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

Source	Search	Install	Skills
skills.sh	API: curl skills.sh/api/search?q=X	npx skills add owner/repo	11,000+
ctx7	npx ctx7 skills search X	npx ctx7 skills install /owner/repo skill	Indexed repos

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

Mistake	Fix
Using interactive mode	Always use --all flag to avoid TTY prompts
Only searching one source	Search BOTH skills.sh AND ctx7
Not deduping results	Same skill may appear in both sources
Wrong install command	skills.sh uses npx skills add, ctx7 uses npx ctx7 skills install
Forgetting symlinks	Always symlink to Claude, Codex, and OpenCode dirs