Create Skill

Create new Agent Skills that extend Cursor's capabilities with domain-specific knowledge and workflows.

When to Use

• •User wants to create a new skill
• •User wants to automate a workflow with a skill
• •User asks about making skills or agent capabilities
• •User wants to package instructions for reuse

Instructions

1. Gather Requirements

Ask the user:

• •What should the skill do? Get a clear description of the task or workflow.
• •When should it be used? Understand the triggers/context for the skill.
• •Should it auto-invoke or be manual? Auto = agent decides when relevant. Manual = only via /skill-name.
• •Does it need scripts? Determine if executable code is required.

2. Create the Skill Structure

Run the scaffolding script with the skill name:

bash .cursor/skills/create-skill/scripts/scaffold.sh <skill-name>

This creates:

.cursor/skills/<skill-name>/
├── SKILL.md
├── scripts/      (if needed)
├── references/   (if needed)
└── assets/       (if needed)

3. Write the SKILL.md

Follow this template:

---
name: skill-name
description: Concise description of what this skill does and when to use it.
disable-model-invocation: false  # Set true for manual-only skills
---

# Skill Name

Brief overview of what this skill accomplishes.

## When to Use

- Bullet points describing when this skill is relevant
- Be specific about triggers and context

## Instructions

Step-by-step guidance for the agent:

1. First step
2. Second step
3. Continue with clear, actionable instructions

## Examples

Show example usage or expected outputs if helpful.

4. Best Practices

• •Name: Use lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens only. Must match folder name.
• •Description: Be specific about WHEN to use, not just WHAT it does. This helps the agent decide relevance.
• •Instructions: Write as if instructing a capable developer. Be clear and actionable.
• •Scripts: Make them self-contained with good error messages.
• •Keep it focused: One skill = one capability. Split complex workflows into multiple skills.
• •Progressive loading: Put detailed docs in references/ to keep main SKILL.md lean.

5. Skill Locations

6. Testing

After creating, verify the skill appears in:

• •Cursor Settings → Rules → Agent Decides section
• •Or invoke manually with /skill-name in chat