Install Skills for Claude Code

What Are Skills?

Skills are add-ons that teach Claude Code new tricks. They are community-made tools you can install with a single command. To install them, your computer needs a few things first: Homebrew, Node, and NPX.

This lesson walks you through installing all three, then finding and adding your first skills.

Step 1: Install Homebrew

Homebrew is a tool that helps you install software on your Mac. Open your terminal and paste this:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

This will take a few minutes. Follow the prompts on screen and enter your password if asked.

Step 2: Add Homebrew to Your PATH

After Homebrew finishes installing, you need to tell your computer where to find it. If you have an Apple Silicon Mac (M1, M2, M3, or M4), paste this:

echo 'eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"' >> ~/.zprofile
eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"

If you have an older Intel Mac, paste this instead:

echo 'eval "$(/usr/local/bin/brew shellenv)"' >> ~/.zprofile
eval "$(/usr/local/bin/brew shellenv)"

Not sure which Mac you have? Click the Apple logo in the top left corner of your screen, then click "About This Mac." If you see M1, M2, M3, or M4, use the first command. If you see Intel, use the second.

Step 3: Check That Homebrew Works

Paste this to make sure Homebrew installed correctly:

brew --version

You should see a version number like "Homebrew 4.x.x". If you see an error that says "command not found," close your terminal, open a new one, and try again.

Step 4: Install Node

Node is what lets your computer run the tools that Claude Skills are built with. Paste this:

brew install node

Step 5: Check That Node and NPX Work

Paste these one at a time to make sure everything is ready:

node -v

npm -v

npx -v

Each one should show a version number. If any of them show an error, close your terminal, open a new one, and try again.

Step 6: Install NPX Skills

Now that Node and NPX are ready, you can install the skills system. Paste this:

npx skills update

Step 7: Create the Skills Folder

Claude needs a place to store your skills. Paste this to create it:

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/

Step 8: Install Your First Skill

Let's install a skill called "find-skills" that helps you discover more skills. Paste this:

npx skills add https://github.com/vercel-labs/skills -a claude-code --skill find-skills

Step 9: Restart Claude Code

For the new skill to work, you need to close and reopen Claude Code. Type this to exit:

/exit

Then start Claude Code again by typing:

claude

Step 10: Try Your New Skill

With Claude running inside your terminal, type this to search for more skills you can install:

/find-skills

Claude will search for available skills and show you what you can add. Browse through them and install anything that looks useful for your work.

What You Learned

You installed Homebrew, Node, and the skills system for Claude Code. You also installed your first skill and learned how to find more. These tools open the door to a growing library of community-built abilities for Claude.