What Are Claude Skills?
Claude Skills are customizable workflows that teach Claude how to perform specific tasks according to your unique requirements. Skills enable Claude to execute tasks in a repeatable, standardized manner across all Claude platforms.
Skills
Document Processing
- docx – Create, edit, analyze Word docs with tracked changes, comments, formatting.
- pdf – Extract text, tables, metadata, merge & annotate PDFs.
- pptx – Read, generate, and adjust slides, layouts, templates.
- xlsx – Spreadsheet manipulation: formulas, charts, data transformations.
- Markdown to EPUB Converter – Converts markdown documents and chat summaries into professional EPUB ebook files. By @smerchek
Development & Code Tools
- artifacts-builder – Suite of tools for creating elaborate, multi-component claude.ai HTML artifacts using modern frontend web technologies (React, Tailwind CSS, shadcn/ui).
- aws-skills – AWS development with CDK best practices, cost optimization MCP servers, and serverless/event-driven architecture patterns.
- Changelog Generator – Automatically creates user-facing changelogs from git commits by analyzing history and transforming technical commits into customer-friendly release notes.
- Claude Code Terminal Title – Gives each Claud-Code terminal window a dynamic title that describes the work being done so you don’t lose track of what window is doing what.
- D3.js Visualization – Teaches Claude to produce D3 charts and interactive data visualizations. By @chrisvoncsefalvay
- FFUF Web Fuzzing – Integrates the ffuf web fuzzer so Claude can run fuzzing tasks and analyze results for vulnerabilities. By @jthack
- finishing-a-development-branch – Guides completion of development work by presenting clear options and handling chosen workflow.
- iOS Simulator – Enables Claude to interact with iOS Simulator for testing and debugging iOS applications. By @conorluddy
- MCP Builder – Guides creation of high-quality MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers for integrating external APIs and services with LLMs using Python or TypeScript.
- move-code-quality-skill – Analyzes Move language packages against the official Move Book Code Quality Checklist for Move 2024 Edition compliance and best practices.
- Playwright Browser Automation – Model-invoked Playwright automation for testing and validating web applications. By @lackeyjb
- prompt-engineering – Teaches well-known prompt engineering techniques and patterns, including Anthropic best practices and agent persuasion principles.
- pypict-claude-skill – Design comprehensive test cases using PICT (Pairwise Independent Combinatorial Testing) for requirements or code, generating optimized test suites with pairwise coverage.
- Skill Creator – Provides guidance for creating effective Claude Skills that extend capabilities with specialized knowledge, workflows, and tool integrations.
- Skill Seekers – Automatically converts any documentation website into a Claude AI skill in minutes. By @yusufkaraaslan
- software-architecture – Implements design patterns including Clean Architecture, SOLID principles, and comprehensive software design best practices.
- subagent-driven-development – Dispatches independent subagents for individual tasks with code review checkpoints between iterations for rapid, controlled development.
- test-driven-development – Use when implementing any feature or bugfix, before writing implementation code.
- using-git-worktrees – Creates isolated git worktrees with smart directory selection and safety verification.
- Webapp Testing – Tests local web applications using Playwright for verifying frontend functionality, debugging UI behavior, and capturing screenshots.
Data & Analysis
- CSV Data Summarizer – Automatically analyzes CSV files and generates comprehensive insights with visualizations without requiring user prompts. By @coffeefuelbump
- root-cause-tracing – Use when errors occur deep in execution and you need to trace back to find the original trigger.
Business & Marketing
- Brand Guidelines – Applies Anthropic’s official brand colors and typography to artifacts for consistent visual identity and professional design standards.
- Competitive Ads Extractor – Extracts and analyzes competitors’ ads from ad libraries to understand messaging and creative approaches that resonate.
- Domain Name Brainstormer – Generates creative domain name ideas and checks availability across multiple TLDs including .com, .io, .dev, and .ai extensions.
- Internal Comms – Helps write internal communications including 3P updates, company newsletters, FAQs, status reports, and project updates using company-specific formats.
- Lead Research Assistant – Identifies and qualifies high-quality leads by analyzing your product, searching for target companies, and providing actionable outreach strategies.
Communication & Writing
- article-extractor – Extract full article text and metadata from web pages.
- brainstorming – Transform rough ideas into fully-formed designs through structured questioning and alternative exploration.
