How To Use Agent Skills

Steps to Add Agent Skills in Claude:

Claude Desktop/Web (User Interface):
- Navigate to Customize > Skills.
- Click the ”+” button and Upload a skill (as a ZIP file containing the SKILL.md) or define it directly.
VS Code Extension:
- Open the Chat view, click the gear icon (Configure Chat), and select the Skills tab.
- Create a New Skill (Workspace) or New Skill (User), then fill in the required SKILL.md structure.
Claude Code/API (Filesystem):
- Create a directory for your skill in ~/.claude/skills/ (e.g., ~/.claude/skills/your-skill/).
- Add a SKILL.md file inside that directory.
- Enable the skill by including “Skill” in your allowed_tools configuration.

Steps to Add Agent Skills in Codex:

Method 1: Using the Skill Creator (Recommended)
1. Type /$skill-creator in the Codex chat.
2. Describe the skill’s function and when to trigger it.
3. The agent will guide you through creating the required SKILL.md file.
Method 2: Manual Creation
1. Create a folder named .agents/skills in your project root or ~/.agents/skills for global access.
2. Create a subdirectory for the new skill (e.g., .agents/skills/my-skill).
3. Create a SKILL.md file within that subdirectory.
4. Add YAML frontmatter with the name and description, followed by instructions.

Steps to Add Agent Skills in Cursor:

Setup: Create a directory structure: .cursor/skills/your-skill-name/ and place a skill.md file inside.
Enable Feature: Go to Cursor Settings > Beta and set updates to Nightly to ensure skill support is active.
Define Skill: Within skill.md, define the skill’s purpose and instructions for the agent to follow.
Activation: The Agent automatically uses relevant skills, or you can invoke them manually by typing / followed by the skill name in the Agent chat (Cmd+I or Ctrl+I).
Alternative: Use the command /create-skill in the chat to have Cursor guide you through the process.

Other Skill Locations:
Cursor also detects skills in .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, and ~/.cursor/skills/ (global).