Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://code.claude.com/docs/llms.txt Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Create plugins

Create custom plugins to extend Claude Code with skills, agents, hooks, and MCP servers.

Plugins let you extend Claude Code with custom functionality that can be shared across projects and teams. This guide covers creating your own plugins with skills, agents, hooks, and MCP servers.

Looking to install existing plugins? See Discover and install plugins. For complete technical specifications, see Plugins reference.

When to use plugins vs standalone configuration

Claude Code supports two ways to add custom skills, agents, and hooks:

Approach	Skill names	Best for
Standalone (`.claude/` directory)	`/hello`	Personal workflows, project-specific customizations, quick experiments
Plugins (directories with `.claude-plugin/plugin.json`)	`/plugin-name:hello`	Sharing with teammates, distributing to community, versioned releases, reusable across projects

Use standalone configuration when:

You're customizing Claude Code for a single project
The configuration is personal and doesn't need to be shared
You're experimenting with skills or hooks before packaging them
You want short skill names like /hello or /review

Use plugins when:

You want to share functionality with your team or community
You need the same skills/agents across multiple projects
You want version control and easy updates for your extensions
You're distributing through a marketplace
You're okay with namespaced skills like /my-plugin:hello (namespacing prevents conflicts between plugins)

Start with standalone configuration in `.claude/` for quick iteration, then [convert to a plugin](#convert-existing-configurations-to-plugins) when you're ready to share.

Quickstart

This quickstart walks you through creating a plugin with a custom skill. You'll create a manifest (the configuration file that defines your plugin), add a skill, and test it locally using the --plugin-dir flag.

Prerequisites

Claude Code installed and authenticated
Claude Code version 1.0.33 or later (run claude --version to check)

If you don't see the `/plugin` command, update Claude Code to the latest version. See [Troubleshooting](/en/troubleshooting) for upgrade instructions.

Create your first plugin

Every plugin lives in its own directory containing a manifest and your skills, agents, or hooks. Create one now:

```bash  theme={null}
mkdir my-first-plugin
```

The manifest file at `.claude-plugin/plugin.json` defines your plugin's identity: its name, description, and version. Claude Code uses this metadata to display your plugin in the plugin manager.

Create the `.claude-plugin` directory inside your plugin folder:

```bash  theme={null}
mkdir my-first-plugin/.claude-plugin
```

Then create `my-first-plugin/.claude-plugin/plugin.json` with this content:

```json my-first-plugin/.claude-plugin/plugin.json theme={null}
{
"name": "my-first-plugin",
"description": "A greeting plugin to learn the basics",
"version": "1.0.0",
"author": {
"name": "Your Name"
}
}
```

| Field         | Purpose                                                                                                |
| :------------ | :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `name`        | Unique identifier and skill namespace. Skills are prefixed with this (e.g., `/my-first-plugin:hello`). |
| `description` | Shown in the plugin manager when browsing or installing plugins.                                       |
| `version`     | Track releases using [semantic versioning](/en/plugins-reference#version-management).                  |
| `author`      | Optional. Helpful for attribution.                                                                     |

For additional fields like `homepage`, `repository`, and `license`, see the [full manifest schema](/en/plugins-reference#plugin-manifest-schema).

Skills live in the `skills/` directory. Each skill is a folder containing a `SKILL.md` file. The folder name becomes the skill name, prefixed with the plugin's namespace (`hello/` in a plugin named `my-first-plugin` creates `/my-first-plugin:hello`).

Create a skill directory in your plugin folder:

```bash  theme={null}
mkdir -p my-first-plugin/skills/hello
```

Then create `my-first-plugin/skills/hello/SKILL.md` with this content:

```markdown my-first-plugin/skills/hello/SKILL.md theme={null}
---
description: Greet the user with a friendly message
disable-model-invocation: true
---

Greet the user warmly and ask how you can help them today.
```

Run Claude Code with the `--plugin-dir` flag to load your plugin:

```bash  theme={null}
claude --plugin-dir ./my-first-plugin
```

Once Claude Code starts, try your new skill:

```shell  theme={null}
/my-first-plugin:hello
```

You'll see Claude respond with a greeting. Run `/help` to see your skill listed under the plugin namespace.

<Note>
  **Why namespacing?** Plugin skills are always namespaced (like `/greet:hello`) to prevent conflicts when multiple plugins have skills with the same name.

  To change the namespace prefix, update the `name` field in `plugin.json`.
</Note>

Make your skill dynamic by accepting user input. The `$ARGUMENTS` placeholder captures any text the user provides after the skill name.

