Building Internal Tools & Mini-Apps

Last verified: 14 February 2026 | Applies to: All plans (Artifacts available on Free)

In 30 seconds

Claude can build working internal tools — calculators, trackers, intake forms, interactive dashboards — directly in conversation. You describe what you need in plain English, Claude produces a functional artifact you can use immediately. No coding, no developer, no six-week project timeline. Most operators build their first useful tool in under ten minutes.

What it does

When you ask Claude to build a tool, it creates an artifact — a rendered, interactive application that runs directly in the chat window. Under the hood, Claude writes HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, but you never need to see or touch any of it. The artifact appears as a working tool you can click, type into, and use.

What you can build:

Tool type	Example	Typical build time
Calculators	Pricing calculator, ROI estimator, margin calculator	2-5 minutes
Trackers	Project tracker, OKR tracker, inventory tracker	5-10 minutes
Forms	Client intake form, feedback form, approval request	3-7 minutes
Dashboards	KPI dashboard, team status board, pipeline view	10-20 minutes
Converters	Unit converter, currency converter, timezone tool	2-3 minutes
Decision tools	Scoring matrix, weighted comparison, priority matrix	5-10 minutes

How to set it up

Build a pricing calculator

Start with a clear description of what the tool should do, who uses it, and what inputs and outputs matter.

Build me a pricing calculator for our consulting services. Inputs: number of hours, hourly rate (default $250), travel required (yes/no — adds a flat $500 fee), and discount percentage. Outputs: subtotal, discount amount, travel fee, GST (10%), and total. Make it clean and professional — navy blue header, white background. Include a "Reset" button.

Claude produces a working calculator as an artifact. You can type in numbers, toggle the travel option, and see the total update in real time.

Iterate in the same conversation:

Good, but add a field for "project name" at the top and a "Copy to clipboard" button that copies the quote as formatted text I can paste into an email.

Claude updates the artifact. Each iteration takes 10-30 seconds.

Build a project tracker

Create a project tracker for our team. Columns: project name, owner, status (not started / in progress / blocked / complete), priority (P0 / P1 / P2), due date, and notes. Let me add and remove rows. Colour-code the status column: grey for not started, blue for in progress, red for blocked, green for complete. Include a filter by status and a count of projects in each status at the top.

Build a client intake form

Build a client intake form for our accounting firm. Fields: business name, ABN, contact name, email, phone, business type (sole trader / partnership / company / trust — dropdown), annual revenue range (under $500K / $500K-$2M / $2M-$10M / over $10M — dropdown), services needed (checkboxes: tax return, BAS, bookkeeping, payroll, advisory), preferred contact method (email / phone — radio buttons), and a free-text field for additional notes. Add a "Submit" button that shows a confirmation message and a "Copy as CSV" button.

Build a KPI dashboard

Build a KPI dashboard I can update manually each week. Metrics: revenue (with week-over-week change), new customers, churn rate, NPS score, and support tickets open. For each metric, show the current value, the change from last week (green if improved, red if declined), and a simple sparkline showing the last 8 weeks. Let me click on any metric to edit the value. Include a "Last updated" timestamp that updates when I change any number.

How operators actually use it

Before Artifacts: You either lived in spreadsheets (clunky, error-prone) or submitted a request to IT and waited weeks for a simple internal tool.

After Artifacts: You describe the tool, get a working version in minutes, iterate until it fits, and share it with your team. The entire cycle — from idea to working tool — takes less time than writing the IT request would have.

Once you have a working artifact:

Download the HTML file — click the download button on the artifact
Host it internally — drop it on your intranet, a shared drive, or any internal web server
Bookmark it — it runs entirely in the browser with no backend needed
Share the conversation — team members on your plan can see and use the artifact directly

What to watch out for

Artifacts are client-side only. They run entirely in the browser. They cannot connect to databases, call APIs, or save data to a server. If you need persistent data storage or external integrations, you need an actual application — Artifacts are not a replacement for that.
Data does not persist. If you close the browser tab, any data you entered into the tool is lost (unless the tool includes a “Copy” or “Download” function). Always add export functionality for tools that hold important data.
Complex tools may need multiple iterations. A simple calculator works on the first try. A dashboard with filters, charts, and editable fields usually takes 2-4 rounds of refinement. Budget the time.
Mobile rendering varies. Artifacts are designed for desktop browsers. Complex layouts may not render well on phones. If your team uses these tools on mobile, ask Claude to make the layout responsive.
There is no version control. Each iteration replaces the previous version in the conversation. If you want to keep an earlier version, download it before asking for changes.

Document Creation — when you need formatted files rather than interactive tools
Data Analysis — for data-driven dashboards and visualisations
Building a Plugin — when your tool needs to be reusable across sessions
Prompting for Operators — better descriptions produce better tools

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