Claude and ChatGPT for government: what is approved, what works

Government teams can use Claude for document review, research, drafting and code, if the version they use is approved for their data.

Picks: 7; ranked

Claude for Government is Anthropic's FedRAMP High authorized product, built for U.S. federal, state and local agencies and the organisations that support them. It runs in the Claude Desktop app and handles CUI and other high-impact unclassified data. It is not the same as Claude Enterprise: it has no web or mobile app and does not match Enterprise feature for feature. Claude Enterprise and the Anthropic API are not FedRAMP authorized today, so check which offering fits your data before you start.

Good for

Federal, state and local agency staff drafting, reviewing and researching
Government contractors supporting agency work
Policy and data teams working with public datasets
IT teams modernising legacy systems

Claude

Claude for Government is Anthropic's own FedRAMP High offering. Bedrock in AWS GovCloud and Vertex AI with Assured Workloads carry the API at the same level.

Plan: Claude for Government for FedRAMP High work; it is prepaid usage with no seat fee, via sales ("Government & Public Sector"). Claude Enterprise ($20 per seat per month billed annually, 20 seats minimum, plus usage) if FedRAMP is not needed.

What it can do

Review documents, research, draft, process cases and write code, with reasoning your staff can check
Use Chat and Claude Code in the Claude Desktop app, connected to a dedicated government environment inside Palantir's FedRAMP High boundary. Anthropic says conversation history stays on each user's device
Work with CUI and FIPS 199 High Impact data
Use admin-managed connectors (including Microsoft 365), web search and skills
Manage users with SSO, SCIM, seat tiers, spend caps and an audit log in the government admin portal
Read legacy codebases, document them and rewrite them in modern languages
Reach Claude through Amazon Bedrock in AWS GovCloud or Google Vertex AI with Assured Workloads, both FedRAMP High

Limits

Claude for Government is not at full feature parity with Claude Enterprise. There is no web experience or mobile access.
As of November 2026, Anthropic's table lists Claude for Government as FedRAMP High: included, DoD IL5: not included, Classified: in pilot. Claude Enterprise is not FedRAMP authorized today, and the Claude API from Anthropic is not either. Anthropic is pursuing FedRAMP Moderate for Enterprise through FedRAMP 20x and is listed as "in process".
For ITAR-controlled data, Anthropic says to use Claude through Amazon Bedrock in AWS GovCloud (US). Claude for Government and Vertex AI are not IL5 environments.
In March 2026, the Department of War (DoW) designated Anthropic a supply chain risk. Anthropic says that designation, as currently in effect following the court's orders, applies to the use of Claude as a direct part of DoW contracts and subcontracts. It says it does not apply to other federal agencies, to state or local governments, or to commercial use, and does not limit DoW contractors' use of Claude outside their covered DoW work. Anthropic is challenging it in court: on August 27, 2026 a federal court in the Northern District of California ruled one designation unlawful, and on September 25, 2026 the D.C. Circuit, 2-1, upheld a separate designation and denied Anthropic's petition.
Anthropic's August 12, 2025 offer was Claude for Enterprise and Claude for Government to all three branches of the federal government for $1, as a package available for one year. That page does not say the offer is open today. Its October 27, 2026 post announces a GSA agreement with a 40% discount on Claude Enterprise, Claude for Government and the Claude API, including for state, local, tribal and territorial governments.

Plugs to turn on

data.gouv.fr MCP: The French government's own open-data server. Read-only, public, no sign-in.
markitdown: Turns a file or web address into markdown on your own computer.
OpenMetadata: Search data catalogs, lineage and quality on your own OpenMetadata deployment.
MCP Accessibility Scanner: Runs accessibility scans on pages you point it at.

ChatGPT

ChatGPT Business offers workspace controls and no training by default.

Plan: Our advice: ask your compliance office which OpenAI offering is approved for your data. OpenAI's government page points to ChatGPT Enterprise, ChatGPT FedRAMP and AWS GovCloud options; ChatGPT Business is described by OpenAI as a self-serve team plan.

What it can do

Get ChatGPT Enterprise through the GSA OneGov partnership: OpenAI's FAQ says eligible federal agencies pay $1 through the end of September 2026. Check the page for what applies now
Use ChatGPT FedRAMP and OpenAI API FedRAMP, which OpenAI says have reached FedRAMP 20x Moderate accreditation, for civilian workloads
Use AWS GovCloud API and AWS GovCloud Codex, which OpenAI lists at FedRAMP High and IL5
Run deep research on approved URLs and private files, then download the report as PDF or DOCX

Limits

OpenAI's compliance table (as of November 2026) lists ChatGPT FedRAMP and OpenAI API FedRAMP at Low and Moderate, with no High and no IL5. Only the AWS GovCloud API and Codex rows show High and IL5.
ChatGPT Gov: OpenAI's solutions page still links to "Explore ChatGPT Gov" as a self-hosted option on Azure OpenAI. OpenAI's January 2025 announcement carries an update saying that offering "has been discontinued and is no longer available". The two OpenAI pages disagree, so ask OpenAI which applies.
On ChatGPT Business, OpenAI says it won't train on your workspace's data. On Free, Go, Plus and Pro its pricing page lists training as opt-out.
Deep research prioritizes the sources you add, so check the list before you rely on a report.

Plugs to turn on

Exa MCP Server: Official web search that signs in with OAuth. Works in ChatGPT and Claude.

