Skip to main content

Use Plugins

Claude Code plugins are custom collections of extension points that can be installed with a single command. They allow you to bundle and share development workflows, tools, and best practices.

💡 Plugins work across both terminal and VS Code environments, making them a portable way to customize your Claude Code experience.

What are Plugins?​

Plugins can include five main types of customizations:

  1. Slash commands - Custom shortcuts for frequently-used operations
  2. Subagents - Purpose-built agents for specialized development tasks
  3. Skills - Model-invoked capabilities that Claude autonomously triggers based on context
  4. MCP servers - Connections to tools and data sources through the Model Context Protocol
  5. Hooks - Customizations to Claude Code's behavior at key workflow points

Installing Plugins​

Use the /plugin command to install a plugin:

/plugin install <plugin-name-or-url>

Plugins can be toggled on and off as needed, helping reduce system prompt complexity when not in use.

Benefits​

  • Share development setups - Distribute your workflows across projects
  • Standardize team practices - Ensure consistent approaches across your team
  • Quick tool integration - Connect tools and data sources easily
  • Enforce standards - Maintain engineering best practices automatically
  • Bundle customizations - Group related configurations together

Examples​

The Claude Code team maintains official plugin examples that you can learn from or use directly:

github.com/anthropics/claude-code/tree/main/plugins

These examples demonstrate best practices and common patterns for building your own plugins.

Learn More​

For detailed information about creating and using plugins, see the official announcement.

  • Use Agent Skills - Learn about model-invoked Skills that extend Claude's capabilities