openclaw skills CLI reference

`openclaw skills`

Examine local skills, look up skills on ClawHub, add skills from ClawHub, Git, or a local folder, validate ClawHub skills, and refresh ClawHub-tracked installations.

Skills system: Skills
Skill Workshop: Skill Workshop
Skills config: Skills config
ClawHub installs: ClawHub

Commands

openclaw skills search "calendar"
openclaw skills search --limit 20 --json
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug>
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --version <version>
openclaw skills install git:owner/repo
openclaw skills install git:owner/repo@main
openclaw skills install ./path/to/skill --as custom-name
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --force
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --force-install
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --acknowledge-clawhub-risk
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --agent <id>
openclaw skills install @owner/<slug> --global
openclaw skills update @owner/<slug>
openclaw skills update @owner/<slug> --force-install
openclaw skills update @owner/<slug> --acknowledge-clawhub-risk
openclaw skills update @owner/<slug> --global
openclaw skills update --all
openclaw skills update --all --agent <id>
openclaw skills update --all --global
openclaw skills verify @owner/<slug>
openclaw skills verify @owner/<slug> --version <version>
openclaw skills verify @owner/<slug> --tag <tag>
openclaw skills verify @owner/<slug> --card
openclaw skills verify @owner/<slug> --global
openclaw skills list
openclaw skills list --eligible
openclaw skills list --json
openclaw skills list --verbose
openclaw skills list --agent <id>
openclaw skills info <name>
openclaw skills info <name> --json
openclaw skills info <name> --agent <id>
openclaw skills check
openclaw skills check --agent <id>
openclaw skills check --json
openclaw skills workshop propose-create --name "qa-check" --description "QA checklist" --proposal ./PROPOSAL.md
openclaw skills workshop propose-update qa-check --proposal ./PROPOSAL.md
openclaw skills workshop list
openclaw skills workshop inspect <proposal-id>
openclaw skills workshop revise <proposal-id> --proposal ./PROPOSAL.md
openclaw skills workshop apply <proposal-id>
openclaw skills workshop reject <proposal-id> --reason "Not reusable"
openclaw skills workshop quarantine <proposal-id> --reason "Needs security review"

search, update, and verify work directly with ClawHub. install @owner/<slug> installs a skill from ClawHub, install git:owner/repo[@ref] clones a skill from Git, and install ./path copies a skill from a local directory. By default, install, update, and verify write to the active workspace's skills/ directory; with --global, they write to the shared managed skills directory. list/info/check still inspect the local skills visible to the current workspace and config. Workspace-backed commands resolve the target workspace from --agent <id>, then the current working directory when it is inside a configured agent workspace, then the default agent.

Git and local directory installs require SKILL.md at the source root. The install slug is taken from SKILL.md frontmatter name when it is valid, otherwise the source directory or repository name; use --as <slug> to override it. --version is ClawHub-only. Skill installs do not support npm package specs or zip/archive paths, and openclaw skills update updates only ClawHub-tracked installs.

Gateway-backed skill dependency installs triggered from onboarding or Skills settings use the separate skills.install request path instead.

Notes:

Flag/behavior	Description
`search [query...]`	Optional query; omit it to browse the default ClawHub search feed.
`search --limit <n>`	Limits the number of results returned.
`install git:owner/repo[@ref]`	Installs a skill from Git. Branch refs can include slashes, for example `git:owner/repo@feature/foo`.
`install ./path/to/skill`	Installs a local directory whose root contains `SKILL.md`.
`install --as <slug>`	Overrides the inferred slug for Git and local directory installs.
`install --version <version>`	Applies only to ClawHub skill refs.
`install --force`	Overwrites an existing workspace skill folder for the same slug.
`install/update --force-install`	Installs a pending GitHub-backed ClawHub skill before ClawHub's scan finishes.
`--global`	Targets the shared managed skills directory; cannot combine with `--agent <id>`.
`--agent <id>`	Targets one configured agent workspace; overrides current working directory inference.
`update @owner/<slug>`	Updates a single tracked skill. Add `--global` to target the shared managed skills directory instead of the workspace.
`update --all`	Updates tracked ClawHub installs in the selected workspace, or the shared managed skills directory with `--global`.
`verify @owner/<slug>`	Prints ClawHub's `clawhub.skill.verify.v1` JSON envelope by default. There is no `--json` flag because JSON is already the default. Bare slugs are accepted for compatibility when the skill is already installed or unambiguous; owner-qualified refs avoid publisher ambiguity.
`verify` provenance	When ClawHub returns server-resolved source provenance, verify JSON also includes a commit-pinned `openclaw.verifiedSourceUrl`. Unavailable or self-declared source URLs stay only in the raw provenance envelope and are not promoted.
`verify` version selector	`verify` uses `.clawhub/origin.json` for installed ClawHub skills, so it verifies the installed version against the registry it came from. `--version` and `--tag` override the version selector but keep that installed registry when origin metadata exists.
`verify --card`	Prints the generated Skill Card Markdown instead of JSON. Exits non-zero when ClawHub returns `ok: false` or `decision: "fail"`; unsigned signatures are informational unless ClawHub policy changes.
Skill Card fingerprint	Installed ClawHub bundles can include a generated `skill-card.md`. OpenClaw treats verification as a ClawHub server decision and does not reject an installed skill just because that generated card changes the bundle fingerprint.
`check --agent <id>`	Checks the selected agent's workspace and reports which ready skills are actually visible to that agent's prompt or command surface.
`list`	Default action when no subcommand is provided.
`list`/`info`/`check` output	Rendered output goes to stdout. With `--json`, the machine-readable payload stays on stdout for pipes and scripts.

Community ClawHub skill installs and updates check trust before downloading. Versioned community archive releases use exact-release trust metadata. Resolver-backed GitHub skills rely on ClawHub's install resolver to enforce scan and force-install policy before it returns a pinned commit; use --force-install to install a pending GitHub-backed skill before that scan completes. Malicious or blocked community releases are refused. Risky community releases require review and --acknowledge-clawhub-risk when a non-interactive command should continue after that review. Official ClawHub skill publishers and bundled OpenClaw skill sources bypass this release-trust prompt.

Skill Workshop

openclaw skills workshop manages pending skill proposals in the selected workspace. Proposals are not active skills until applied. For proposal storage, support-file safeguards, Gateway methods, and approval policy, see Skill Workshop.

openclaw skills workshop propose-create \
  --name "qa-check" \
  --description "Repeatable QA checklist" \
  --proposal ./PROPOSAL.md
openclaw skills workshop propose-create \
  --name "qa-check" \
  --description "Repeatable QA checklist" \
  --proposal-dir ./qa-check-proposal
openclaw skills workshop propose-update qa-check --proposal ./PROPOSAL.md
openclaw skills workshop list
openclaw skills workshop inspect <proposal-id>
openclaw skills workshop revise <proposal-id> --proposal ./PROPOSAL.md
openclaw skills workshop apply <proposal-id>
openclaw skills workshop reject <proposal-id> --reason "Duplicate"
openclaw skills workshop quarantine <proposal-id> --reason "Needs security review"

propose-create, propose-update, and revise also accept --goal <text> and --evidence <text> to record the proposal's motivation and supporting notes alongside the --proposal/--proposal-dir content.