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Claude Built-in Tools vs Custom: Schema and Implementation?
Claude’s built-in tools provide ready schemas—you implement execution only—unlike fully custom tools, simplifying text editor and web search integration for faster API builds.
Question
What makes Claude’s built-in text editor and web search tools different from custom tools?
A. Claude provides the schema, but you may still need to implement some functionality
B. They require special API keys
C. They only work with specific file types
D. They cost more to use
Answer
A. Claude provides the schema, but you may still need to implement some functionality
Explanation
Claude’s built-in tools like the text editor and web search differ from custom tools because Anthropic predefines their JSON schemas and core logic (e.g., text_editor_20250728 is schema-less with built-in commands like view/edit/undo; web_search_20260209 handles querying and filtering), requiring only your application to implement backend execution such as file I/O for editing or API keys for search results.
Custom tools demand you supply the full input schema, descriptions, and complete execution logic, whereas built-ins offload schema design and partial functionality to Claude’s training, streamlining integration while you handle the “plumbing” like data retrieval or file operations.