# SKILL.md Starter Template A blank, ready-to-fill SKILL.md file for Claude, plus a field-by-field guide, three finished examples, a pre-upload checklist and test prompts. Copy the template, change the [brackets] and you have your first Skill in about 15 minutes. Menus and limits change, so confirm current details in Anthropic's help article on creating custom Skills: https://support.claude.com/en/articles/12512198-creating-custom-skills ## How to use this file (3 steps) 1. Pick one job you repeat every week. 2. Copy the blank template below into a text file named exactly `SKILL.md`, and fill in every [bracket]. 3. Put it in a folder, zip the folder, upload it in Claude (Customize, then Skills) and test it with the prompts at the end. ## The blank template ``` --- name: [skill-name-in-lowercase-with-hyphens] description: [What it does, in one sentence. Use when the user asks for or pastes [the trigger].] --- # [Skill Name] ## When to use - [The kind of request that should start this Skill] - [Another way people ask for the same job] ## Steps 1. [First step. Start with a verb.] 2. [Second step.] 3. [Third step.] ## Output format [Exactly what the answer should look like: headings, order, length, tables.] ## Rules - Use only what the user gives you. Do not invent facts, numbers, names or dates. - If something is missing, ask one short question or write "Not stated". - [Your own rule about tone or style.] - [A thing Claude must never do for this job.] ## Example Input: [a short sample of what the user gives you] Output: [a short sample of the result you want] ``` ## Field-by-field guide | Part | What to write | Rule of thumb | | --- | --- | --- | | name | The Skill's name | Lowercase letters, numbers and hyphens. Match the folder name. Keep it under 64 characters. Avoid the words "claude" and "anthropic" in the name. | | description | What it does and when to use it | The most important line. Write in the third person. Say the what and the when. Under 200 characters works everywhere. | | When to use | Requests that should trigger it | Two or three lines is enough. | | Steps | The order of work | Numbered. One action per step. Only add what Claude would not already know. | | Output format | What the result looks like | Be exact: headings, order, length. | | Rules | Limits and always/never lines | This is where your voice and safety rules live. | | Example | One small input and output pair | Show the layout. An example teaches style better than a description. | ## The description formula **[Does what] for [what input]. Use when the user [trigger].** | Weak | Strong | | --- | --- | | Helps with documents | Builds a weekly status report from bullet points using fixed headings. Use when the user pastes notes about their week. | | Writes emails | Turns rough bullet points into a friendly client email. Use when the user gives notes and asks for an email or a reply. | | Meeting stuff | Turns messy meeting notes into a short summary with decisions and action items. Use when the user pastes meeting notes. | | I can help you write posts | Turns an article into LinkedIn, Facebook and X captions. Use when the user pastes a post and asks for captions. | ## Three finished examples to copy ### Example 1: meeting notes summary ``` --- name: meeting-notes-summary description: Turns messy meeting notes into a short summary with decisions and action items. Use when the user pastes meeting notes or a call recap. --- # Meeting Notes Summary ## Steps 1. Read all the notes before writing. 2. List the decisions that were made. 3. List every action item with an owner and a due date. 4. Write a summary of no more than five lines. ## Output format Headings in this order: Summary, Decisions, Action items. Action items go in a table with three columns: Task, Owner, Due date. ## Rules - Use only what is in the notes. Do not invent owners or dates. - If an owner or date is missing, write "Not stated". ``` ### Example 2: blog outline builder ``` --- name: blog-outline-builder description: Builds a blog post outline from a topic and audience. Use when the user asks for a blog outline, article plan or content structure. --- # Blog Outline Builder ## Steps 1. Ask for the topic, the reader and the one thing the reader should do afterwards, if they are missing. 2. Write a working title and a one-sentence promise to the reader. 3. Write five to seven H2 headings in a logical order. 4. Under each heading, add two bullet points of what to cover. ## Output format Title, promise, then the headings with bullets. No full paragraphs. ## Rules - Plain words. No hype. - Do not add statistics or sources. Mark any claim that needs a source with [source needed]. ``` ### Example 3: lead reply writer ``` --- name: lead-reply-writer description: Writes a short, personal reply to a new customer enquiry. Use when the user pastes an enquiry from a form, email or message and asks for a reply. --- # Lead Reply Writer ## Steps 1. Find what the person asked for and any deadline they mentioned. 2. Open by answering that question in the first two lines. 3. Give one clear next step, such as a call or a link. ## Output format A reply of under 120 words, then one line: "Check before sending:" and anything you left blank. ## Rules - Use only the prices, dates and policies the user gives you. If one is missing, write [check]. - Never promise results or discounts. - Warm, direct, no jargon. ``` ## Before you upload: 10-point checklist - [ ] The file is named exactly `SKILL.md`. - [ ] The `name` uses lowercase letters, numbers and hyphens, and matches the folder name. - [ ] The description says what the Skill does and when to use it. - [ ] The description is in the third person and under 200 characters. - [ ] The Skill does one job only. - [ ] Steps are numbered and each starts with a verb. - [ ] The output format is exact. - [ ] There is a rule against inventing facts. - [ ] There are no passwords, API keys or private client details anywhere in the file. - [ ] The ZIP opens to the Skill folder with SKILL.md inside it, not SKILL.md loose at the top. ## Folder and ZIP layout ``` meeting-notes-summary/ SKILL.md ``` - Right-click the folder and compress it. The ZIP should open to `meeting-notes-summary/SKILL.md`. - In Claude: open Customize, then Skills, upload the ZIP and switch the Skill on. Uploading a custom Skill needs a paid plan, so check Anthropic's pricing page. - In Claude Code: put the folder in your skills folder (for example `~/.claude/skills/meeting-notes-summary/SKILL.md`). See https://code.claude.com/docs/en/skills ## Test it with three prompts 1. **The obvious request** in the words of your description. Claude should use the Skill. 2. **The same job in different words.** Claude should still use it. 3. **A nearby job that should not trigger it.** Claude should leave the Skill alone. Change one thing at a time and test again. ## If it does not work | Problem | Likely cause | Fix | | --- | --- | --- | | Claude never uses the Skill | The description is vague | Rewrite it with the what and the when | | Upload fails | The ZIP has no folder at the root, or the name does not match | Re-zip the folder itself and match the name | | Claude invents details | No rule against it | Add "Use only what the user gives you" | | The layout is wrong | Output format is loose | Make it exact and add a small example | | It triggers on the wrong jobs | Description is too broad | Narrow the job and name the trigger | | It is slow or rambling | The file is long | Cut anything Claude already knows | ## Safety rules - Read every file of a Skill you did not write before you install it. - Never put secrets inside a Skill. - Never sell or share Claude accounts, credits or API keys. SKILL.md Starter Template from https://coding180.com