skills

The CLI for the open agent skills ecosystem.

Supports OpenCode, Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and 68 more.

Install a Skill

npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills

Use a Skill Without Installing

Generate a prompt for one skill, or start a supported coding agent interactively:

npx skills use vercel-labs/agent-skills@web-design-guidelines | claude
npx skills use vercel-labs/agent-skills --skill web-design-guidelines --agent claude-code

skills use resolves sources the same way as skills add, writes the selected skill files to a temporary directory, and prints only the generated prompt to stdout unless --agent is provided. With --agent, it starts one supported agent interactively with the generated prompt.

Source Formats

# GitHub shorthand (owner/repo)
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills

# Full GitHub URL
npx skills add https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills

# Direct path to a skill in a repo
npx skills add https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills/tree/main/skills/web-design-guidelines

# GitLab URL
npx skills add https://gitlab.com/org/repo

# Any git URL
npx skills add git@github.com:vercel-labs/agent-skills.git

# Local path
npx skills add ./my-local-skills

Options

Option	Description
`-g, --global`	Install to user directory instead of project
`-a, --agent <agents...>`	Target specific agents (e.g., `claude-code`, `codex`). See Supported Agents
`-s, --skill <skills...>`	Install specific skills by name (use `'*'` for all skills)
`-l, --list`	List available skills without installing
`--copy`	Copy files instead of symlinking to agent directories
`-y, --yes`	Skip all confirmation prompts
`--all`	Install all skills to all agents without prompts

Examples

# List skills in a repository
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --list

# Install specific skills
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --skill frontend-design --skill skill-creator

# Install a skill with spaces in the name (must be quoted)
npx skills add owner/repo --skill "Convex Best Practices"

# Install to specific agents
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills -a claude-code -a opencode

# Non-interactive installation (CI/CD friendly)
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --skill frontend-design -g -a claude-code -y

# Install all skills from a repo to all agents
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --all

# Install all skills to specific agents
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --skill '*' -a claude-code

# Install specific skills to all agents
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --agent '*' --skill frontend-design

Installation Scope

Scope	Flag	Location	Use Case
Project	(default)	`./<agent>/skills/`	Committed with your project, shared with team
Global	`-g`	`~/<agent>/skills/`	Available across all projects

Installation Methods

When installing interactively, you can choose:

Method	Description
Symlink (Recommended)	Creates symlinks from each agent to a canonical copy. Single source of truth, easy updates.
Copy	Creates independent copies for each agent. Use when symlinks aren't supported.

Other Commands

Command	Description
`npx skills use <source>`	Use one skill without installing
`npx skills list`	List installed skills (alias: `ls`)
`npx skills find [query]`	Search for skills interactively or by keyword
`npx skills remove [skills]`	Remove installed skills from agents
`npx skills update [skills]`	Update installed skills to latest versions
`npx skills init [name]`	Create a new SKILL.md template

`skills list`

List all installed skills. Similar to npm ls.

# List all installed skills (project and global)
npx skills list

# List only global skills
npx skills ls -g

# Filter by specific agents
npx skills ls -a claude-code -a cursor

`skills find`

Search for skills interactively or by keyword.

# Interactive search (fzf-style)
npx skills find

# Search by keyword
npx skills find typescript

`skills update`

# Update all skills (interactive scope prompt)
npx skills update

# Update a single skill by name
npx skills update my-skill

# Update multiple specific skills
npx skills update frontend-design web-design-guidelines

# Update only global or project skills
npx skills update -g
npx skills update -p

# Non-interactive (auto-detects scope: project if in a project, else global)
npx skills update -y

Option	Description
`-g, --global`	Only update global skills
`-p, --project`	Only update project skills
`-y, --yes`	Skip scope prompt (auto-detect: project if in a project dir, else global)
`[skills...]`	Update specific skills by name instead of all

`skills init`

# Create SKILL.md in current directory
npx skills init

# Create a new skill in a subdirectory
npx skills init my-skill

`skills remove`

Remove installed skills from agents.

