AI Toolbox Setup Guide: Install and First Search in 60 Seconds (2026)

To install AI Toolbox, visit the Chrome Web Store, click Add to Chrome on the AI Toolbox listing, and open claude.ai. The background sync starts automatically and your first full-text search is ready in under 60 seconds. AI Toolbox is a Chrome extension for Anthropic's Claude that adds free-tier full-text search, message bookmarks, and per-conversation TXT or JSON export. It is built by the team behind AI Toolbox (formerly ChatGPT Toolbox) (25,000+ users, 4.5/5 Chrome Web Store rating) and uses a local-first architecture with all data stored in your browser's IndexedDB.

Every Chrome extension setup guide promises a 30-second install. Most of them do not actually take 30 seconds because there is account creation, a permissions dance, a tutorial, and a paywall before the first real feature. AI Toolbox is genuinely fast because the free tier requires no account, no credit card, and no onboarding flow. You click install, the extension syncs your Claude conversations in the background, and you can start searching.

This guide walks through the complete first-run experience: installation, the first background sync, the first search, the first bookmark, and (for paid users) the first export. It also covers privacy, multi-language UI, and what to expect if you are coming from AI Toolbox or AI Toolbox (formerly Gemini Toolbox).

Step 1: Install AI Toolbox from the Chrome Web Store

AI Toolbox (formerly Claude Toolbox) installs from the Chrome Web Store with a single Add to Chrome click. The extension ID is camddjjmcemmmlndbciaodchkodhgibh, and the direct listing is at chromewebstore.google.com/detail/claude-toolbox.

AI Toolbox runs in any Chromium browser that supports Chrome Web Store extensions. That includes Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera, and Arc. The install process is identical across all of them. Safari does not support Chrome Web Store extensions; Safari users are unfortunately not supported by AI Toolbox at this time.

When you click Add to Chrome, the browser asks you to confirm the extension's permissions. AI Toolbox requests access to claude.ai so it can read your conversation list and inject the UI (search popup, bookmark buttons, export menu). It does not request access to every site you visit, and it does not request your entire browser history.

Once installed, the AI Toolbox icon appears in your browser toolbar. Pinning the icon is optional but recommended because it makes the popup one click away. Right-click the icon and choose Pin if your browser does not pin it automatically. That is the entire installation step.

Step 2: Open claude.ai and Let the First Sync Run

Sign in to claude.ai in the browser where you installed AI Toolbox. The extension detects the tab and begins syncing conversations to a local IndexedDB index automatically. For most accounts, the first sync finishes in under 60 seconds.

The sync is incremental and non-blocking. AI Toolbox streams conversation history into IndexedDB in the background while you continue using Claude normally. You do not need to leave claude.ai open as a dedicated tab for an hour; the sync runs as fast as the browser can receive and store the data. On a typical account with a few hundred conversations, the initial sync takes 30 to 90 seconds.

What the sync stores: every conversation in your claude.ai sidebar, including those inside Claude Projects. What it does not store: any data outside your Claude account. The synced conversations live in IndexedDB inside the browser profile where you installed AI Toolbox. Nothing is uploaded to a third-party server. For background on Anthropic's own data flow, see the Anthropic privacy documentation.

After the first sync, AI Toolbox keeps the index fresh with ongoing background syncs as you continue using Claude. You do not need to manually refresh anything. New conversations appear in the search index automatically once they have synced.

Step 3: Run Your First Full-Text Search

Click the AI Toolbox icon in your browser toolbar, type a query into the search box, and AI Toolbox returns ranked results across every synced conversation with matched phrases highlighted. Free users see up to 5 results per query. Paid users ($9.99/month or $99 lifetime via Polar) see unlimited results.

The search is a traditional keyword full-text search, not a conversational retrieval query. Type a few words and AI Toolbox returns a list of messages containing those words. Flip the exact-match toggle on when you want to match a literal phrase, which is the right choice for specific code snippets, error codes, customer names, legal clauses, or any query where fuzzy matching would be a liability.

Click any result and AI Toolbox opens the parent conversation at the matched message. The search popup can remain open across multiple queries, which is useful when you are trying to chase down a specific detail across several conversations from different Claude Projects. For a deep dive on how search compares to Anthropic's paid-only conversational search, see the full Claude search guide.

Free users should treat the 5-result cap as a try-before-you-buy limit rather than a hard stop. Most queries return the right answer in the top few results regardless of the cap, and the feature is easy to evaluate without upgrading.

