OpenClaw Skills Guide

An OpenClaw Skill is a directory containing a SKILL.md file with YAML frontmatter and Markdown instructions. It teaches an agent when and how to use existing tools; it is not the same thing as a plugin package.

Minimal structure

my-skill/
└── SKILL.md

The frontmatter needs at least a name and description:

---
name: release-notes
description: Prepare concise release notes from a verified diff.
---

Read the repository diff, group user-visible changes, and flag uncertainty.

Loading order matters

Workspace Skills have the highest precedence, followed by project-agent, personal-agent, managed/local, bundled, and extra-directory Skills. If two directories declare the same Skill name, the higher-precedence source wins.

Review before enabling

A Skill can instruct an agent to run shell commands, access files, fetch remote content, or use credentials available to the host process. Treat third-party Skills as untrusted instructions:

• Read the full SKILL.md.
• Inspect referenced scripts and downloads.
• Question broad filesystem or secret access.
• Prefer a sandbox for untrusted inputs and risky tools.
• Verify the publisher and exact version.

Check what OpenClaw can load

Skill eligibility can depend on configuration, platform, environment variables, and required binaries. If a Skill exists but is not available, use the Skills diagnostics in your installed version and start a new session after changing the file.

Expected result

The intended Skill appears once, its winning load location is understood, and a fresh session uses it only when the task matches its description and eligibility requirements.