# Few-shot prompting with Claude XML

> How to use examples/example tags to demonstrate the task before the live input.
>
> Source: https://claudexml.com/patterns/few-shot/ · Last updated 2026-05-25

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# Few-shot prompting with Claude XML

    How to use / tags to demonstrate the task before the live input.

    Few-shot prompting means showing the model worked examples before the real input. With Claude, the convention is to wrap each demo in `<example>` tags grouped inside `<examples>`.


## How to apply the pattern


- Define the task in `<instructions>`. Be explicit about the output format — even one sentence.
- Pick 2–5 representative examples. Cover the real distribution: edge cases included, not all the happy path.
- Wrap each example with `<input>` and `<output>`. Or task-specific equivalents like `<q>`/`<a>`.
- Put the live input after the examples. Order matters — Claude treats what comes last as the active query.

## Worked example


```xml
<instructions>
Extract the company name from each press release headline.
Return only the company name, no other text.
</instructions>

<examples>
  <example>
    <input>Acme Corp announces Q3 earnings beat</input>
    <output>Acme Corp</output>
  </example>
  <example>
    <input>Globex shutters European division</input>
    <output>Globex</output>
  </example>
  <example>
    <input>Sources: Initech in talks to acquire Pied Piper</input>
    <output>Initech</output>
  </example>
</examples>

<headline>{{ live_headline }}</headline>
```


## Tips


- If accuracy doesn't improve with examples, you probably don't need them — Claude is strong zero-shot.
- Don't include examples from your real production data unless you've handled PII.
- More than ~5 examples rarely helps and bloats your context budget.

Cite this page

`Few-shot prompting with Claude XML. claudexml.com. https://claudexml.com/patterns/few-shot/`