You installed OpenClaw, connected your AI model, and ran your first task. Now what? The real power of OpenClaw comes from skills — community-built plugins that extend what your AI agent can do. With over 5,700 skills available on ClawHub, choosing where to start can feel overwhelming. This guide breaks down the most useful categories and recommends specific skills worth installing first.
Skills are extensions that give your AI agent new abilities. Out of the box, OpenClaw comes with eight built-in tools: file system access, command execution, web search, and basic memory functions. Skills add everything else — from reading PDFs to sending emails to analyzing images.
Each skill runs in a sandboxed environment, which means it operates with limited permissions unless you explicitly grant more access. This design keeps your system safer while still allowing powerful integrations.
Installing a skill is simple. In any conversation with your OpenClaw agent, type: /skills install @author/skill-name. The agent downloads the skill, registers it, and can start using it immediately.
These skills address needs that almost everyone has, regardless of how they use their AI agent.
brave-search — Connects to the Brave Search API for private, ad-free web searches. Requires a free API key from Brave. This is often the first skill new users install because it lets the agent answer questions about current events, look up documentation, and verify facts.
url-reader — Extracts and summarizes content from any webpage URL. Useful when you paste a link and want your agent to read and explain it.
browser — Full browser automation using Playwright. The agent can navigate pages, fill forms, click buttons, and extract data. More powerful than url-reader but requires more setup.
pdf-reader — Extracts text from PDF files so your agent can summarize reports, search through manuals, or answer questions about uploaded documents.
csv-analyzer — Reads CSV and Excel files, understands column structures, and can answer questions like "What was the total sales in March?" or "Which product had the highest return rate?"
text-extractor — Pulls text from images using OCR (optical character recognition). Handy for screenshots, scanned documents, or photos of whiteboards.
todo-manager — Creates, tracks, and manages task lists. Your agent can add items, mark them complete, set priorities, and remind you about deadlines.
note-taker — Saves and retrieves notes organized by topic. Think of it as giving your agent a notebook it can reference later.
calendar-sync — Connects to Google Calendar or Outlook to check your schedule, create events, and send meeting summaries.
If you write code or work with technical systems, these skills turn OpenClaw into a powerful development assistant.
code-runner — Executes Python, JavaScript, or shell scripts in a sandboxed environment. Your agent can write code, run it, see the output, and iterate until it works.
code-review — Analyzes code files for bugs, security issues, and style problems. Paste a file path or code snippet, and the agent returns detailed feedback.
git-assistant — Interacts with Git repositories: checking status, viewing diffs, creating commits, and explaining changes in plain language.
npm-search — Searches the npm registry for JavaScript packages, compares options, and explains what each package does.
http-request — Sends HTTP requests to any API endpoint. Your agent can fetch data, post updates, or interact with web services you specify.
json-transformer — Parses, filters, and reshapes JSON data. Useful when working with API responses or configuration files.
sql-query — Connects to databases and runs SQL queries. Supports PostgreSQL, MySQL, and SQLite. Requires careful permission setup.
These skills help with writing, editing, and managing communications.
grammar-check — Reviews text for grammar, spelling, and style issues. Returns suggestions with explanations.
translator — Translates text between languages using the connected AI model's capabilities. Works with over 50 languages.
summarizer — Condenses long documents, articles, or transcripts into key points. Adjustable length from one paragraph to detailed outlines.
email-drafter — Generates email drafts based on your instructions and previous writing style. Does not send automatically — you review and approve first.
email-reader — Connects to Gmail or Outlook to read, search, and summarize your inbox. Can flag important messages and categorize by topic.
Once you are comfortable with basic skills, these let you build more complex automated processes.
cron-scheduler — Runs tasks on a schedule. Set your agent to check your email every morning, generate weekly reports, or run backups at midnight.
webhook-trigger — Listens for incoming webhooks and triggers actions in response. Useful for connecting OpenClaw to other services like GitHub, Stripe, or custom apps.
workflow-builder — Chains multiple skills together into multi-step workflows. For example: "When I receive an email with an attachment, extract the PDF text, summarize it, and add action items to my todo list."
Not every skill on ClawHub is trustworthy. Security researchers found that roughly 20% of early skills contained suspicious or malicious code. Before installing any skill, follow these guidelines:
Check the author's reputation and history on ClawHub
Look at the number of installs and recent reviews
Read the permissions the skill requests — be cautious of skills asking for full file system or network access
Start with skills from the official "Verified" collection when possible
Test new skills with limited data before giving them access to sensitive information
If you want a quick starting point, install these five skills first:
brave-search — Web search capability
pdf-reader — Document processing
todo-manager — Task tracking
summarizer — Content condensation
cron-scheduler — Automated routines
This combination covers the most common use cases and gives you a solid foundation to explore more specialized skills later.
How many skills can I install at once?
There is no hard limit, but each active skill uses some memory and processing time. Most users run 10 to 20 skills without issues. If you notice slowdowns, disable skills you rarely use.
Can I uninstall a skill?
Yes. Use /skills uninstall @author/skill-name to remove any skill. Your agent stops using it immediately.
Do skills cost money?
Most skills on ClawHub are free. Some premium skills from commercial developers have one-time or subscription fees, but these are clearly labeled.
Can I create my own skills?
Yes. OpenClaw skills are built on the MCP (Model Context Protocol) standard. If you can write Python or JavaScript, you can create and publish your own skills to ClawHub.
