Install Claude Code Skills: Setup to PRs
Claude Code works as a loop: give the agent the map of a repo, ask it to change code toward a stated outcome, feed it a failure to chase, run the checks you would run, then turn the working tree into a reviewable change. Skills in this topic cover each stage of that loop, plus the extensions — skills and hooks — that add repeatable procedures and guardrails when the default loop is not enough. Use the ranked list by finding the stage where your current loop breaks down. If setup is the problem, start there; if you already ship but review is slow, look at Git and PRs. Pick one skill for the stage you are fixing rather than stacking several at once.
8 to start with34 top options
Start with these.
Claude Code is used as a working loop: set up a repo, change code, debug, verify, and ship — extended with skills and hooks when the default loop is not enough.
These are the closest matches for this work. Start with the first one and open it to install.
- Rank 01View Agent SkillDirect
git-guardrails-claude-code
NotableSet up Claude Code hooks to block dangerous git commands (push, reset --hard, clean, branch -D, etc.) before they execute. Use when user wants to prevent destructive git operations, add git safety hooks, or block git push/reset in Claude Code.
366,097 · popularity - Rank 02View Agent SkillDirect
using-superpowers
NotableUse when starting any conversation - establishes how to find and use skills, requiring skill invocation before ANY response including clarifying questions
- Rank 03View Agent SkillDirect
find-skills
NotableHelps users discover and install agent skills when they ask questions like "how do I do X", "find a skill for X", "is there a skill that can...", or express interest in extending capabilities. This skill should be used when the user is looking for functionality that might exist as an installable skill.
2,910,584 · popularity - Rank 04View Agent SkillDirect
verification-before-completion
NotableUse when about to claim work is complete, fixed, or passing, before committing or creating PRs - requires running verification commands and confirming output before making any success claims; evidence before assertions always
- Rank 05View Agent SkillDirect
test-driven-development
Enforces writing a failing test before implementation code, following the red-green-refactor cycle with mandatory verification. Directly supports the Implementation and Verification facets.
243,874 · popularity - Rank 06View Agent SkillDirect
debugging-and-error-recovery
Guides systematic root-cause debugging with structured triage for test failures, build breaks, and runtime bugs. Directly supports the Debugging facet of agentic coding.
48,741 · popularity - Rank 07View Agent SkillDirect
incremental-implementation
NotableDelivers changes incrementally in thin, verifiable slices. Use when implementing any feature or change that touches more than one file, or when picking up the next task from a plan. Use when rolling a change out behind a feature flag, when you're about to write a large amount of code at once, or when a task feels too big to land in one step.
- Rank 08View Agent SkillDirect
caveman
NotableUltra-compressed communication mode that cuts output tokens while keeping technical accuracy. Levels: lite, full, ultra and the wenyan variants. Use for /caveman, "caveman mode", "talk like caveman", "be brief" or "less tokens".
Explore 26 more Agent Skills
- Rank 09View Agent SkillDirect
context-mode
NotableUse context-mode tools (ctx_execute, ctx_execute_file) instead of Bash/cat when processing large outputs. Triggers: "analyze logs", "summarize output", "process data", "parse JSON", "filter results", "extract errors", "check build output", "analyze dependencies", "process API response", "large file analysis", "page snapshot", "browser snapshot", "DOM structure", "inspect page", "accessibility tree", "Playwright snapshot", "run tests", "test output", "coverage report", "git log", "recent commits", "diff between branches", "list containers", "pod status", "disk usage", "fetch docs", "API reference", "index documentation", "call API", "check response", "query results", "find TODOs", "count lines", "codebase statistics", "security audit", "outdated packages", "dependency tree", "cloud resources", "CI/CD output". Also triggers on ANY MCP tool output that may exceed 20 lines. Subagent routing is handled automatically via PreToolUse hook.
- Rank 10View Agent SkillDirect
using-git-worktrees
Ensures work happens in an isolated workspace using native worktree tools or git worktree fallback, with detection and safety checks. Directly supports the Git & PRs facet.
203,899 · popularity - Rank 11View Agent SkillDirect
finishing-a-development-branch
Verifies tests, detects environment, presents merge/PR/keep options, and cleans up when finishing a development branch. Directly supports the Git & PRs facet.
