CLI Reference

The Skillsmith CLI (skillsmith or sklx) provides commands for skill discovery, installation, and management.

Installation

# Global installation
npm install -g @skillsmith/cli

# Or use npx for one-off commands
npx @skillsmith/cli <command>

Core Commands

search

Search for skills in the Skillsmith registry.

skillsmith search <query> [options]

# Examples
skillsmith search testing
skillsmith search git --tier verified
skillsmith search --category devops --limit 20

Options

Option	Description	Default
`--tier`	Filter by trust tier (verified, community, experimental)	all
`--category`	Filter by category	all
`--min-score`	Minimum quality score (0-100)	0
`--limit`	Maximum number of results	10
`--json`	Output results as JSON	false

install

Install a skill from the registry or a GitHub URL to ~/.claude/skills/.

skillsmith install <author/name> [options]

# Examples
skillsmith install community/jest-helper
skillsmith install anthropic/official-skill --force
skillsmith install https://github.com/owner/repo
skillsmith install community/git-commit --quiet --json

The skill ID must be in author/name format or a full GitHub URL. Bare names (e.g., jest-helper) are not accepted — always include the author prefix.

Options

Option	Description	Default
`-f, --force`	Force reinstall if already installed	false
`--skip-scan`	Skip security scan (not recommended)	false
`--skip-optimize`	Skip Skillsmith optimization (decomposition, subagent generation)	false
`-q, --quiet`	Suppress advisory output (security-critical warnings still print)	false
`--json`	Output structured JSON result	false
`-d, --db <path>`	Database file path	~/.skillsmith/skills.db

remove

Remove an installed skill. Uses the manifest at ~/.skillsmith/manifest.json for clean removal (directory + manifest entry + dependency records). Falls back to direct removal for orphan skills that exist on disk but are not in the manifest.

skillsmith remove <skill-name> [options]

# Examples
skillsmith remove jest-helper
skillsmith remove git-commit --force

# Aliases
skillsmith rm jest-helper
skillsmith uninstall jest-helper

Options

Option	Description	Default
`-f, --force`	Skip confirmation prompt and force removal of modified or orphan skills	false
`-d, --db <path>`	Database file path	~/.skillsmith/skills.db

setup

Set up the bundled /skillsmith slash command skill. This copies the built-in skill to ~/.claude/skills/skillsmith/ so you can use /skillsmith in Claude Code sessions. Previously named install-skill (deprecated alias still works).

skillsmith setup [options]

# Reinstall
skillsmith setup --force

Options

Option	Description	Default
`-f, --force`	Reinstall even if already installed	false

info

Get detailed information about a skill.

skillsmith info <skill-id>

# Examples
skillsmith info jest-helper
skillsmith info community/git-commit --json

list

List installed skills.

skillsmith list [options]

# Examples
skillsmith list
skillsmith list --json
skillsmith list --path ~/custom/skills

compare

Compare multiple skills side-by-side.

skillsmith compare <skill-id> <skill-id> [...]

# Examples
skillsmith compare jest-helper vitest-helper
skillsmith compare skill-a skill-b skill-c --json

recommend

Get personalized skill recommendations.

skillsmith recommend [options]

# Examples
skillsmith recommend
skillsmith recommend --context react
skillsmith recommend --analyze ./package.json

Options

Option	Description
`--context`	Technology context (react, node, python, etc.)
`--analyze`	Analyze a file for context
`--limit`	Maximum recommendations

Author Commands

Commands for skill authoring and development.

author subagent

Generate a companion subagent for a skill.

skillsmith author subagent <skill-path> [options]

# Examples
skillsmith author subagent ./my-skill
skillsmith author subagent ./my-skill --output ./agents

Options

Option	Description
`--output, -o`	Output directory for generated subagent
`--tools`	Override detected tools (comma-separated)
`--model`	Model to use (sonnet, opus, haiku)
`--skip-claude-md`	Skip CLAUDE.md delegation snippet

author transform

Transform an existing skill to add subagent support.

skillsmith author transform <skill-path> [options]

# Examples
skillsmith author transform ./my-skill
skillsmith author transform ./skills --batch --dry-run

Options

Option	Description
`--dry-run`	Preview changes without writing
`--batch`	Process multiple skills in directory
`--tools`	Override detected tools
`--model`	Model to use

validate

Validate a skill's structure and metadata.

skillsmith validate <skill-path>

# Examples
skillsmith validate ./my-skill
skillsmith validate ~/.claude/skills/jest-helper

Global Options

Option	Description
`--version`	Show CLI version
`--help`	Show help for command
`--verbose`	Enable verbose output
`--quiet`	Suppress non-essential output

Configuration

The CLI can be configured via environment variables or a config file at ~/.skillsmithrc:

# ~/.skillsmithrc
{
  "defaultTier": "community",
  "installPath": "~/.claude/skills",
  "registry": "https://registry.skillsmith.dev"
}

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
`SKILLSMITH_REGISTRY`	Custom registry URL
`SKILLSMITH_INSTALL_PATH`	Default installation path
`SKILLSMITH_API_KEY`	API key for authenticated requests

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Permission Denied

If you see permission errors when installing globally, try using npx @skillsmith/cli instead, or fix npm permissions.

Skill Not Found

Ensure you're using the correct skill ID format (author/name). Use skillsmith search to find available skills.