How to install a Claude Code skill, for you or for your whole team
A skill is a folder. Where to put it so it works in every project, where to put it so the whole team gets it, and how to check Claude has actually picked it up.
A Claude Code skill is a folder with a SKILL.md in it, plus whatever reference files and scripts it needs. Installing one means putting that folder where Claude looks.
Two places Claude looks
| Location | Who gets it |
|---|---|
| ~/.claude/skills/<skill-name>/ | You, in every project |
| .claude/skills/<skill-name>/ in a repo | Everyone who works in that repo |
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
unzip glass-instrument-ui.zip -d ~/.claude/skills/
ls ~/.claude/skills/glass-instrument-ui/SKILL.mdThe mistake that makes it invisible
Unzipping into a folder that already has the skill's name gives you skills/my-skill/my-skill/SKILL.md, one level too deep, and Claude does not find it. The SKILL.md must sit directly inside the skill's folder. Check with ls before you restart.
Check it loaded
Restart Claude Code, then ask which skills it has. If the skill is listed but never used, the folder is fine and the description is not matching what you ask for: see why a skill does not fire. To roll one out across a team, commit it to the repo; sharing skills with a team covers the details.
Questions
Where do Claude Code skills go?
Personal skills go in ~/.claude/skills/, one folder per skill. Project skills go in .claude/skills/ inside the repository, which shares them with everyone who works on it.
How do I know a skill is installed?
Restart Claude Code and ask which skills are available. If yours is missing, check that the folder contains a SKILL.md at its top level, not nested one folder deeper.
Personal or project: which should I use?
Project, when the skill encodes how this codebase works, so every contributor gets it. Personal, for your own habits across all projects.