Update your `SKILL.md` file:

```markdown my-first-plugin/skills/hello/SKILL.md theme={null}
---
description: Greet the user with a personalized message
---

# Hello Skill

Greet the user named "$ARGUMENTS" warmly and ask how you can help them today. Make the greeting personal and encouraging.
```

Restart Claude Code to pick up the changes, then try the skill with your name:

```shell  theme={null}
/my-first-plugin:hello Alex
```

Claude will greet you by name. For more on passing arguments to skills, see [Skills](/en/skills#pass-arguments-to-skills).

You've successfully created and tested a plugin with these key components:

Plugin manifest (.claude-plugin/plugin.json): describes your plugin's metadata
Skills directory (skills/): contains your custom skills
Skill arguments ($ARGUMENTS): captures user input for dynamic behavior

The `--plugin-dir` flag is useful for development and testing. When you're ready to share your plugin with others, see [Create and distribute a plugin marketplace](/en/plugin-marketplaces).

Plugin structure overview

You've created a plugin with a skill, but plugins can include much more: custom agents, hooks, MCP servers, and LSP servers.

**Common mistake**: Don't put `commands/`, `agents/`, `skills/`, or `hooks/` inside the `.claude-plugin/` directory. Only `plugin.json` goes inside `.claude-plugin/`. All other directories must be at the plugin root level.

Directory	Location	Purpose
`.claude-plugin/`	Plugin root	Contains `plugin.json` manifest (optional if components use default locations)
`commands/`	Plugin root	Skills as Markdown files
`agents/`	Plugin root	Custom agent definitions
`skills/`	Plugin root	Agent Skills with `SKILL.md` files
`hooks/`	Plugin root	Event handlers in `hooks.json`
`.mcp.json`	Plugin root	MCP server configurations
`.lsp.json`	Plugin root	LSP server configurations for code intelligence
`settings.json`	Plugin root	Default settings applied when the plugin is enabled

**Next steps**: Ready to add more features? Jump to [Develop more complex plugins](#develop-more-complex-plugins) to add agents, hooks, MCP servers, and LSP servers. For complete technical specifications of all plugin components, see [Plugins reference](/en/plugins-reference).

Develop more complex plugins

Once you're comfortable with basic plugins, you can create more sophisticated extensions.

Add Skills to your plugin

Plugins can include Agent Skills to extend Claude's capabilities. Skills are model-invoked: Claude automatically uses them based on the task context.

Add a skills/ directory at your plugin root with Skill folders containing SKILL.md files:

my-plugin/
├── .claude-plugin/
│   └── plugin.json
└── skills/
    └── code-review/
        └── SKILL.md

Each SKILL.md needs frontmatter with name and description fields, followed by instructions:

---
name: code-review
description: Reviews code for best practices and potential issues. Use when reviewing code, checking PRs, or analyzing code quality.
---

When reviewing code, check for:
1. Code organization and structure
2. Error handling
3. Security concerns
4. Test coverage

After installing the plugin, restart Claude Code to load the Skills. For complete Skill authoring guidance including progressive disclosure and tool restrictions, see Agent Skills.

Add LSP servers to your plugin

For common languages like TypeScript, Python, and Rust, install the pre-built LSP plugins from the official marketplace. Create custom LSP plugins only when you need support for languages not already covered.

LSP (Language Server Protocol) plugins give Claude real-time code intelligence. If you need to support a language that doesn't have an official LSP plugin, you can create your own by adding an .lsp.json file to your plugin:

{
  "go": {
    "command": "gopls",
    "args": ["serve"],
    "extensionToLanguage": {
      ".go": "go"
    }
  }
}

Users installing your plugin must have the language server binary installed on their machine.

For complete LSP configuration options, see LSP servers.

Ship default settings with your plugin

Plugins can include a settings.json file at the plugin root to apply default configuration when the plugin is enabled. Currently, only the agent key is supported.

Setting agent activates one of the plugin's custom agents as the main thread, applying its system prompt, tool restrictions, and model. This lets a plugin change how Claude Code behaves by default when enabled.

{
  "agent": "security-reviewer"
}

This example activates the security-reviewer agent defined in the plugin's agents/ directory. Settings from settings.json take priority over settings declared in plugin.json. Unknown keys are silently ignored.

Organize complex plugins

For plugins with many components, organize your directory structure by functionality. For complete directory layouts and organization patterns, see Plugin directory structure.

