# skills
URL: /reference/cli/commands/skills

`npx tambo skills <subcommand> [options]`

Manage project skills directly from the terminal. Skills are markdown files with YAML frontmatter that provide instructions to your AI agent.

## Subcommands

### list

List all skills in the current project.

```bash
npx tambo skills list
```

Displays a table with each skill's name, description, and enabled status.

### add

Create one or more skills from markdown files.

```bash
npx tambo skills add <file.md> [file2.md] [...]
```

Reads each file, parses the YAML frontmatter for `name` and `description`, and creates the skill with the file body as instructions.

```bash
# Add a single skill
npx tambo skills add my-skill.md

# Add multiple skills at once
npx tambo skills add skill1.md skill2.md skill3.md
```

If a file has invalid frontmatter or a name conflict, the error is reported and remaining files continue processing.

### get

Print a skill as markdown to stdout.

```bash
npx tambo skills get <name>
```

Outputs round-trippable markdown with frontmatter. Pipe to a file to save locally:

```bash
npx tambo skills get my-skill > my-skill.md
```

### update

Update one or more existing skills from modified files.

```bash
npx tambo skills update <file.md> [file2.md] [...]
```

Matches each file to an existing skill by the `name` field in frontmatter, then updates the description and instructions.

```bash
# Edit a skill locally, then push changes
npx tambo skills get my-skill > my-skill.md
# ... edit my-skill.md ...
npx tambo skills update my-skill.md
```

### enable

Enable a skill by name.

```bash
npx tambo skills enable <name>
```

If the skill is already enabled, the command exits with no changes.

### disable

Disable a skill by name. Disabled skills remain stored but are not passed to the LLM at inference time.

```bash
npx tambo skills disable <name>
```

If the skill is already disabled, the command exits with no changes.

### delete

Delete a skill by name.

```bash
npx tambo skills delete <name>
```

Prompts for confirmation in interactive mode. Use `--force` to skip the prompt:

```bash
npx tambo skills delete my-skill --force
```

## Skill file format

Skills use YAML frontmatter with `name` and `description` fields, followed by markdown instructions:

```markdown
---
name: my-skill-name
description: "A brief description of what this skill does"
---

Your instructions go here. Full markdown is supported.
```

**Name requirements:**

* Kebab-case only (lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens)
* Maximum 200 characters

**Limits:**

* Description: 2,000 characters
* Instructions: 100,000 characters

## Options

| Option        | Description                             |
| ------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| `--force, -f` | Skip confirmation prompts (delete only) |
| `--help`      | Show help                               |

## Model Support

Skills require a model that supports the provider's skills API. If your project uses an unsupported model, the CLI displays a warning but still stores the skill. See the [Skills concept page](/concepts/skills#model-support) for the full list of supported models.

## Authentication

All skills commands require:

1. An authenticated session via `npx tambo auth login`
2. A project API key in `.env.local` (set up via `npx tambo init`)

## Non-interactive usage

All commands work in CI/CD environments. For `delete`, pass `--force` to skip the confirmation prompt:

```bash
npx tambo skills delete my-skill --force
```

Exit codes:

* `0` -- success
* `1` -- error (invalid file, skill not found, auth failure)
* `2` -- user action required (non-interactive mode needs flags)