--- title: "How to connect your bank account to Claude Cowork" description: "Add a bank connector once on claude.ai and use it in every Claude Cowork task: spending reports, budget files, and subscription audits from real transactions." slug: "how-to-connect-your-bank-to-claude-cowork" url: "https://bankbridge.money/guides/how-to-connect-your-bank-to-claude-cowork" category: "how-to" published: "2026-10-02" updated: "2026-10-02" --- # How to connect your bank account to Claude Cowork > Claude Cowork uses the same connector list as claude.ai. Add BankBridge as a custom connector on claude.ai (Settings, Connectors, URL https://bankbridge.money/api/mcp), sign in once, then enable it in the Cowork tool picker. Cowork can then read your balances and transactions and write the results into files in the folder you give it. ## Why use Cowork for money tasks A chat answers a question. Cowork carries out a task: it plans the steps, calls tools, and leaves you with files. That fits the money jobs that end in an artifact: - A budget spreadsheet built from three months of real spending. - A folder of tax documents with a categorized transaction export. - A monthly report you can reread next month and compare against. Without a bank connection, every one of those starts with you downloading statements and dragging them into the task. With BankBridge enabled, Cowork pulls the transactions itself. ## Setup in three steps 1. **Link your bank.** Sign up at [bankbridge.money](https://bankbridge.money/login), subscribe, and connect your checking account and every card you spend on. 2. **Add the connector on claude.ai.** Go to Settings, Connectors, add a custom connector with the URL `https://bankbridge.money/api/mcp`, and sign in with your BankBridge email. The [claude.ai setup page](https://bankbridge.money/docs/claude-web) has a one-click button. 3. **Enable it in Cowork.** Open a Cowork task, open the tool picker, and switch BankBridge on. The [Cowork setup page](https://bankbridge.money/docs/claude-cowork) covers this step. Connectors sync across claude.ai, Claude Desktop, mobile, and Cowork, so you only authorize once. ## Your first Cowork task Start with something small that confirms the connection and produces a file: > “List my connected bank accounts with current balances, then write a file called balances.md in my finance folder with a table of each account and a total.” Cowork calls `list_accounts`, then writes the file. If the balances come back, every other tool will work. ## Five tasks that suit Cowork - **Budget draft.**“Average my spending by category over the last three full months, separate recurring bills from flexible spending, and save a budget spreadsheet with a cap per category.” See [how to build a budget with Claude](https://bankbridge.money/guides/how-to-build-a-budget-with-claude). - **Year-end export.**“Export every transaction from last year to a CSV and a second CSV with totals by category.” Useful before meeting your tax preparer. - **Subscription audit.**“Find every recurring charge, note when each started and whether the price went up, and save a list of ones I should review.” - **Monthly report.**“Write a one-page report on last month: income, spending by category, the ten largest charges, and anything new.” - **Receipt matching.** If your folder has receipts or invoices, ask Cowork to match each one to a card charge and list the charges with no receipt. See [expense reports with an agent](https://bankbridge.money/guides/expense-reports-and-reimbursements-with-an-ai-agent). ## Keep a finance folder BankBridge stores nothing, and a new task does not remember the last one. Give Cowork one folder for money work and keep the outputs there: your budget, last month's report, a notes file with rules like “the transfer to Jordan on the 1st is rent.” Then start each task with “read notes.md and budget.md first.” Next month's report can compare itself to this month's. ## Troubleshooting - **BankBridge is missing from the tool picker.** Check that the connector shows as connected on claude.ai under Settings, Connectors. If it does, start a new Cowork task. - **A bank is missing from the results.** The response includes a warning when a bank needs to be reconnected. Follow the link it gives, or see [reconnecting after a password change](https://bankbridge.money/guides/reconnect-your-bank-after-a-password-change). - **Spending looks doubled.** Card payments from checking and the card purchases are the same money. Tell Cowork to exclude card payments; see [stop double-counting credit card payments](https://bankbridge.money/guides/stop-double-counting-credit-card-payments). Ready? [Connect your bank](https://bankbridge.money/login) ($5 per month per bank), add the connector once, and give Cowork its first finance task. ## FAQ ### Do I need to set up BankBridge separately for Cowork? No. Cowork reads from the same connector list as claude.ai, Claude Desktop, and the Claude mobile apps. If BankBridge is already connected on claude.ai, open the tool picker in a Cowork task and turn it on. ### Can Cowork move money or pay bills through BankBridge? No. BankBridge has 11 read-only tools plus connect_bank, which only returns a link for you to open. Cowork can read balances and transactions and write files on your computer, but it cannot transfer, pay, or trade anything through BankBridge. ### Where do the files Cowork makes end up? In the folder you give Cowork access to. Budgets, CSV exports, and reports stay on your computer. BankBridge does not store your transactions; it fetches them live each time a tool is called. ### Which banks work with Cowork? Any US bank, credit card, or brokerage you can link through BankBridge. Cowork sees every account you connect, so link your credit cards as well as checking to get complete spending numbers. ### How far back can Cowork see my transactions? Up to 24 months. Ask for a specific date range in the task description, for example a full calendar year for tax prep, and Cowork passes it to the transaction tools. ### What does it cost? BankBridge is $5 per month per connected bank, or $50 per year per bank on the annual plan. Cowork itself comes with your Claude plan. There is no extra charge for using BankBridge in Cowork versus chat.