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Product and Model Selection — study note

Product and Model Selection — study note

Domain 3 of the Claude Certified Associate – Foundations exam. Its four objectives ask you to choose the right Claude feature, tell the model families apart, match a model to the task's needs for cost, speed and quality, and manage context limits and memory. This note summarizes each topic and the Anthropic pages behind it. Model versions, context sizes and plans change often; the note deliberately teaches the relative positions and the judgement instead.

Choosing a feature

You need…Use
A one-off question or quick taskA plain chat
The same documents or instructions in many chatsA project
One current factWeb search
A cited report from many sourcesResearch (paid plans; needs web search on; can use limits faster)
Output to edit, reuse or shareAn artifact (needs code execution and file creation on; starts private to you)

The model families

Of these threePosition
HaikuLowest latency and price
SonnetBalance of speed and intelligence, for everyday work
OpusThe capability end, for complex work

The lineup also includes other models; the exam's objective names these three.

Choosing a model means balancing capability, speed and cost. You can see the current model by the message box and change it — or the effort and thinking settings — at any point in a conversation; changes apply starting with Claude's next response. On organization plans, an administrator may limit which models appear.

Matching the model to the task

  • Efficiency first for high-volume, straightforward work: quick iteration at lower cost, often sufficient; upgrade only for a specific capability gap.
  • Capability first for complex work where accuracy outweighs cost: start with the strongest starting point for the task, and optimize to more efficient models later.
  • Effort before switching (on models that offer an effort setting; Haiku does not, though you can still switch extended thinking on or off): effort controls how much thinking Claude applies. Lower effort suits routine tasks and stretches usage; raise effort or turn on thinking for complex work, at the cost of time and usage.
  • Test it: a good evaluation set specific to your task, run with your actual prompts and data, is the most important step. Speed depends on prompt length, output length and effort, not on the model alone.

Context limits and memory

AspectUsage limitLength limit
ControlsHow much you use Claude over timeHow long one conversation can grow
When reachedWait for the reset, or add usage depending on your planStart a new chat, or use a project (a message too long even in a new chat must be shortened)
  • Part of the context window is reserved for Claude's reply. On paid plans with code execution enabled, Claude summarizes earlier messages near the limit — but longer conversations use more of your usage.
  • Tools and connectors take up context space and usage; switch off ones a chat does not need.
  • Restart well: summarize decisions and open points, then start a new chat with that summary.
  • Carrying context: a new chat starts without earlier context unless memory, chat search or project knowledge carries it, depending on your plan and settings (memory and chat search are on by default for some users). Project knowledge is shared across a project's chats, and on paid plans, once it nears the context limit, Claude retrieves only what each question needs. Memory carries your role and preferences into new chats, with each project keeping its own. Chat search, on paid plans, finds earlier conversations. Incognito chats, started outside a project, stay out of memory and history.

Sources

All Claude Certified Associate - Foundations (CCAO-F) Study Resources

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