Claude Code Skills

Built-in Commands

Session Management

• /compact: Shrink conversation history to save tokens
• /clear: Wipe old context
• /rewind: (Double-tap Esc) Undo recent changes or revert conversation

Configuration

• /init: Create CLAUDE.md file
• /model: Switch between models (haiku/sonnet/opus)
• /mcp: Manage Model Context Protocol servers
• /powerup: Interactive lessons with animated demos

Development

• /review: Code review of current changes
• /loop: Run prompt on schedule (e.g., /loop 5m check deployment)

Monitoring

• /cost: Token usage breakdown with USD estimate
• /stats: Token usage and rate limit status

Command	Description
/deep-research	[dynamic workflow] Deep research harness — fan-out web searches, fetch sources, adversarially verify claims, synthesize a cited report.
/init	Initialize a new CLAUDE.md file with codebase documentation.
/update-config	Use this skill to configure the Claude Code harness via settings.json. Automated behaviors ("from now on when X", "each time X", "whenever X", "before/after X") require hooks configured in settings.json - the harness executes these, not Claude, so memory/preferences cannot fulfill them. Also …
/add-dir	Add a new working directory.
/agents	Manage agent configurations.
/background	Send this session to the background and free the terminal.
/branch	Create a branch of the current conversation at this point.
/btw	Ask a quick side question without interrupting the main conversation.
/clear	Start a new session with empty context; previous session stays on disk (resumable with /resume).
/color	Set the prompt bar color for this session.
/compact	Free up context by summarizing the conversation so far.
/config	Open config panel.
/context	Visualize current context usage as a colored grid.
/copy	Copy Claude's last response to clipboard (or /copy N for the Nth-latest).
/diff	View uncommitted changes and per-turn diffs.
/doctor	Diagnose and verify your Claude Code installation and settings.
/effort	Set effort level for model usage.
/exit	Exit the CLI.
/export	Export the current conversation to a file or clipboard.
/feedback	Submit feedback, report a bug, or share your conversation.
/focus	Toggle focus view (show only your prompt, a tool summary, and the final response).
/fork	Spawn a background agent that inherits the full conversation.
/goal	Set a goal — keep working until the condition is met.
/help	Show help and available commands.
/hooks	View hook configurations for tool events.
/ide	Manage IDE integrations and show status.
/keybindings	Open or create your keybindings configuration file.
/login	Sign in with your Anthropic account.
/mcp	Manage MCP servers.
/memory	Edit Claude memory files.
/mobile	Show QR code to download the Claude mobile app.
/model	Set the AI model for Claude Code (currently Sonnet 4.5).
/permissions	Manage allow & deny tool permission rules.
/plan	Enable plan mode or view the current session plan.
/plugin	Manage Claude Code plugins.
/powerup	Discover Claude Code features through quick interactive lessons.
/recap	Generate a one-line session recap now.
/release-notes	View release notes.
/reload-plugins	Activate pending plugin changes in the current session.
/reload-skills	Pick up skills added or changed on disk during this session.
/rename	Rename the current conversation.
/resume	Resume a previous conversation.
/rewind	Restore the code and/or conversation to a previous point.
/sandbox	sandbox disabled (⏎ to configure).
/setup-vertex	Reconfigure Google Vertex AI authentication, project, region, or model pins.
/skills	List available skills.
/status	Show Claude Code status including version, model, account, API connectivity, and tool statuses.
/stickers	Order Claude Code stickers.
/tasks	List and manage background tasks.
/terminal-setup	Enable iTerm2 clipboard access for /copy.
/theme	Change the theme.
/tui	Set the terminal UI renderer (default | fullscreen).
/usage	Show session cost, plan usage, and activity stats.
/workflows	Browse dynamic workflow history (running and completed).
/batch	Research and plan a large-scale change, then execute it in parallel across 5–30 isolated worktree agents that each open a PR.
/claude-api	Build, debug, and optimize Claude API / Anthropic SDK apps. Apps built with this skill should include prompt caching. Also handles migrating existing Claude API code between Claude model versions (4.5 → 4.6, 4.6 → 4.7, retired-model replacements). TRIGGER when: code imports anthropic/@anthropic-a…
/code-review	Review the current diff for correctness bugs and reuse/simplification/efficiency cleanups at the given effort level (low/medium: fewer, high-confidence findings; high→max: broader coverage, may include uncertain findings). Pass --comment to post findings as inline PR comments, or --fix to apply the fi…
/debug	Enable debug logging for this session and help diagnose issues.
/fewer-permission-prompts	Scan your transcripts for common read-only Bash and MCP tool calls, then add a prioritized allowlist to project .claude/settings.json to reduce permission prompts.
/insights	Generate a report analyzing your Claude Code sessions.
/loop	Run a prompt or slash command on a recurring interval (e.g. /loop 5m /foo, defaults to 10m).
/review	Review a pull request.
/run	Launch and drive this project's app to see a change working. Use when asked to run, start, or screenshot the app, or to confirm a change works in the real app (not just tests). First looks for a project skill that already covers launching the app; otherwise falls back to built-in patterns per projec…
/run-skill-generator	Author or improve the run- skill — a per-project skill that tells agents how to build, launch, and drive this project's app. Use when the user asks to set up the project, get it running, write run instructions, or verify build/run steps work from a clean environment.
/security-review	Complete a security review of the pending changes on the current branch.
/simplify	Review the changed code for reuse, simplification, efficiency, and altitude cleanups, then apply the fixes. Quality only — it does not hunt for bugs; use /code-review for that.
/statusline	Set up Claude Code's status line UI.
/team-onboarding	Help teammates ramp on Claude Code with a guide from your usage.
/verify	Verify that a code change actually does what it's supposed to by running the app and observing behavior. Use when asked to verify a PR, confirm a fix works, test a change manually, check that a feature works, or validate local changes before pushing.

