pay per use, automation

Check live prices on claude.com/pricing before buying.

2.1 The real question

Do not ask what the plan costs. Ask how many hours it has to save to pay for itself.

Bruno Ashford

2.2 First steps in Cowork

Your first agent, no terminal

1Practice folderCopies, never originals
2Connect itChoose Cowork, add the folder
3Brief the outcomeFinish line, no deleting
4Spot checkFive rows against the files

2.3 Installing on Mac

Five minutes, one line

Open Terminal with Cmd + Space, then:

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
Open a new Terminal window
claude --version to verify
claude to start and log in

2.4 Installing on Windows

PowerShell, not CMD

Look for PS at the start of the line.

Optional: install Git for Windows
irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex
No Administrator rights needed
New window, then claude --version

2.5 The terminal in 10 commands

Most of what you will ever type

Job	Mac	Windows PowerShell
Where am I?	pwd	pwd
What is here?	ls	ls or dir
Go in / up	cd name / cd ..	cd name / cd ..
Create folders	mkdir A B	mkdir A, B
Open in window	open .	explorer .
Start Claude	claude	claude

2.5 The one idea

Claude Code works inside the folder you start it in. Choose the folder, choose what it sees.

Bruno Ashford

2.6 When setup goes wrong

Error, cause, fix

You see	It means	Fix
command not found	PATH not set	PATH fix, new window
irm is not recognized	You are in CMD	Open PowerShell
403 after login	Plan or role issue	Check subscription or role
Organization disabled	Old API key	Remove ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

2.6 The golden rule

Four moves for any error

1ReadThe exact words on screen
2MatchFind them in the guide
3FixApply the one-line fix
4RestartOpen a new window

Module project

Your company workspace

End this module with a real place to work.

Claude Code installed and verified
Company folder, one subfolder per department
README.md written by Claude
First session saved as a file

Recap

The hardest part of this course is behind you. From here on, you mostly speak plain English.

Bruno Ashford

01 / 12

Use ← → to move. The marker highlights text and the pencil draws on the slide; navigation locks while you annotate. Undo removes the last mark, Esc exits.

1Check your Windows version

Claude Code needs Windows 10 version 1809 or later, or Windows 11. Press Win + R, type winver and press Enter to see your version.

2Install Git for Windows (recommended)

Download it from git-scm.com/downloads/win and click Next on every screen to accept the defaults. You will not need to learn Git. It gives Claude Code the Bash tool; without it, Claude Code uses PowerShell instead, which also works.

3Open PowerShell, not CMD

Press Win + X and choose Windows PowerShell or Terminal. Check the start of the line: PS C:\Users\YourName> means PowerShell. If you see C:\ without PS, you are in CMD. Also avoid any entry labelled (x86).

4Run the official installer

Copy this line, paste it with Ctrl + V or a right-click, and press Enter. You do not need to run as Administrator. Wait for the success message.

Terminal

irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

5Open a new window and verify

Close PowerShell, open a new PowerShell window and check the version. If you see 'claude' is not recognized, run the PATH fix from the troubleshooting guide, then open a new window again.

Terminal

claude --version

6Start Claude Code and log in

Type claude and press Enter, then sign in through the browser window that opens. Once you see the welcome screen, ask your first real question and type exit when you are done.

Terminal

claude

MDThe Terminal in 10 Commands (Mac and Windows)Cheat sheet MDSetup Troubleshooting GuideGuide

Windows users often feel like second-class citizens in AI tutorials. Not here. Claude Code runs natively on Windows, you do not need to be an administrator, and the process is almost identical to the Mac. The only real trap is opening the wrong terminal, and I will show you exactly how to avoid it.

We will optionally install Git for Windows first, then install Claude Code from PowerShell, verify it and log in. If you are using a company laptop with strict security, keep the troubleshooting guide open.

Key points

Windows 10 version 1809 or later is required.
Git for Windows is optional but recommended.
Use PowerShell (PS at the start of the line), not CMD.
No Administrator rights needed.
Open a new window, then run claude --version.

Avoid

Pasting the PowerShell command into CMD, or the CMD command into PowerShell.
Opening Windows PowerShell (x86) on a 64-bit computer.
Testing in the same window used for the install.
Assuming you need Administrator rights and asking IT unnecessarily.

Real-world example: a law firm

The firm's office manager installed Claude Code on a Windows 11 laptop. Her first attempt failed with 'irm is not recognized' because she had opened Command Prompt. She switched to PowerShell, ran the same line and it installed in under two minutes. The firm now includes 'open PowerShell, not CMD' as the first line of its internal setup checklist.