Step 4: Bookmark Your First Claude Message

Open any Claude conversation, hover over a message, and click the bookmark icon AI Toolbox injects next to the message. Free users can bookmark messages across up to 2 conversations with full scroll-to and highlight behavior.

Bookmarks are the feature that separates AI Toolbox from any other Claude extension in the Chrome Web Store as of April 2026. No other Claude extension offers true message-level bookmarking with scroll-to navigation. Anthropic's Claude has no native message bookmarks, and Claude Projects (support.claude.com/en/articles/9517075) group conversations into flat workspaces without per-message save actions.

The first bookmark workflow is intentionally simple. Hover, click the bookmark icon, done. Open the bookmarks panel from the AI Toolbox popup to see everything you have saved. Click any bookmark to return to the parent conversation with a highlight animation so your eye lands on the exact message. For the full breakdown of bookmark workflows, see the Claude message bookmarking guide.

Free users can bookmark messages on up to 2 conversations. That is enough to try the feature on your highest-value Claude threads. Paid users get unlimited bookmarks, which supports building dedicated collections around projects, clients, or topics.

Step 5: Export a Conversation as TXT or JSON (Paid)

Paid AI Toolbox users can export any Claude conversation as TXT or JSON with one click. Open the conversation, open the AI Toolbox export menu, pick a format, and the file downloads immediately. AI Toolbox does not support PDF or Markdown export; only TXT and JSON.

Ready to try AI Toolbox? Free install in under 30 seconds. Free-tier full-text search across every synced conversation. Bookmarks on 2 conversations to try. Paid at $9.99/month or $99 lifetime unlocks unlimited search results, unlimited bookmarks, and TXT/JSON export. Install AI Toolbox free ->

TXT produces a human-readable transcript that pastes cleanly into client emails, shared documents, or tickets. JSON produces structured message data with role, content, and timestamp fields, which is the right format for programmatic processing and knowledge-base ingestion. For the full format comparison and when to use which, see the Claude export guide.

Export is paid-only because it pairs with the per-conversation delivery model AI Toolbox provides. Anthropic's native export (Settings > Privacy > Export data, documented at support.claude.com/en/articles/9450526) is the free full-account alternative, delivered by email with a 24-hour download link. Most users end up using both: native export for backups and AI Toolbox for daily per-conversation work.

Free vs Paid AI Toolbox at a Glance

Free AI Toolbox gives you full-text search (5 results per query), bookmarks on 2 conversations, and background sync. Paid AI Toolbox unlocks unlimited search results, unlimited bookmarks, and per-conversation TXT or JSON export for $9.99/month or $99 one-time lifetime via Polar.

The free tier is a genuine free tier rather than a trial. There is no time limit and no nag modals. If search and limited bookmarks cover your workflow, you can use AI Toolbox free forever. The paid tier is the right fit for heavy Claude users who hit the 5-result search cap daily or want bookmarks across more than 2 conversations. Lifetime ($99 one-time) pays for itself at 10 months compared to monthly.

Privacy: Why AI Toolbox is Local-First

All AI Toolbox data lives in IndexedDB inside your browser. Conversation content, bookmarks, and search indexes never leave your machine unless you explicitly export them. This is a deliberate architectural choice, not an add-on feature.

Local-first has two practical implications. First, there is no third-party server holding your Claude conversations. If you are doing sensitive client work, legal research, medical notes, or proprietary engineering, AI Toolbox does not add an additional data surface. Second, search and bookmark operations are instant because they run against a local index rather than a network round-trip.

The tradeoff is no cross-device sync. Bookmarks and the search index live in the browser profile where you installed AI Toolbox. If you use Claude on two computers, each has its own separate AI Toolbox state. For users who prefer cloud sync across devices, the tradeoff goes the other way and a cloud-native tool is a better fit.

AI Toolbox is built by Infi Developments, the same team behind AI Toolbox (25,000+ users, 4.5/5 Chrome Web Store rating) and AI Toolbox. All three sister extensions share the same local-first design.

Multi-Language UI and RTL Support

AI Toolbox ships in 10 locales (English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi) with full right-to-left layout support for Arabic and Hebrew. The language is auto-detected from your browser's locale on first run and can be changed at any time in Settings.