201,717 · popularity - Rank 12View Agent SkillDirect
systematic-debugging
NotableUse when encountering any bug, test failure, or unexpected behavior, before proposing fixes
- Rank 13View Agent SkillDirect
subagent-driven-development
Executes implementation plans by dispatching a fresh subagent per task with task review and a final whole-branch review. Directly supports agentic implementation workflows.
220,801 · popularity - Rank 14View Agent SkillDirect
executing-plans
Loads a written implementation plan, reviews it critically, executes tasks with verification checkpoints, and reports completion. Directly supports plan execution in agentic coding.
227,908 · popularity - Rank 15View Agent SkillDirect
requesting-code-review
NotableUse when completing tasks, implementing major features, or before merging to verify work meets requirements
- Rank 16View Agent SkillPossible
code-review
NotableReviews Spec Kit code changes for positive and negative test coverage, regression evidence for bug fixes, and consistent repository terminology. Use when reviewing a diff or pull request. Do not use for implementing changes or posting GitHub review actions.
- Rank 17View Agent SkillPossible
skill-creator
OfficialGuide for creating effective skills. This skill should be used when users want to create a new skill (or update an existing skill) that extends Codex's capabilities with specialized knowledge, workflows, or tool integrations.
- Rank 18View Agent SkillPossible
safe-refactor
Restructures code while preserving behavior, defining a behavior-preservation boundary and establishing verification before structural edits.
88,606 · popularity - Rank 19View Agent SkillPossible
context-engineering
Optimizes agent context setup, covering rules files, specs, source files, and error output for better agent output quality. Supports agent workflow configuration.
47,768 · popularity - Rank 20View Agent SkillPossible
receiving-code-review
NotableUse when receiving code review feedback, before implementing suggestions, especially if feedback seems unclear or technically questionable - requires technical rigor and verification, not performative agreement or blind implementation
- Rank 21View Agent SkillPossible
webapp-testing
OfficialToolkit for interacting with and testing local web applications using Playwright. Supports verifying frontend functionality, debugging UI behavior, capturing browser screenshots, and viewing browser logs.
- Rank 22View Agent SkillPossible
playwright-best-practices
Comprehensive guidance for Playwright test development, covering E2E, component, API, visual, and accessibility testing, plus debugging flaky tests.
90,886 · popularity - Rank 23View Agent SkillPossible
browser-testing-with-devtools
Tests in real browsers via Chrome DevTools MCP, covering DOM inspection, console errors, network requests, and performance profiling.
Needs (stated): MCP server
45,056 · popularity - Rank 24View Agent SkillPossible
brainstorming
NotableYou MUST use this before any creative work - creating features, building components, adding functionality, or modifying behavior. Explores user intent, requirements and design before implementation.
- Rank 25View Agent SkillPossible
claude-api
Official|- Reference for the Claude API / Anthropic SDK — model ids, pricing, params, streaming, tool use, MCP, agents, caching, token counting, model migration. TRIGGER — read BEFORE opening the target file; don't skip because it "looks like a one-liner" — whenever: the prompt names Claude/Anthropic in any form (Claude, Anthropic, Fable, Opus, Sonnet, Haiku, `anthropic`, `@anthropic-ai`, `claude-*`, `us.anthropic.*`, `[1m]`); the user asks about an LLM (pricing/model choice/limits/caching) — never answer from memory; OR the task is LLM-shaped with provider unstated (agent/MCP/tool-definition/multi-agent/RAG/LLM-judge/computer-use; generate/summarize/extract/classify/rewrite/converse over NL; debugging refusals/cutoffs/streaming/tool-calls/tokens). SKIP only when another provider is being worked on (overrides all triggers): OpenAI/GPT/Gemini/Llama/Mistral/Cohere/Ollama named in the query; OR `grep -rE 'openai|langchain_openai|google.generativeai|genai|mistralai|cohere|ollama'` over the project hits (run this grep FIRST if no provider named — don't Read the file).
- Rank 26View Agent SkillPossible
mcp-builder
OfficialGuide for creating high-quality MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers that enable LLMs to interact with external services through well-designed tools. Use when building MCP servers to integrate external APIs or services, whether in Python (FastMCP), Node/TypeScript (MCP SDK), or C#/.NET (Microsoft MCP SDK).
