How to install and use Anthropic Skills in 30 seconds?

Get up and running with Anthropic Skills in Claude Code using two methods: the one‑command npx installer or a manual setup that works offline or in restricted environments.

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1) Automatic Installation (npx skills CLI)

Use the skills CLI to fetch and wire up skills from the official Anthropic repository.

Prerequisites:
- Node.js (LTS recommended) and npx installed
- Network access to GitHub
- A Claude Code environment where you can add skills

General command:

npx skills add <owner>/<repo-or-path>

For Anthropic’s official skills, use the GitHub path pointing to a specific skill directory. Examples:

# Design & content
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/algorithmic-art
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/frontend-design
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/canvas-design
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/brand-guidelines

# Documents & coauthoring
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/doc-coauthoring
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/docx
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/pdf
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/pptx

# Agent & platform tooling
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/mcp-builder
npx skills add anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/internal-comms

Verification checklist:
- The CLI finishes without errors
- Claude Code lists or auto-detects the new skill after a reload
- You can invoke the skill in a test chat or task

Tips:
- Explore CLI help: npx skills --help
- If your environment requires confirmation prompts, add --yes: npx --yes skills add <path>

Troubleshooting:
- npx not found: Install Node.js LTS from nodejs.org; npx ships with Node.js
- Permission errors (EACCES/EPERM): Run in a writable project directory; avoid sudo unless necessary
- Corporate proxy/firewall: Configure npm proxy (npm config set proxy <url>) and ensure GitHub access is allowed
- Path not found: Copy the exact GitHub path shown above; ensure the skill directory exists
- Changes not visible: Reload/restart Claude Code or your agent environment

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2) Manual Installation (following Claude Code documentation)

If the CLI is unavailable or you prefer full control, you can install skills manually using Claude Code’s configuration.

Official documentation:
- Claude documentation portal: https://docs.anthropic.com/claude
- See the Claude Code section for agent/tools configuration and local development workflow

Step-by-step:
1) Locate the skill source
- Browse the official repo: https://github.com/anthropics/skills
- Open skills/<skill-name> and review its README for specific notes

2) Copy the skill into your project
- Create a skills/ folder in your Claude Code project (or your preferred location)
- Copy the desired skill folder (e.g., pdf, pptx, docx) into ./skills/

3) Install any skill dependencies
- If the skill folder contains a package.json, run:
bash cd skills/<skill-name> npm install # or pnpm install / yarn install
- If there is no package.json, the skill is likely self-contained

4) Register the skill with Claude Code
- Open your Claude Code configuration (see docs for where your agent/tool configuration lives)
- Add an entry that points to the local path for each skill you copied
- Example pattern (adjust to your config format; example only):
json { "skills": [ { "name": "pdf", "path": "./skills/pdf" }, { "name": "pptx", "path": "./skills/pptx" } ] }
- Consult the Claude Code docs for the exact schema and where to place this configuration

5) Reload Claude Code
- Restart or reload your agent environment so it picks up new skills

6) Validate
- In a new session, ask Claude Code to use the installed skill (e.g., "Convert this file to PDF using the pdf skill")
- Check logs/console for any missing environment variables or permissions

Manual example: add the PDF skill
- Copy anthropics/skills/tree/main/skills/pdf into ./skills/pdf
- Install dependencies if present (npm install inside ./skills/pdf)
- Add the skill entry to your Claude Code config, pointing to ./skills/pdf
- Reload Claude Code and test a PDF conversion task

Manual troubleshooting:
- Module not found: Run npm install inside the skill directory if it has dependencies
- Wrong path: Ensure the path in your agent config matches your filesystem
- Env vars/secrets: Some skills may require API keys; set them via your environment or Claude Code settings
- Conflicts: If two skills define the same command/name, rename one in your config per docs guidance

Uninstalling skills:
- CLI install: Remove via your CLI or delete the added entries and re-run setup
- Manual install: Remove the skill folder and delete its entry from your Claude Code config, then reload

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Notes and best practices:
- Pin versions: Use tagged commits or branches when referencing GitHub paths for reproducibility
- Keep skills in version control: Commit the skills/ folder (excluding large assets) so your team shares the same setup
- Test incrementally: Add and validate one skill at a time to isolate issues