How to install Claude Code skills

Install a Claude Code skill by copying its complete folder into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or .claude/skills/ inside a project. The folder must contain a file named SKILL.md. Claude Code can then load the skill when your request matches its description, or you can invoke it directly with /skill-name.

This guide covers the manual install path. It works for a skill you downloaded as a ZIP, cloned from GitHub, or bought as a folder.

Check the skill folder before installing it

Unzip the package and find the directory that directly contains SKILL.md. A typical skill looks like this:

seo-landing-page-audit/
├── SKILL.md
├── references/
│   └── audit-checklist.md
├── scripts/
│   └── check-metadata.sh
└── templates/
    └── audit-report.md

Keep that directory intact. Do not copy only SKILL.md if its instructions refer to files under references/, scripts/, or templates/.

Read SKILL.md before installing an unfamiliar package. Check what job it owns, which tools or commands it can run, and whether its scripts touch files or external services. A skill is readable Markdown and code. Treat it like any other dependency you add to your machine or repository.

If you are still deciding whether a saved workflow is necessary, start with one repeated task and check whether a plain prompt already handles it well.

Choose a personal or project install

Use a personal install when you want the skill available in every project on your machine. Claude Code reads personal skills from:

~/.claude/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md

Use a project install when the workflow belongs to one repository or should be shared with the team through version control. Project skills live at:

<project>/.claude/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md

A code-review checklist tied to one codebase is usually a project skill. A general research or writing workflow that you use across clients is usually personal.

Install a personal Claude Code skill

From the directory containing the downloaded skill folder, run:

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -R seo-landing-page-audit ~/.claude/skills/

Then confirm the entrypoint is in the expected place:

ls ~/.claude/skills/seo-landing-page-audit/SKILL.md

Replace seo-landing-page-audit with the actual directory name. The result should not contain an accidental second wrapper folder such as:

~/.claude/skills/seo-landing-page-audit/seo-landing-page-audit/SKILL.md

That extra level is a common reason a downloaded skill does not appear.

Install a project Claude Code skill

Open a terminal at the project root and copy the folder into .claude/skills/:

mkdir -p .claude/skills
cp -R /path/to/seo-landing-page-audit .claude/skills/

Verify the result:

ls .claude/skills/seo-landing-page-audit/SKILL.md

Commit the skill only if its license allows redistribution and the package contains no secrets, customer data, or machine-specific configuration.

Verify that Claude Code found the skill

Start Claude Code in the project where you want to use the skill:

claude

Test explicit invocation first:

/seo-landing-page-audit

You can also ask for the job in normal language:

Audit this landing page for search intent, crawlability, metadata, internal links, and conversion gaps.

Claude Code uses the skill description to decide whether it matches the request. If explicit invocation works but automatic use does not, the installation is probably fine. The description may simply be too vague.

Anthropic's current Claude Code skills documentation says skill changes are detected during a session. If the top-level skills directory did not exist when the session started, restart Claude Code once so it can watch the new directory.

Fix a skill that does not load

Check these in order:

1. The file is named exactly SKILL.md.
2. SKILL.md sits directly inside the skill directory.
3. A personal skill is under ~/.claude/skills/, not just ~/.claude/.
4. A project skill is under .claude/skills/ in the repository.
5. The YAML frontmatter at the top of SKILL.md is valid.
6. The skill name is not being shadowed by another skill with the same name.
7. The description names the task clearly enough for automatic matching.

If you created .claude/skills/ after Claude Code was already running, restart the session. If the skill comes from a plugin, use its namespaced command, such as /plugin-name:skill-name, rather than the standalone folder name.

Update or remove a skill

To update a skill, replace the complete directory with the new version. Do not mix files from two releases unless the author documents that upgrade path.

To remove a personal skill:

rm -rf ~/.claude/skills/seo-landing-page-audit

For a project skill, remove the matching directory under .claude/skills/ and commit the deletion if the skill is tracked in Git.

If you also use OpenAI's coding agent, the install locations are different. See how to install Codex skills. You can also browse AI skills on Capabase when you want a packaged workflow rather than writing one from scratch.