- Rank 27View Agent SkillPossible
notion-spec-to-implementation
OfficialTurn Notion specs into implementation plans, tasks, and progress tracking; use when implementing PRDs/feature specs and creating Notion plans + tasks from them.
- Rank 28View Agent SkillPossible
setup-matt-pocock-skills
Scaffolds per-repo configuration for engineering skills, setting up issue tracker, triage labels, and domain doc layout. Supports project setup for agent workflows.
963,480 · popularity - Rank 29View Agent SkillPossible
agent-pulse
Inspects local AI-agent activity across Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and others, covering sessions, tokens, cost, and health checks.
47,517 · popularity - Rank 30View Agent SkillPossible
academy-guide
Official> Stop and check this skill before finishing any reply to a question about how to use Claude or a Claude product — it recommends matching courses, tutorials, and use cases from Claude Academy (academy.claude.com), Anthropic's learning hub. Trigger on: "how do I", "how can I", "getting started with", "what can Claude do", "teach me", "learn to use"; questions about artifacts, projects, skills, plugins, connectors, MCP; requests about rolling Claude out to a team, class, or organization; and any ask for training materials, onboarding content, or learning resources. Use it when the user is learning how to use a feature or product — not when they are mid-task and just want the task done. This skill composes with other skills: after consulting product documentation to answer how a Claude feature works, also check here for a matching course or tutorial — a docs-grounded answer and an Academy recommendation belong together. Only recommend on a strong match; never invent Academy content.
- Rank 31View Agent SkillPossible
security-best-practices
OfficialPerform language and framework specific security best-practice reviews and suggest improvements. Trigger only when the user explicitly requests security best practices guidance, a security review/report, or secure-by-default coding help. Trigger only for supported languages (python, javascript/typescript, go). Do not trigger for general code review, debugging, or non-security tasks.
- Rank 32View Agent SkillPossible
setup-ts-deep-modules
Wires dependency-cruiser into a TypeScript repo so each package is a deep module with hidden implementation. Supports project structure setup.
313,192 · popularity - Rank 33View Agent SkillPossible
browser-act
Browser automation CLI for AI agents, covering navigation, extraction, screenshots, form filling, and session management. Useful for browser-based verification tasks.
Needs (stated): Python
108,177 · popularity - Rank 34View Agent SkillDirect
karpathy-guidelines
NotableBehavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring code to avoid overcomplication, make surgical changes, surface assumptions, and define verifiable success criteria.
What this topic covers
Each sub-topic groups Agent Skills for a specific situation.
- Project setup
- Give the agent the map of this repo so later turns stay on the rails.
- Implementation
- Ask it to change the codebase toward a stated outcome.
- Debugging
- Feed it a failure and have it chase the cause, not guess a patch.
- Verification
- Make it run the checks you would run before calling the work done.
- Git & PRs
- Turn the working tree into a reviewable change.
- Skills & hooks
- Extend the default agent with repeatable procedures and guardrails.
Frequently asked questions
- How is this list ordered?
- It is ranked by observed search demand. Direct matches to the topic come first, and there is a cap on how many skills any single publisher can occupy in the list.
- Which stage should I start with?
- Start with the stage where your loop currently fails. Project setup skills matter most when later turns drift, while verification and Git skills matter once code changes are already landing.
- What is the difference between a skill and a hook here?
- Skills extend the agent with repeatable procedures it can load. Hooks act as guardrails around the default loop, so the two solve different problems even though they are often listed together.
- Do I need skills for every stage of the loop?
- No. The default loop handles setup, implementation, debugging, verification, and Git on its own. Add a skill only for the stage where the default behavior is not enough.
How to install Agent Skills in Claude Code
Start with the first skill on this page. Claude Code reads a SKILL.md once it is in the skills directory:
- Claude Code — copy the SKILL.md for git-guardrails-claude-code into ~/.claude/skills/git-guardrails-claude-code/ for yourself, or .claude/skills/git-guardrails-claude-code/ to share it with a project.
- From the registry — run npx skills add mattpocock/skills@git-guardrails-claude-code.
- Or download git-guardrails-claude-code from its source and place that SKILL.md in the directory above.
How to choose Check the source and the skill’s own instructions before you install. Official and Notable describe where a skill comes from.