Skills System

What are Skills?

Skills are reusable instruction files that Claude follows automatically when relevant to your task.

Skills vs Slash Commands

Feature	Slash Commands	Skills
Invocation	Manual: You type /command to trigger	Automatic: Claude detects when needed based on context
Best For	One-off actions, session control (e.g., /cost, /compact)	Complex workflows, domain expertise (e.g., security audits, refactoring)
Data Structure	Single .md file in .claude/commands/	Folder with SKILL.md + supporting files
Token Efficiency	Entire prompt added to context every invocation	Progressive Disclosure: Only name/description load initially

Understanding CLAUDE.md vs Skills vs Slash Commands

Creating Custom Skills

Directory structure:

~/.claude/skills/
├── my-skill/
│   └── SKILL.md
├── another-skill/
│   └── SKILL.md

SKILL.md format:

---
name: my-skill
description: Brief description of what this skill does
---

# Skill Title

Detailed instructions for Claude to follow when this skill is invoked.

## When to Use

Describe scenarios where this skill applies.

## Workflow

Step-by-step instructions:

1. Step 1
2. Step 2
3. Step 3

## Examples

Provide concrete examples of how to use this skill.

Creating a skill:

# Create skill directory
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/my-skill

# Create SKILL.md file
cat > ~/.claude/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md << 'EOF'
---
name: my-skill
description: Example skill for demonstration
---

# My Skill

Instructions for Claude...
EOF

# Reload skills in active Claude session
/reload-skills

# Invoke the skill
/my-skill

Example skill: Note Skill - Fully automated knowledge base organization with semantic search, categorization, and intelligent linking

Best practices:

1. Clear invocation triggers: Describe when skill should activate
2. Structured workflows: Use numbered steps for clarity
3. Concrete examples: Show expected inputs/outputs
4. Progressive disclosure: Start with overview, add details in sections
5. Test thoroughly: Try skill on real tasks before committing

Skill resources:

• Superpowers Skills Framework ⭐ 229k
• Everything Claude Code ⭐ 216k
• Awesome Claude Skills ⭐ 13k
• Agent Skills Marketplace