Plugs worth turning on

These servers read public data or documents. Run them only where your agency allows connectors, and keep non-public data in the environment approved for it.

Summarise a long policy document for a briefing

Claude

1
Use the right environment
Use Claude for Government for sensitive unclassified material. Use standard plans only for documents that are already public.
2
Convert the file if needed
MarkItDown turns PDFs and Office files into text Claude can read.
Uses MarkItDown

Ask for a structured brief

Ask for the decision, the options and the open questions.

Prompt

Summarise this 80-page policy draft for a director in one page: what it changes, who is affected, deadlines, cost figures, and three questions the director should ask. Quote the page number for every figure.

4
Check the quotes
Open the cited pages yourself before the brief goes up the chain.

Answer a question from open data

1
Add the data connector
Add data.gouv.fr for French public datasets, or mcp-brasil for Brazilian sources. See the install box on each page.
Uses data.gouv.fr MCP, mcp-brasil

Ask with the dataset in mind

Ask which datasets exist first, then ask your question. The data.gouv.fr server accepts French or English.

Prompt

Which datasets on data.gouv.fr cover school enrolment by department since 2018? List the publisher and last update date, then summarise the trend for the three departments with the biggest change.

3
Check the source
Open the dataset page and confirm the figures before they go in a report.

Audit a public web page for accessibility

1
Install the scanner
It needs Google Chrome on your computer. See the install box on its page.
Uses Accessibility Scanner

Run the scan

Point it at one public page.

Prompt

Scan https://example.gov/apply for accessibility problems. Group them by severity, show the failing element and give the fix for each.

3
Add a WCAG checklist
The WCAG audit skill turns findings into a remediation list.
Uses wcag-audit-patterns
4
Test by hand
Automated checks do not prove WCAG compliance. Test with a keyboard and a screen reader before you sign off.

Verdict

Our advice: match the product to your data first. Use Claude for Government for sensitive unclassified work, and standard plans only for public material. Add open-data connectors for research, and check every figure.

Our pick: MarkItDown

Our advice: confirm approval before you upload, then start with public data and documents.

Best for

Document review and drafting under FedRAMP High
Research on public datasets
Legacy code reading and modernisation

Skip it if

You need ITAR or IL5 handling outside AWS GovCloud
Your agency has not approved the product for your data

Questions

What is Claude for Government?

Anthropic's FedRAMP High authorized product. It runs in the Claude Desktop app, with Chat and Claude Code, connected to a dedicated government environment inside Palantir's FedRAMP High boundary. Anthropic says it is available to U.S. federal, state and local government agencies and to organizations that support government work, such as contractors.

Is Claude FedRAMP authorized?

Claude for Government, Claude in Amazon Bedrock in AWS GovCloud and Google Vertex with Assured Workloads are FedRAMP High. Claude Enterprise and the Anthropic API are not FedRAMP authorized today.

What is the difference between Claude Enterprise and Claude for Government?

Enterprise suits government uses that do not need FedRAMP. Claude for Government is the FedRAMP High offering, but it lacks a web experience and mobile access.

How do I get Claude for Government?

Submit the Contact Sales form and choose "Government & Public Sector" as your industry. You can buy directly from Anthropic or through Carahsoft, which lists it on the GSA Multiple Award Schedule. Claude for Government is sold as prepaid usage in fixed increments with no per-seat fee.

Is there a $1 deal for government?

Both vendors have run one. Anthropic's August 12, 2025 offer was Claude for Enterprise and Claude for Government for $1 across all three branches of the federal government, available for one year. OpenAI's FAQ says eligible federal agencies get ChatGPT Enterprise for $1 through the end of September 2026 via GSA OneGov. Ask each vendor what applies today.

Can I put CUI or ITAR data into Claude?

CUI and FIPS 199 High Impact data are authorized in Claude for Government. For ITAR-controlled data, use Claude through Amazon Bedrock in AWS GovCloud.

Does the Department of War supply chain risk designation affect my agency?

Anthropic says the designation, as currently in effect following the court's orders, applies to the use of Claude as a direct part of Department of War contracts and subcontracts. It says it does not apply to other federal agencies, to state or local governments, or to commercial use. Anthropic is challenging it in court: one designation was ruled unlawful on August 27, 2026, and the D.C. Circuit upheld a separate one on September 25, 2026.

Can state and local governments use Claude?

Yes. Claude for Government is available to U.S. federal, state and local agencies and qualifying public sector organisations.

Is there a government version of ChatGPT?

OpenAI lists ChatGPT Enterprise, ChatGPT FedRAMP and AWS GovCloud options on its government page. It lists ChatGPT FedRAMP at FedRAMP Moderate, not High, and ChatGPT Gov as a self-hosted option on Azure OpenAI, while its January 2025 announcement says ChatGPT Gov has been discontinued. Confirm with OpenAI.

What public-data connectors exist?

We list data.gouv.fr for France, Korean Law for Korea and mcp-brasil for Brazil.

Sources

Docs, issue trackers and discussions this page is built from.

Show all 8

Claude for government · claude.com
Expanded Claude access across the US government (Aug 12, 2025) · anthropic.com
Expanding our partnership with GSA (Oct 27, 2026) · anthropic.com
OpenAI for government · openai.com
Introducing ChatGPT Gov (Jan 28, 2025, with discontinuation update) · openai.com
ChatGPT Business overview · help.openai.com
ChatGPT pricing · chatgpt.com
Deep research in ChatGPT · chatgpt.com