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10 picks · ranked by GitHub stars

Best Claude Code skills

The best Claude Code skills are Brainstorming, Improve Codebase Architecture and Golang Testing, ranked by GitHub stars; Brainstorming leads with 296,071 stars. The list covers 1,000 agent skills in the appsgit catalog, one entry per repository.

Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed nightly

Top picks

  1. Rank 1:

    Brainstorming

    obra/superpowers

    You MUST use this before any creative work - creating features, building components, adding functionality, or modifying behavior.

    Design & frontendShell

    Brainstorming has 296,071 GitHub stars, has 382,478 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in Shell and was last updated in September 2026.

  2. Rank 2:

    Improve Codebase Architecture

    mattpocock/skills

    Scan a codebase for deepening opportunities, present them as a visual HTML report, then grill through whichever one you pick.

    CodingShell

    Improve Codebase Architecture has 278,361 GitHub stars, has 1,057,293 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code and Codex, is written in Shell and was last updated in October 2026.

  3. Rank 3:

    Golang Testing

    affaan-m/ECC

    Go testing patterns including table-driven tests, subtests, benchmarks, fuzzing, and test coverage.

    Testing & QAJavaScript

    Golang Testing has 274,402 GitHub stars, has 3 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in JavaScript and was last updated in October 2026.

Full ranking

All 10 picks, ranked

Ranked by GitHub stars and recent activity. Open any pick for live stats and licence details.

  1. 1

    Brainstorming

    You MUST use this before any creative work - creating features, building components, adding functionality, or modifying behavior.

    Brainstorming has 296,071 GitHub stars, has 382,478 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in Shell and was last updated in September 2026.

  2. 2

    Improve Codebase Architecture

    Scan a codebase for deepening opportunities, present them as a visual HTML report, then grill through whichever one you pick.

    Improve Codebase Architecture has 278,361 GitHub stars, has 1,057,293 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code and Codex, is written in Shell and was last updated in October 2026.

  3. 3

    Golang Testing

    Go testing patterns including table-driven tests, subtests, benchmarks, fuzzing, and test coverage.

    Golang Testing has 274,402 GitHub stars, has 3 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in JavaScript and was last updated in October 2026.

  4. 4

    Karpathy Guidelines

    Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes.

    Karpathy Guidelines has 217,301 GitHub stars, has 3 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code and Cursor and was last updated in April 2026.

  5. 5

    Frontend Design

    Guidance for distinctive, intentional visual design when building new UI or reshaping an existing one.

    Frontend Design has 179,945 GitHub stars, is published by the vendor itself, has 957,751 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, is written in Python and was last updated in October 2026.

  6. 6

    Ponytail

    Forces the laziest solution that actually works, simplest, shortest, most minimal.

    Ponytail has 156,966 GitHub stars, has 72,989 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in JavaScript and was last updated in October 2026.

  7. 7

    Next Bundle Optimizer

    Audit and reduce Next.js browser initial-load work.

    Next Bundle Optimizer has 143,231 GitHub stars, is published by the vendor itself, has 3 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, is written in JavaScript and was last updated in October 2026.

  8. 8

    Autoplan

    Auto-review pipeline — reads the full CEO, design, eng, and DX review skills from disk and runs them sequentially with auto-decisions using 6 decision principles.

    Autoplan has 135,577 GitHub stars, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in TypeScript and was last updated in October 2026.

  9. 9

    Banner Design

    Design banners for social media, ads, website heroes, creative assets, and print.

    Banner Design has 133,647 GitHub stars, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, Codex and Cursor, is written in Python and was last updated in October 2026.

  10. 10

    Shadcn

    Manages shadcn components and projects — adding, searching, fixing, debugging, styling, and composing UI, including chat interfaces.

    Shadcn has 125,223 GitHub stars, has 92,069 installs on skills.sh, runs without an API key, works with Claude Code, is written in TypeScript and was last updated in October 2026.

FAQ

Questions and answers

Still curious? Email info@appsgit.com.

What are the best Claude Code skills?

The best Claude Code skills are Brainstorming, Improve Codebase Architecture and Golang Testing, ranked by GitHub stars; Brainstorming leads with 296,071 stars. The list covers 1,000 agent skills in the appsgit catalog, one entry per repository.

Do these agent skills need an API key?

None of the 10 picks needs an API key or token according to their published configuration.

Which coding agents work with these skills?

Claude Code (all), Codex (6 of 10), Cursor (6 of 10) and GitHub Copilot (5 of 10). The client list comes from each project's published compatibility data; appsgit does not guess it.

Are any of these agent skills official?

Yes: Frontend Design and Next Bundle Optimizer are published by the vendor themselves.

How do I install an agent skill?

A skill is a folder with a SKILL.md file that you copy into your agent's skills directory, or install from a plugin marketplace when the repository is one. Every skill page on appsgit shows the install command.

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