- Content Research Writer – Assists in writing high-quality content by conducting research, adding citations, improving hooks, and providing section-by-section feedback.
- family-history-research – Provides assistance with planning family history and genealogy research projects.
- Meeting Insights Analyzer – Analyzes meeting transcripts to uncover behavioral patterns including conflict avoidance, speaking ratios, filler words, and leadership style.
- NotebookLM Integration – Lets Claude Code chat directly with NotebookLM for source-grounded answers based exclusively on uploaded documents. By @PleasePrompto
Creative & Media
- Canvas Design – Creates beautiful visual art in PNG and PDF documents using design philosophy and aesthetic principles for posters, designs, and static pieces.
- Image Enhancer – Improves image and screenshot quality by enhancing resolution, sharpness, and clarity for professional presentations and documentation.
- Slack GIF Creator – Creates animated GIFs optimized for Slack with validators for size constraints and composable animation primitives.
- Theme Factory – Applies professional font and color themes to artifacts including slides, docs, reports, and HTML landing pages with 10 pre-set themes.
- Video Downloader – Downloads videos from YouTube and other platforms for offline viewing, editing, or archival with support for various formats and quality options.
- youtube-transcript – Fetch transcripts from YouTube videos and prepare summaries.
Productivity & Organization
- File Organizer – Intelligently organizes files and folders by understanding context, finding duplicates, and suggesting better organizational structures.
- Invoice Organizer – Automatically organizes invoices and receipts for tax preparation by reading files, extracting information, and renaming consistently.
- kaizen – Applies continuous improvement methodology with multiple analytical approaches, based on Japanese Kaizen philosophy and Lean methodology.
- n8n-skills – Enables AI assistants to directly understand and operate n8n workflows.
- Raffle Winner Picker – Randomly selects winners from lists, spreadsheets, or Google Sheets for giveaways and contests with cryptographically secure randomness.
- ship-learn-next – Skill to help iterate on what to build or learn next, based on feedback loops.
- tapestry – Interlink and summarize related documents into knowledge networks.
Collaboration & Project Management
- git-pushing – Automate git operations and repository interactions.
- review-implementing – Evaluate code implementation plans and align with specs.
- test-fixing – Detect failing tests and propose patches or fixes.
Security & Systems
- computer-forensics – Digital forensics analysis and investigation techniques.
- file-deletion – Secure file deletion and data sanitization methods.
- metadata-extraction – Extract and analyze file metadata for forensic purposes.
- threat-hunting-with-sigma-rules – Use Sigma detection rules to hunt for threats and analyze security events.
Getting Started
Using Skills in Claude.ai
- Click the skill icon (🧩) in your chat interface.
- Add skills from the marketplace or upload custom skills.
- Claude automatically activates relevant skills based on your task.
Using Skills in Claude Code
- Place the skill in
~/.config/claude-code/skills/:mkdir -p ~/.config/claude-code/skills/ cp -r skill-name ~/.config/claude-code/skills/ - Verify skill metadata:head ~/.config/claude-code/skills/skill-name/SKILL.md
- Start Claude Code:claude
- The skill loads automatically and activates when relevant.
Using Skills via API
Use the Claude Skills API to programmatically load and manage skills:
import anthropic
client = anthropic.Anthropic(api_key="your-api-key")
response = client.messages.create(
model="claude-3-5-sonnet-20241022",
skills=["skill-id-here"],
messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your prompt"}]
)See the Skills API documentation for details.
Creating Skills
Skill Structure
Each skill is a folder containing a SKILL.md file with YAML frontmatter:
skill-name/
├── SKILL.md # Required: Skill instructions and metadata
├── scripts/ # Optional: Helper scripts
├── templates/ # Optional: Document templates
└── resources/ # Optional: Reference files
Basic Skill Template
---
name: my-skill-name
description: A clear description of what this skill does and when to use it.
---
# My Skill Name
Detailed description of the skill's purpose and capabilities.
## When to Use This Skill
- Use case 1
- Use case 2
- Use case 3
## Instructions
[Detailed instructions for Claude on how to execute this skill]
## Examples
[Real-world examples showing the skill in action]Skill Best Practices
- Focus on specific, repeatable tasks
- Include clear examples and edge cases
- Write instructions for Claude, not end users
- Test across Claude.ai, Claude Code, and API
- Document prerequisites and dependencies
- Include error handling guidance
