Install a TrustedSkills Skill in Cursor

Almost every listing on TrustedSkills is a SKILL.md skill: a folder with an instruction file in it. It is not an MCP server, so Cursor's mcp.json has nothing to do with it. One command puts the folder where Cursor already looks.

The Command

Every skill page shows its own install command. Copy that command and add -a cursor. Using find-skills as the example:

npx skills add vercel-labs/skills --skill find-skills -a cursor

That is the exact line the skill page gives you when Cursor is your selected platform — this page and that box are generated by the same function, so they cannot disagree.

Where the Files Go

The CLI's cursor target writes to .agents/skills/ — the shared agent-skills folder, not .cursor/. Cursor loads skills from both, so either works:

Cursor's own documentation lists .agents/skills/, .cursor/skills/ and their ~/ equivalents as the locations it loads skills from automatically — see Cursor's skills documentation. It also reads .claude/skills/ for compatibility, so a skill you installed for Claude Code in the same project is usually visible to Cursor too.

What You'll Need

• Node.js — the skills CLI runs through npx. Check with node --version; install from nodejs.org if it is missing.
• A recent Cursor — skills loading is a current Cursor feature. If the folder exists and the agent never uses the skill, update Cursor first.

Confirm It Worked

Ask the CLI what is installed:

npx skills list

It prints each skill, the full path it was written to, and which agents it was installed for. If the skill you just added is not listed, you ran the command in a different folder than you think.

Then reload Cursor and start a new chat. Skills are matched by their description field, so you do not call one by name — ask for the thing it does, and the agent reaches for it.

Updating and Removing

# Update every installed skill
npx skills update

# Remove one skill
npx skills remove find-skills

Leave -a off the remove command. Because the skill lives in the shared .agents/skills/ folder, remove -a cursor reports success and leaves the files exactly where they were — it only clears agent-specific links, and there is no Cursor-specific one to clear. Without the flag it deletes the folder. Nothing else in your project is touched.

Troubleshooting

"command not found: npx"

Node.js is not installed, or your terminal was open before you installed it. Close the terminal, open a new one, and run node --version again. See what npx actually does.

The folder is there but the agent ignores the skill

Reload Cursor — skills are read when the window loads. If it still does nothing, check that you opened the same folder you ran the command in: a project install only applies to that folder.

The repo has several skills and I got the wrong one

Add -l to list what a repo contains without installing anything:

npx skills add vercel-labs/skills -l

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I add a skill to Cursor's mcp.json?

No. mcp.json is only for MCP servers. A SKILL.md skill is a folder Cursor reads, with no config entry at all.

Why does the CLI write to .agents/skills and not .cursor/skills?

.agents/skills/ is the shared location several agents read, so one install can serve more than one tool. Cursor loads from it automatically, alongside .cursor/skills/.

Can I use the same skill in Claude Code?

Yes. Run the same command with -a claude-code, or cover both in one go by repeating the flag: -a cursor -a claude-code. Repeat it — a comma-separated list is rejected as an invalid agent name. See installing a skill in Claude Code.

Does this work in VS Code too?

The CLI has its own targets for other editors and agents — github-copilot, windsurf, zed and others. Run npx skills add <repo> -a with an unknown name and it prints the full list of valid targets.