# Remove interactively (select from installed skills)
npx skills remove

# Remove specific skill by name
npx skills remove web-design-guidelines

# Remove multiple skills
npx skills remove frontend-design web-design-guidelines

# Remove from global scope
npx skills remove --global web-design-guidelines

# Remove from specific agents only
npx skills remove --agent claude-code cursor my-skill

# Remove all installed skills without confirmation
npx skills remove --all

# Remove all skills from a specific agent
npx skills remove --skill '*' -a cursor

# Remove a specific skill from all agents
npx skills remove my-skill --agent '*'

# Use 'rm' alias
npx skills rm my-skill

Option	Description
`-g, --global`	Remove from global scope (~/) instead of project
`-a, --agent`	Remove from specific agents (use `'*'` for all)
`-s, --skill`	Specify skills to remove (use `'*'` for all)
`-y, --yes`	Skip confirmation prompts
`--all`	Shorthand for `--skill '' --agent '' -y`

What are Agent Skills?

Agent skills are reusable instruction sets that extend your coding agent's capabilities. They're defined in SKILL.md files with YAML frontmatter containing a name and description.

Skills let agents perform specialized tasks like:

Generating release notes from git history
Creating PRs following your team's conventions
Integrating with external tools (Linear, Notion, etc.)

Discover skills at skills.sh

Supported Agents

Skills can be installed to any of these agents:

