Install Skills OpenClaw Mac: One-Command Setup Guide

OpenClaw loads skills from folders on disk. Installing a skill means putting its folder where OpenClaw looks. Two command-line tools do that for you: the skills CLI and OpenClaw's own openclaw skills commands.

Installing a Skill From TrustedSkills

Skills on TrustedSkills are SKILL.md skills. They are instruction files, not MCP servers, so there is no JSON config to edit. Run this from your OpenClaw agent workspace:

npx skills add <owner>/<repo> --skill <name> -a openclaw

The skills CLI copies the skill into the skills/ folder of the current directory. Add -g to install it into ~/.openclaw/skills/ instead, where every local agent can see it.

Installing a Skill From ClawHub

OpenClaw has its own skill commands for skills published on ClawHub. Skill names include the owner.

# Search ClawHub
openclaw skills search "calendar"

# Install into the active agent workspace
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug>

# Install into the shared skills folder for all local agents
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --global

Managing Your Skills

# See every skill OpenClaw can load
openclaw skills list

# Details for one skill
openclaw skills info <name>

# Which skills are ready, and which are missing requirements
openclaw skills check

# Update ClawHub skills
openclaw skills update --all

# Remove a skill installed with the skills CLI
npx skills remove <name> -a openclaw

# Remove a ClawHub skill (needs the ClawHub CLI: npm i -g clawhub)
clawhub uninstall @owner/<slug>

openclaw skills has no remove command. Use the tool you installed with.

When a New Skill Shows Up

OpenClaw takes a list of skills when a session starts. Its skills watcher can refresh that list during a session. If a new skill does not appear, start a new session.

Where Skills Live on Mac

<workspace>/skills/    # skills for one agent (checked first)
~/.openclaw/skills/     # shared skills for all local agents

Each skill is a folder with a SKILL.md file inside.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I install skills on OpenClaw Mac?

For a TrustedSkills listing: npx skills add <owner>/<repo> --skill <name> -a openclaw. For ClawHub: openclaw skills install @owner/<slug>. No JSON editing.

Where does OpenClaw store installed skills on Mac?

In the agent workspace's skills/ folder, or in ~/.openclaw/skills/ for skills shared by all local agents. Each skill has its own folder.

Can I use the same skill in Claude Code too?

Yes. SKILL.md skills work in several agents. Run the same npx skills add command with -a claude-code.

How do I update all skills at once?

openclaw skills update --all updates skills installed from ClawHub. For skills installed with the skills CLI, run npx skills update.