The Skill Standard
Learn about the open SKILL.md standard for Agent capabilities.
What is a Skill?
A Skill is a capability that you can add to an AI Agent. It allows the agent to perform specific tasks, such as interacting with a database, calling an API, or processing files.
The Agent Skills Standard defines a simple, universal format for packaging these capabilities so they can be easily discovered and installed by any AI Agent (Cursor, Windsurf, Claude, etc.).
The SKILL.md Format
At the core of every skill is a SKILL.md file. This file uses Markdown to describe what the skill does and how to use it.
Example
# My Awesome Skill
This skill allows your agent to check the current weather.
## Tools
### `get_weather`
Returns the current weather for a given location.
- **Parameters**:
- `location` (string): The city and state, e.g. "San Francisco, CA"
- `unit` (string): "celsius" or "fahrenheit" (default: "celsius")
- **Returns**: A JSON string containing temperature and conditions.How to Create a Skill
- Create a Repository: Start a new GitHub repository.
- Add Code: Write the code for your tool (e.g., in Python or TypeScript).
- Add SKILL.md: document your tool using the format above.
- Publish: Share your repository URL.
Automatic Discovery
The Agent Skills Directory automatically crawls repositories looking for SKILL.md files. Once indexed, your skill becomes available for installation via:
npx agent-skills install your-username/your-repo