Learn · Skills · Guide 03

How to install a skill

Choose your agent. Follow five simple steps to add a skill and try your first task.

Claude Code · Installation guide

1. Before you start

You need: Claude Code installed and a project folder open in it. These steps use local project files.

We use meeting-recap as an example name. Keep your chosen skill’s own name and follow any extra setup notes from its author.

2. Download and open your skill

Choose a skill, open its source page, and check that it supports Claude Code. Read what it does and which tools or files it needs.

Find a skill in the library

Use the author’s download link. On GitHub, open the repository’s main page, choose Code, then Download ZIP.
Open the ZIP. On a Mac, double-click it. On Windows, right-click it and choose Extract All.
Find the skill folder containing SKILL.md, the file with its instructions. Keep any scripts, templates, and other files in that folder.

A download can contain several skills. Copy only the skill folder you need, not the whole repository.

3. Add it to Claude Code

Open your project folder: the folder where you use Claude Code. Create a folder named .claude, then a folder named skills inside it. If they already exist, use them.

Copy your whole skill folder into skills. For a skill named meeting-recap, it should look like this:

Your project/
  .claude/
    skills/
      meeting-recap/
        SKILL.md
        references/  (if included)

.claude/skills/

Keep the dot at the start of .claude. If the folder is hidden, turn on “show hidden files” in your file manager.

Official Claude Code skills guide

Read the official Claude Code documentation

4. Check that your skill is available

In Claude Code, type / and look for your skill in the menu. Its command comes from the name in SKILL.md, or the folder name when no name is set.

/meeting-recap

You should see your skill’s name. If it is missing, open the help checklist below before continuing.

5. Try one small task

For a meeting-recap skill, try the message below. Replace the skill name with yours. If your skill does a different job, use a small sample that matches its instructions.

/meeting-recap
Turn these sample meeting notes into decisions and actions.
Do not invent missing details.

Maya will send the proposal by Friday.
The team agreed to offer a two-week trial.
The budget still needs an owner.

My skill does not appear

Open the same project in Claude Code. Check the folder layout below, then start a new session if the skill is still missing.

Keep SKILL.md directly inside the skill folder. Avoid an extra folder from the ZIP between them.
Check the filename is SKILL.md, with capital letters and no .txt ending.
Keep the author’s name and description between the two --- lines at the top of the file.

Written by JuicyAgents. Official documentation checked on 7 October 2026. The practice task is illustrative; we have not run it in these agents.