Install Claude Code Plugins

Complete installation guide for Claude Code plugins. Set up the ccpi CLI, connect to the Tons of Skills marketplace, and start extending Claude Code with 2,800+ agent skills.

Choose an installation route

Claude Code installs marketplace plugins. The ccpi companion CLI provides plugin discovery guidance, installation commands, diagnostics, and local authoring checks; several commands are guidance rather than an installer. Portable skills use a separate ccpi skills install workflow.

Browse the current marketplace rather than relying on a fixed plugin or skill count. Adding a marketplace makes its catalog available; it does not install every plugin or approve its code.

Prerequisites

  • Install and authenticate Claude Code using a supported account or provider configuration. An API key is one option, not a requirement for subscription login. Do not paste credentials into source files or shared logs.
  • The independently installed ccpi CLI also requires Node.js 22 or later. Repository development and website builds require Node 22.12+ and the repository’s pinned package-manager versions; see the runtime contract.
  • Review the plugin’s ownership, dependencies, permissions, and supported runtime before installing it. A listing or structural validation result is not a behavioral security certification.

Check the tools you intend to use:

node --version
npm --version
claude --version

If you already use nvm, select the repository’s Node 22 line and verify that the installed patch version is at least 22.12:

nvm install 22
nvm use 22
node --version

The official setup guide covers native, package-manager, and npm installation routes. If you choose npm for Claude Code:

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
claude --version

Do not use sudo to work around npm permission problems; follow the setup guide for an appropriate user installation.

Add the marketplace

Run this in a terminal:

claude plugin marketplace add jeremylongshore/tons-of-skills-marketplace

The equivalent interactive command, inside Claude Code, is:

/plugin marketplace add jeremylongshore/tons-of-skills-marketplace

Use the native plugin manager to inspect configured marketplaces and installed plugins. Do not treat a printed setup command as evidence it ran.

Install a plugin

For example, git-commit-smart is a plugin in this marketplace. Review its listing and dependencies first, then choose an explicit scope:

claude plugin install git-commit-smart@claude-code-plugins-plus --scope project
Native scope Who gets the enablement setting Settings location
user You, across projects on this machine ~/.claude/settings.json
project Collaborators using the repository setting .claude/settings.json
local You, in this repository only .claude/settings.local.json

The native CLI defaults to user scope. A committed project setting does not download a plugin to every collaborator’s machine: each collaborator still installs it. A plugin may also start disabled. Check the native install result and enablement state.

Shell installs load in a new Claude Code session or after /reload-plugins in an existing session. Check the installed plugin list and the plugin’s namespaced skills rather than assuming every runtime component is immediately active.

Optional: install ccpi

npm install -g @intentsolutionsio/ccpi
ccpi --version
ccpi --help

Or inspect help without a global installation:

npx @intentsolutionsio/ccpi --help

npx can download and execute a package. Review the publisher and selected version; it is not an offline or no-install guarantee. The repository package currently uses the 3.x version line; consult the installed version’s help for its actual surface.

Implemented companion commands

Command Current behavior
ccpi list / ccpi list --all Show installed plugins or the available catalog
ccpi install <name> Look up a catalog plugin and print guided native installation instructions
ccpi install --pack <name> Print instructions for the named built-in collection
ccpi install --category <name> / --all Print instructions for selected catalog plugins
ccpi marketplace-add Print the native marketplace setup instructions
ccpi marketplace --verify Inspect the expected marketplace directory and catalog-file presence
ccpi upgrade --check Compare installed and catalog versions
ccpi upgrade --all Print guided upgrade steps; it does not apply all upgrades itself
ccpi doctor Inspect the supported environment, directories, installation registry, and catalog integrity
ccpi validate <path> Run companion authoring checks; use the repository Python validator for authoritative grading

ccpi search and ccpi analytics currently report that their features are coming soon. Use the website for search. There are no ccpi update, ccpi remove, or ccpi info commands in this version.

The companion’s legacy guided output can contain --project or --global; those are not the native --scope syntax above. Use the native help rather than copying unsupported flags. This documentation does not change the companion implementation.

Verify the result

claude plugin list
ccpi doctor

Check each result separately. ccpi marketplace --verify does not prove that every catalog entry parses or that authentication succeeds. ccpi doctor does not verify an authenticated Claude account or certify every plugin’s behavior.

ccpi doctor --fix can create missing directories and refresh catalog data. Review its current repair plan and intended paths before allowing writes; it is not an authentication repair command.

Troubleshooting

Symptom Next check
ccpi is not found Inspect the npm installation prefix and your platform’s PATH configuration; do not overwrite your shell profile blindly
Marketplace is missing Run the native marketplace-add command, then inspect its result
Plugin name is not found Check the current catalog identity on Explore; a sample or retired name may not exist
Installed plugin is absent in a session Check scope, enablement, marketplace trust, and /reload-plugins or a new session
Authentication fails Follow the selected Claude Code provider’s authentication instructions; do not infer success from directory existence
An MCP tool fails to launch Review the plugin’s entry path, dependencies, environment requirements, and stderr; installation is not runtime certification

Use the native plugin manager for update and uninstall operations. Review data-retention behavior before uninstalling or deleting plugin state; this guide does not promise that arbitrary plugin configuration survives every update.

Next steps