Agent	`--agent`	Project Path	Global Path
AiderDesk	`aider-desk`	`.aider-desk/skills/`	`~/.aider-desk/skills/`
Amp, Replit, Universal	`amp`, `replit`, `universal`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.config/agents/skills/`
Antigravity	`antigravity`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.gemini/antigravity/skills/`
Antigravity CLI	`antigravity-cli`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.gemini/antigravity-cli/skills/`
AstrBot	`astrbot`	`data/skills/`	`~/.astrbot/data/skills/`
Autohand Code CLI	`autohand-code`	`.autohand/skills/`	`~/.autohand/skills/`
Augment	`augment`	`.augment/skills/`	`~/.augment/skills/`
IBM Bob	`bob`	`.bob/skills/`	`~/.bob/skills/`
Claude Code	`claude-code`	`.claude/skills/`	`~/.claude/skills/`
OpenClaw	`openclaw`	`skills/`	`~/.openclaw/skills/`
Cline, Dexto, Kimi Code CLI, Loaf, Warp, Zed	`cline`, `dexto`, `kimi-code-cli`, `loaf`, `warp`, `zed`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.agents/skills/`
CodeArts Agent	`codearts-agent`	`.codeartsdoer/skills/`	`~/.codeartsdoer/skills/`
CodeBuddy	`codebuddy`	`.codebuddy/skills/`	`~/.codebuddy/skills/`
Codemaker	`codemaker`	`.codemaker/skills/`	`~/.codemaker/skills/`
Code Studio	`codestudio`	`.codestudio/skills/`	`~/.codestudio/skills/`
Codex	`codex`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.codex/skills/`
Command Code	`command-code`	`.commandcode/skills/`	`~/.commandcode/skills/`
Continue	`continue`	`.continue/skills/`	`~/.continue/skills/`
Cortex Code	`cortex`	`.cortex/skills/`	`~/.snowflake/cortex/skills/`
Crush	`crush`	`.crush/skills/`	`~/.config/crush/skills/`
Cursor	`cursor`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.cursor/skills/`
Deep Agents	`deepagents`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.deepagents/agent/skills/`
Devin for Terminal	`devin`	`.devin/skills/`	`~/.config/devin/skills/`
Droid	`droid`	`.factory/skills/`	`~/.factory/skills/`
Eve	`eve`	`agent/skills/`	N/A (project-only)
Firebender	`firebender`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.firebender/skills/`
ForgeCode	`forgecode`	`.forge/skills/`	`~/.forge/skills/`
Gemini CLI	`gemini-cli`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.gemini/skills/`
GitHub Copilot	`github-copilot`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.copilot/skills/`
Goose	`goose`	`.goose/skills/`	`~/.config/goose/skills/`
Hermes Agent	`hermes-agent`	`.hermes/skills/`	`~/.hermes/skills/`
inference.sh	`inference-sh`	`.inferencesh/skills/`	`~/.inferencesh/skills/`
Jazz	`jazz`	`.jazz/skills/`	`~/.jazz/skills/`
Junie	`junie`	`.junie/skills/`	`~/.junie/skills/`
iFlow CLI	`iflow-cli`	`.iflow/skills/`	`~/.iflow/skills/`
Kilo Code	`kilo`	`.kilocode/skills/`	`~/.kilocode/skills/`
Kiro CLI	`kiro-cli`	`.kiro/skills/`	`~/.kiro/skills/`
Kode	`kode`	`.kode/skills/`	`~/.kode/skills/`
Lingma	`lingma`	`.lingma/skills/`	`~/.lingma/skills/`
MCPJam	`mcpjam`	`.mcpjam/skills/`	`~/.mcpjam/skills/`
Mistral Vibe	`mistral-vibe`	`.vibe/skills/`	`~/.vibe/skills/`
Moxby	`moxby`	`.moxby/skills/`	`~/.moxby/skills/`
Mux	`mux`	`.mux/skills/`	`~/.mux/skills/`
OpenCode	`opencode`	`.agents/skills/`	`~/.config/opencode/skills/`
OpenHands	`openhands`	`.openhands/skills/`	`~/.openhands/skills/`
Ona	`ona`	`.ona/skills/`	`~/.ona/skills/`
Pi	`pi`	`.pi/skills/`	`~/.pi/agent/skills/`
Qoder	`qoder`	`.qoder/skills/`	`~/.qoder/skills/`
Qoder CN	`qoder-cn`	`.qoder/skills/`	`~/.qoder-cn/skills/`
Qwen Code	`qwen-code`	`.qwen/skills/`	`~/.qwen/skills/`
Reasonix	`reasonix`	`.reasonix/skills/`	`~/.reasonix/skills/`
Rovo Dev	`rovodev`	`.rovodev/skills/`	`~/.rovodev/skills/`
Roo Code	`roo`	`.roo/skills/`	`~/.roo/skills/`
Tabnine CLI	`tabnine-cli`	`.tabnine/agent/skills/`	`~/.tabnine/agent/skills/`
Terramind	`terramind`	`.terramind/skills/`	`~/.terramind/skills/`
Tinycloud	`tinycloud`	`.tinycloud/skills/`	`~/.tinycloud/skills/`
Trae	`trae`	`.trae/skills/`	`~/.trae/skills/`
Trae CN	`trae-cn`	`.trae/skills/`	`~/.trae-cn/skills/`
Windsurf	`windsurf`	`.windsurf/skills/`	`~/.codeium/windsurf/skills/`
Zencoder, Zenflow	`zencoder`, `zenflow`	`.zencoder/skills/`	`~/.zencoder/skills/`
Neovate	`neovate`	`.neovate/skills/`	`~/.neovate/skills/`
Pochi	`pochi`	`.pochi/skills/`	`~/.pochi/skills/`
PromptScript	`promptscript`	`.agents/skills/`	N/A (project-only)
AdaL	`adal`	`.adal/skills/`	`~/.adal/skills/`

[!NOTE] Kiro CLI users: The default agent automatically loads skills from .kiro/skills/ and ~/.kiro/skills/ — no configuration needed. If you use a custom agent, add skills to its resources in .kiro/agents/<agent>.json:
{
  "resources": ["skill://.kiro/skills/**/SKILL.md"]
}

The CLI automatically detects which coding agents you have installed. If none are detected, you'll be prompted to select which agents to install to.

Creating Skills

Skills are directories containing a SKILL.md file with YAML frontmatter:

---
name: my-skill
description: What this skill does and when to use it
---

# My Skill

Instructions for the agent to follow when this skill is activated.

## When to Use

Describe the scenarios where this skill should be used.

