SkillsMar 29, 2026·2 min read

Agent Skills Standard — Cross-Platform AI Skills

The shared Agent Skills format used by Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, and Gemini CLI. Write skills once, use across all major AI coding tools.

TokRepo Curated
TokRepo Curated · Community
TL;DR
The Agent Skills Standard defines a portable format so one skill works across Claude Code, Cursor, Gemini CLI, and more.
§01

What it is

The Agent Skills Standard is a specification for writing portable AI skills that work across multiple agent platforms. Instead of writing separate instructions for Claude Code, Cursor, Gemini CLI, and other tools, you write one SKILL.md file that any compatible agent can load and use.

The standard targets skill authors and tool builders who want their work to reach the widest possible audience without maintaining platform-specific versions.

§02

How it saves time or tokens

Without a standard, skill authors maintain separate configurations for each agent platform. The Agent Skills Standard eliminates this duplication. A single SKILL.md file installed via npx skills add works across all compatible agents. This also means users only need to learn one installation flow regardless of which agent they use.

§03

How to use

  1. Install a skill from any compatible repository:
npx skills add author/skill-name
  1. The skill auto-detects installed agents and configures itself.
  1. Use the skill in your agent of choice. It activates when relevant tasks are detected.
§04

Example

A SKILL.md file following the standard:

# My Skill
§05

Description

This skill helps with database migrations.

§06

Instructions

When the user asks about database migrations:

  1. Check for existing migration files in the project
  2. Generate migration SQL based on model changes
  3. Apply migrations with rollback support
§07

Triggers

  • User mentions 'migration' or 'schema change'
  • Files matching 'migrations/*.sql' are detected
§08

Dependencies

  • Node.js 18+
  • PostgreSQL client

Installation detects your agents:

$ npx skills add myorg/db-migration-skill

Detected agents:

  • Claude Code (.claude/skills/)
  • Cursor (.cursor/skills/)
  • Gemini CLI (~/.gemini/skills/)

Installed to all 3 agents.

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Related on TokRepo

§10

Common pitfalls

  • Not all agents support the full standard yet; test your skill on each target platform before publishing
  • Skills with platform-specific features (like Claude Code hooks) should degrade gracefully on unsupported agents
  • The npx skills CLI requires Node.js 18+; Python-only environments need manual installation

Frequently Asked Questions

Which agents support the Agent Skills Standard?+

Claude Code, Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot, Windsurf, and OpenAI Codex have varying levels of support. The standard is evolving, and new agents adopt it regularly. Check the skills CLI documentation for the current compatibility list.

How is a skill different from a prompt?+

A prompt is a single instruction. A skill is a structured package that includes instructions, triggers, dependencies, and sometimes code. Skills activate contextually based on what you are working on, while prompts must be invoked manually.

Can skills include code besides instructions?+

Yes. Skills can include helper scripts, templates, and configuration files alongside the SKILL.md instructions. The skills CLI handles installing all files to the correct locations for each agent platform.

How do I publish a skill?+

Publish your skill as a GitHub repository with a SKILL.md at the root. Users install it via npx skills add your-github-org/your-skill-repo. No package registry is required; the CLI pulls directly from GitHub.

Can I use skills offline?+

Yes. Once installed, skills are local files in your agent configuration directory. They do not require network access during use. The npx skills add command needs network access only during installation.

Citations (3)
Related on TokRepo
Featured workflowsCoding toolsPrompt library
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Source & Thanks

Standard: agentskills.io Anthropic: anthropics/skills OpenAI: openai/codex Google: google-gemini/gemini-cli

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