Test your plugins locally

Use the --plugin-dir flag to test plugins during development. This loads your plugin directly without requiring installation.

claude --plugin-dir ./my-plugin

As you make changes to your plugin, restart Claude Code to pick up the updates. Test your plugin components:

Try your skills with /plugin-name:skill-name
Check that agents appear in /agents
Verify hooks work as expected

You can load multiple plugins at once by specifying the flag multiple times:

claude --plugin-dir ./plugin-one --plugin-dir ./plugin-two

Debug plugin issues

If your plugin isn't working as expected:

Check the structure: Ensure your directories are at the plugin root, not inside .claude-plugin/
Test components individually: Check each command, agent, and hook separately
Use validation and debugging tools: See Debugging and development tools for CLI commands and troubleshooting techniques

Share your plugins

When your plugin is ready to share:

Add documentation: Include a README.md with installation and usage instructions
Version your plugin: Use semantic versioning in your plugin.json
Create or use a marketplace: Distribute through plugin marketplaces for installation
Test with others: Have team members test the plugin before wider distribution

Once your plugin is in a marketplace, others can install it using the instructions in Discover and install plugins.

Submit your plugin to the official marketplace

To submit a plugin to the official Anthropic marketplace, use one of the in-app submission forms:

Claude.ai: claude.ai/settings/plugins/submit
Console: platform.claude.com/plugins/submit

For complete technical specifications, debugging techniques, and distribution strategies, see [Plugins reference](/en/plugins-reference).

Convert existing configurations to plugins

If you already have skills or hooks in your .claude/ directory, you can convert them into a plugin for easier sharing and distribution.

Migration steps

Create a new plugin directory:

```bash  theme={null}
mkdir -p my-plugin/.claude-plugin
```

Create the manifest file at `my-plugin/.claude-plugin/plugin.json`:

```json my-plugin/.claude-plugin/plugin.json theme={null}
{
  "name": "my-plugin",
  "description": "Migrated from standalone configuration",
  "version": "1.0.0"
}
```

Copy your existing configurations to the plugin directory:

```bash  theme={null}
# Copy commands
cp -r .claude/commands my-plugin/

# Copy agents (if any)
cp -r .claude/agents my-plugin/

# Copy skills (if any)
cp -r .claude/skills my-plugin/
```

If you have hooks in your settings, create a hooks directory:

```bash  theme={null}
mkdir my-plugin/hooks
```

Create `my-plugin/hooks/hooks.json` with your hooks configuration. Copy the `hooks` object from your `.claude/settings.json` or `settings.local.json`, since the format is the same. The command receives hook input as JSON on stdin, so use `jq` to extract the file path:

```json my-plugin/hooks/hooks.json theme={null}
{
  "hooks": {
    "PostToolUse": [
      {
        "matcher": "Write|Edit",
        "hooks": [{ "type": "command", "command": "jq -r '.tool_input.file_path' | xargs npm run lint:fix" }]
      }
    ]
  }
}
```

Load your plugin to verify everything works:

```bash  theme={null}
claude --plugin-dir ./my-plugin
```

Test each component: run your commands, check agents appear in `/agents`, and verify hooks trigger correctly.

What changes when migrating

Standalone (`.claude/`)	Plugin
Only available in one project	Can be shared via marketplaces
Files in `.claude/commands/`	Files in `plugin-name/commands/`
Hooks in `settings.json`	Hooks in `hooks/hooks.json`
Must manually copy to share	Install with `/plugin install`

After migrating, you can remove the original files from `.claude/` to avoid duplicates. The plugin version will take precedence when loaded.

Next steps

Now that you understand Claude Code's plugin system, here are suggested paths for different goals:

For plugin users

Discover and install plugins: browse marketplaces and install plugins
Configure team marketplaces: set up repository-level plugins for your team

For plugin developers

Create and distribute a marketplace: package and share your plugins
Plugins reference: complete technical specifications
Dive deeper into specific plugin components:
- Skills: skill development details
- Subagents: agent configuration and capabilities
- Hooks: event handling and automation
- MCP: external tool integration

Provide feedback

Saved searches

Use saved searches to filter your results more quickly

Documentation Index

Create plugins

When to use plugins vs standalone configuration

Quickstart

Prerequisites

Create your first plugin

Plugin structure overview

Develop more complex plugins

Add Skills to your plugin

Add LSP servers to your plugin

Ship default settings with your plugin

Organize complex plugins

Test your plugins locally

Debug plugin issues

Share your plugins

Submit your plugin to the official marketplace

Convert existing configurations to plugins

Migration steps

What changes when migrating

Next steps

For plugin users

For plugin developers

FilesExpand file tree

plugins.md

Latest commit

History

plugins.md

File metadata and controls

Documentation Index

Create plugins

When to use plugins vs standalone configuration

Quickstart

Prerequisites

Create your first plugin

Plugin structure overview

Develop more complex plugins

Add Skills to your plugin

Add LSP servers to your plugin

Ship default settings with your plugin

Organize complex plugins

Test your plugins locally

Debug plugin issues

Share your plugins

Submit your plugin to the official marketplace

Convert existing configurations to plugins

Migration steps

What changes when migrating

Next steps

For plugin users

For plugin developers