1---
2name: find-skills
3description: Helps users discover and install agent skills when they ask questions like "how do I do X", "find a skill for X", "is there a skill that can...", or express interest in extending capabilities. This skill should be used when the user is looking for functionality that might exist as an installable skill.
4---
5 
6# Find Skills
7 
8This skill helps you discover and install skills from the open agent skills ecosystem.
9 
10## When to Use This Skill
11 
12Use this skill when the user:
13 
14- Asks "how do I do X" where X might be a common task with an existing skill
15- Says "find a skill for X" or "is there a skill for X"
16- Asks "can you do X" where X is a specialized capability
17- Expresses interest in extending agent capabilities
18- Wants to search for tools, templates, or workflows
19- Mentions they wish they had help with a specific domain (design, testing, deployment, etc.)
20 
21## What is the Skills CLI?
22 
23The Skills CLI (`npx skills`) is the package manager for the open agent skills ecosystem. Skills are modular packages that extend agent capabilities with specialized knowledge, workflows, and tools.
24 
25**Key commands:**
26 
27- `npx skills find [query]` - Search for skills interactively or by keyword
28- `npx skills add <package>` - Install a skill from GitHub or other sources
29- `npx skills check` - Check for skill updates
30- `npx skills update` - Update all installed skills
31 
32**Browse skills at:** https://skills.sh/
33 
34## How to Help Users Find Skills
35 
36### Step 1: Understand What They Need
37 
38When a user asks for help with something, identify:
39 
401. The domain (e.g., React, testing, design, deployment)
412. The specific task (e.g., writing tests, creating animations, reviewing PRs)
423. Whether this is a common enough task that a skill likely exists
43 
44### Step 2: Check the Leaderboard First
45 
46Before running a CLI search, check the [skills.sh leaderboard](https://skills.sh/) to see if a well-known skill already exists for the domain. The leaderboard ranks skills by total installs, surfacing the most popular and battle-tested options.
47 
48For example, top skills for web development include:
49- `vercel-labs/agent-skills` — React, Next.js, web design (100K+ installs each)
50- `anthropics/skills` — Frontend design, document processing (100K+ installs)
51 
52### Step 3: Search for Skills
53 
54If the leaderboard doesn't cover the user's need, run the find command:
55 
56```bash
57npx skills find [query]
58```
59 
60For example:
61 
62- User asks "how do I make my React app faster?" → `npx skills find react performance`
63- User asks "can you help me with PR reviews?" → `npx skills find pr review`
64- User asks "I need to create a changelog" → `npx skills find changelog`
65 
66### Step 4: Verify Quality Before Recommending
67 
68**Do not recommend a skill based solely on search results.** Always verify:
69 
701. **Install count** — Prefer skills with 1K+ installs. Be cautious with anything under 100.
712. **Source reputation** — Official sources (`vercel-labs`, `anthropics`, `microsoft`) are more trustworthy than unknown authors.
723. **GitHub stars** — Check the source repository. A skill from a repo with <100 stars should be treated with skepticism.
73 
74### Step 5: Present Options to the User
75 
76When you find relevant skills, present them to the user with:
77 
781. The skill name and what it does
792. The install count and source
803. The install command they can run
814. A link to learn more at skills.sh
82 
83Example response:
84 
85```
86I found a skill that might help! The "react-best-practices" skill provides
87React and Next.js performance optimization guidelines from Vercel Engineering.
88(185K installs)
89 
90To install it:
91npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills@react-best-practices
92 
93Learn more: https://skills.sh/vercel-labs/agent-skills/react-best-practices
94```
95 
96### Step 6: Offer to Install
97 
98If the user wants to proceed, you can install the skill for them:
99 
100```bash
101npx skills add <owner/repo@skill> -g -y
102```
103 
104The `-g` flag installs globally (user-level) and `-y` skips confirmation prompts.
105 
106## Common Skill Categories
107 
108When searching, consider these common categories:
109 
110| Category        | Example Queries                          |
111| --------------- | ---------------------------------------- |
112| Web Development | react, nextjs, typescript, css, tailwind |
113| Testing         | testing, jest, playwright, e2e           |
114| DevOps          | deploy, docker, kubernetes, ci-cd        |
115| Documentation   | docs, readme, changelog, api-docs        |
116| Code Quality    | review, lint, refactor, best-practices   |
117| Design          | ui, ux, design-system, accessibility     |
118| Productivity    | workflow, automation, git                |
119 
120## Tips for Effective Searches
121 
1221. **Use specific keywords**: "react testing" is better than just "testing"
1232. **Try alternative terms**: If "deploy" doesn't work, try "deployment" or "ci-cd"
1243. **Check popular sources**: Many skills come from `vercel-labs/agent-skills` or `ComposioHQ/awesome-claude-skills`
125 
126## When No Skills Are Found
127 
128If no relevant skills exist:
129 
1301. Acknowledge that no existing skill was found
1312. Offer to help with the task directly using your general capabilities
1323. Suggest the user could create their own skill with `npx skills init`
133 
134Example:
135 
136```
137I searched for skills related to "xyz" but didn't find any matches.
138I can still help you with this task directly! Would you like me to proceed?
139 
140If this is something you do often, you could create your own skill:
141npx skills init my-xyz-skill
142```
143