# Multi-document synthesis with Claude XML

> Read across many sources at once and produce a single coherent answer.
>
> Source: https://claudexml.com/patterns/multi-document/ · Last updated 2026-05-25

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# Multi-document synthesis with Claude XML

    Read across many sources at once and produce a single coherent answer.

    When you give Claude many documents and ask for a comparative or synthesized answer, the XML structure makes attribution and comparison tractable.


## How to apply the pattern


- Give each document a short, unique `<source>`. Use stable IDs (`doc-1`, `doc-2`) the model can cite.
- Pre-summarize very long documents if needed. If individual passages exceed ~5k tokens, consider a map-reduce: summarize each, then ask for synthesis on the summaries.
- Be explicit about the comparison axis. "Identify points of agreement and disagreement" or "rank by recency" — vague synthesis prompts give vague output.
- Ask for a structured synthesis. Use `<format>` to specify columns or sections.

## Worked example


```xml
<documents>
  <document>
    <source>doc-1: vendor-A-quote.pdf</source>
    <document_content>{{ vendor_A_text }}</document_content>
  </document>
  <document>
    <source>doc-2: vendor-B-quote.pdf</source>
    <document_content>{{ vendor_B_text }}</document_content>
  </document>
  <document>
    <source>doc-3: vendor-C-quote.pdf</source>
    <document_content>{{ vendor_C_text }}</document_content>
  </document>
</documents>

<instructions>
Compare the three vendor quotes. Produce a markdown table with columns:
Vendor, Price (USD), Support Tier, Notable Caveats. Then write a one-paragraph
recommendation citing sources in [doc-N] format. If any quote is missing a
field, write "not specified" — do not infer.
</instructions>
```


## Tips


- Watch your context window. Even with 200k+ tokens, attention degrades on huge blobs — chunk aggressively.
- Citations are only as good as your source IDs. Use ones that map back to your storage.

Cite this page

`Multi-document synthesis with Claude XML. claudexml.com. https://claudexml.com/patterns/multi-document/`