## Steps

1. First, do this
2. Then, do that

Required Fields

name: Unique identifier (lowercase, hyphens allowed)
description: Brief explanation of what the skill does

Optional Fields

metadata.internal: Set to true to hide the skill from normal discovery. Internal skills are only visible and installable when INSTALL_INTERNAL_SKILLS=1 is set. Useful for work-in-progress skills or skills meant only for internal tooling.

---
name: my-internal-skill
description: An internal skill not shown by default
metadata:
  internal: true
---

Skill Discovery

The CLI searches for skills in these locations within a repository. Each skill container directory is walked one level deep for the common flat layout (skills/<name>/SKILL.md) and one extra level deep for catalog layouts (skills/<category>/<name>/SKILL.md). A SKILL.md discovered at the shallower level shadows anything nested below it. Use --full-depth to also discover SKILL.md files outside these container directories (e.g. under examples/ or tests/).

Root directory (if it contains SKILL.md)
skills/
skills/.curated/
skills/.experimental/
skills/.system/
.aider-desk/skills/
.agents/skills/
data/skills/
.autohand/skills/
.augment/skills/
.bob/skills/
.claude/skills/
.codeartsdoer/skills/
.codebuddy/skills/
.codemaker/skills/
.codestudio/skills/
.commandcode/skills/
.continue/skills/
.cortex/skills/
.crush/skills/
.devin/skills/
.factory/skills/
agent/skills/
.forge/skills/
.goose/skills/
.hermes/skills/
.inferencesh/skills/
.jazz/skills/
.junie/skills/
.iflow/skills/
.kilocode/skills/
.kiro/skills/
.kode/skills/
.lingma/skills/
.mcpjam/skills/
.vibe/skills/
.moxby/skills/
.mux/skills/
.openhands/skills/
.ona/skills/
.pi/skills/
.qoder/skills/
.qwen/skills/
.reasonix/skills/
.rovodev/skills/
.roo/skills/
.tabnine/agent/skills/
.terramind/skills/
.tinycloud/skills/
.trae/skills/
.windsurf/skills/
.zencoder/skills/
.neovate/skills/
.pochi/skills/
.adal/skills/

Plugin Manifest Discovery

If .claude-plugin/marketplace.json or .claude-plugin/plugin.json exists, skills declared in those files are also discovered:

// .claude-plugin/marketplace.json
{
  "metadata": { "pluginRoot": "./plugins" },
  "plugins": [
    {
      "name": "my-plugin",
      "source": "my-plugin",
      "skills": ["./skills/review", "./skills/test"]
    }
  ]
}

This enables compatibility with the Claude Code plugin marketplace ecosystem. Skill paths declared in a manifest are searched at their declared depth and are not subject to the depth-2 catalog walk described above.

If no skills are found in standard locations, a recursive search is performed.

Compatibility

Skills are generally compatible across agents since they follow a shared Agent Skills specification. However, some features may be agent-specific:

Feature	OpenCode	OpenHands	Claude Code	Cline	CodeBuddy	Codex	Command Code	Kiro CLI	Cursor	Antigravity	Roo Code	Github Copilot	Amp	OpenClaw	Neovate	Pi	Qoder	Zencoder
Basic skills	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
`allowed-tools`	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
`context: fork`	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
Hooks	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No

Troubleshooting

"No skills found"

Ensure the repository contains valid SKILL.md files with both name and description in the frontmatter.

Skill not loading in agent

Verify the skill was installed to the correct path
Check the agent's documentation for skill loading requirements
Ensure the SKILL.md frontmatter is valid YAML

Permission errors

Ensure you have write access to the target directory.

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
`INSTALL_INTERNAL_SKILLS`	Set to `1` or `true` to show and install skills marked as `internal: true`
`DISABLE_TELEMETRY`	Set to disable anonymous usage telemetry
`DO_NOT_TRACK`	Alternative way to disable telemetry

# Install internal skills
INSTALL_INTERNAL_SKILLS=1 npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --list

Telemetry

This CLI collects anonymous usage data to help improve the tool. No personal information is collected.

Telemetry is automatically disabled in CI environments.

License

MIT