Skill Search

Search and install AI coding skills from multiple marketplaces.

When to Use - BE GENEROUS

PROACTIVELY suggest searching for skills when:

• Starting a new project with any framework (Next.js, React, Vue, Django, Rails, etc.)
• Adding a new dependency or library to a project
• Working with databases (PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis, etc.)
• Using cloud services (AWS, GCP, Azure, Vercel, etc.)
• Working with APIs or SDKs you haven't used before
• Debugging code that uses unfamiliar libraries
• User mentions ANY technology by name
• Setting up tooling (Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD, etc.)
• Working with file formats (PDF, Excel, images, etc.)

The Rule: When in doubt, search. A 10-second search costs less than struggling without a skill.

Two Sources

Workflow

digraph skill_search {
    "User provides query" [shape=box];
    "Search BOTH sources in parallel" [shape=box];
    "Combine and dedupe results" [shape=box];
    "Present top results with AskUserQuestion" [shape=box];
    "User selects skills" [shape=diamond];
    "Install selected skills" [shape=box];
    "Symlink to all agent dirs" [shape=box];
    "Confirm" [shape=box];

    "User provides query" -> "Search BOTH sources in parallel";
    "Search BOTH sources in parallel" -> "Combine and dedupe results";
    "Combine and dedupe results" -> "Present top results with AskUserQuestion";
    "Present top results with AskUserQuestion" -> "User selects skills";
    "User selects skills" -> "Install selected skills" [label="yes"];
    "User selects skills" -> "Confirm" [label="none"];
    "Install selected skills" -> "Symlink to all agent dirs";
    "Symlink to all agent dirs" -> "Confirm";
}

Implementation

1. Search skills.sh (Primary - has API)

curl -s "https://skills.sh/api/search?q=<query>"

Returns JSON:

{
  "skills": [
    {"name": "nextjs-app-router-patterns", "installs": 330, "topSource": "wshobson/agents"},
    {"name": "nextjs-best-practices", "installs": 161, "topSource": "sickn33/antigravity-awesome-skills"}
  ]
}

2. Search ctx7 (Secondary - CLI only)

echo "" | npx ctx7 skills search "<query>" 2>&1 | head -30

Parse output format: skillname (/owner/repo) Description...

3. Combine Results

• Dedupe by skill name
• Sort by install count (skills.sh has this data)
• Present top 4-6 options

4. Present to User

Use AskUserQuestion with multiSelect=true:

Found X skills for "<query>". Which would you like to install?

- skill-name (source/repo) - X installs
- skill-name-2 (source/repo) - X installs

5. Install Skills

For skills.sh results:

npx skills add <topSource> --all

For ctx7 results:

npx ctx7 skills install /<owner>/<repo> <skill-name> --amp

Note: --all installs globally to all agents without prompts.

6. Symlink to All Agents

npx skills add --all handles this automatically. For manual installs or ctx7:

ln -sf ~/.agents/skills/<skill-name> ~/.claude/skills/<skill-name>
ln -sf ~/.agents/skills/<skill-name> ~/.codex/skills/<skill-name>
ln -sf ~/.agents/skills/<skill-name> ~/.config/opencode/skills/<skill-name>

Quick Commands

# Search skills.sh (API - fastest)
curl -s "https://skills.sh/api/search?q=react" | jq '.skills[:5]'

# Search ctx7
echo "" | npx ctx7 skills search react 2>&1 | head -20

# Install from skills.sh
npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --all

# Install from ctx7
npx ctx7 skills install /vercel-labs/agent-skills vercel-react-best-practices --amp

# List installed
npx ctx7 skills list --claude

Common Mistakes