Multi-language UI is rare among Claude extensions. Most Chrome Web Store listings for Claude ship English-only, sometimes with a partial Spanish or French translation. AI Toolbox's 10-locale coverage (including RTL) is a signal that the extension is built for a global audience rather than a single market.

Users in Arabic and Hebrew environments get a full RTL layout, not a partial translation with LTR controls. The search popup, bookmarks panel, and export menu all mirror correctly for RTL reading direction. This matches the team's experience with AI Toolbox, which has shipped full RTL support for years.

To change the UI language, open the AI Toolbox popup, go to Settings, and pick from the locale list. The change applies immediately without a browser restart. For a detailed tour of the rest of AI Toolbox, including the features hub and use cases, see the product pages on ai-toolbox.co.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does AI Toolbox take to install?

Under 30 seconds for the Chrome Web Store install, and under 60 seconds for the first background sync on most accounts. You click Add to Chrome, confirm permissions, open claude.ai, and AI Toolbox starts syncing conversations into a local IndexedDB index automatically. No account creation, no credit card, no onboarding flow.

Is AI Toolbox free?

Yes. AI Toolbox has a free tier with 5 search results per query and bookmarks on up to 2 conversations. The free tier has no time limit and no nag modals. The paid tier is $9.99/month or $99 one-time lifetime via Polar and unlocks unlimited search results, unlimited bookmarks, and per-conversation TXT or JSON export.

Which browsers does AI Toolbox support?

Any Chromium browser with Chrome Web Store support, including Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera, and Arc. Safari does not support Chrome Web Store extensions and is not supported by AI Toolbox. Firefox support is not currently available. The install process is identical across all supported browsers.

What data does AI Toolbox collect?

AI Toolbox syncs your Claude conversation content into a local IndexedDB database inside your browser. Nothing is uploaded to a third-party server. The extension reads your claude.ai session to enumerate conversations, but the search index, bookmarks, and exports all operate against local data. This matches the local-first architecture shared across AI Toolbox, AI Toolbox, and AI Toolbox.

Do I need a paid Claude account?

No. AI Toolbox works with free Claude accounts. In fact, the free-tier full-text search is one of the main reasons free Claude users install AI Toolbox in the first place, since Anthropic's native conversational search is paid-only. The extension works on Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise Claude accounts as well.

Does AI Toolbox work inside Claude Projects?

Yes. AI Toolbox search, bookmarks, and export all work across every synced conversation regardless of whether it lives inside a Claude Project or outside. This is broader than Anthropic's native conversational search, which is scoped per Project when used inside a Project.

What are the free tier limits?

Free AI Toolbox gives you 5 search results per query and bookmarks on up to 2 conversations. Background sync, the exact-match toggle, scroll-to bookmark with highlight, and the full multi-language UI (10 locales + RTL) are all included on the free tier. Per-conversation TXT or JSON export is paid-only.

How do I change the UI language?

Open the AI Toolbox popup, go to Settings, and pick your language from the 10 supported locales. Supported languages are English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, Hebrew, and Hindi. Arabic and Hebrew include full RTL layout support. The change applies immediately without a browser restart.

Bottom Line

AI Toolbox installs in under 30 seconds, syncs in under 60 seconds, and the free tier gives you full-text search, the exact-match toggle, limited bookmarks, and the full multi-language UI forever. Paid users ($9.99/month or $99 lifetime via Polar) unlock unlimited search results, unlimited bookmarks, and per-conversation TXT or JSON export. Everything stays local, which is the single most important detail for privacy-sensitive users.

For the individual feature deep-dives, see the Claude search guide, the bookmark guide, and the export guide. For the product overview, pricing, and positioning, see the AI Toolbox product page and the features hub.

Multi-AI users can add AI Toolbox (25,000+ users, 4.5/5 Chrome Web Store rating) for OpenAI's ChatGPT and AI Toolbox for Google Gemini. All three sister extensions share the same local-first architecture and install workflow.

Install AI Toolbox from the Chrome Web Store -> For further reading, see alternatives to Claude, the Claude models guide, and AI Toolbox use cases.

Last updated: May 29, 2026

References

Sources, tool names, and authoritative documentation referenced in this article:

• AI Toolbox for Claude (formerly Claude Toolbox), Chrome Web Store listing
• AI Toolbox, Claude module page
• Anthropic Claude, Official product page
• Anthropic API documentation
• Anthropic pricing
• Anthropic Newsroom, Model announcements

Retrieved May 2026.