# Skills

> Load context on-demand instead of cramming everything into the system prompt.

**URL:** https://inference.sh/docs/agents/skills
**Last updated:** 2026-09-18

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Load context on-demand instead of cramming everything into the system prompt.

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## What Are Skills?

Skills are reusable packages of instructions and context that agents retrieve when needed. Instead of a massive system prompt, your agent sees a list of available skills and a `skill_get` tool to load the full content when relevant.

> [Full skills documentation](/docs/skills/overview)

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## Quick Start

### From the Registry

1. Open your agent's settings → **Prompt** tab
2. Scroll to **Skills**
3. Click **Browse** → search and select a skill
4. Done — the skill's name, description, and URL are filled in automatically

### By URL

Click **+ URL** and provide:

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **Name** | Identifier the agent uses (e.g. `api-docs`) |
| **Description** | When to load this skill — the agent sees this |
| **URL** | `https://api.inference.sh/skills/{ns}/{name}/content` or any HTTPS URL |

### Inline

Click **+ Text** and write the content directly. Good for short, agent-specific instructions.

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## Preloading

By default, skills are loaded on-demand via `skill_get`. For skills the agent needs on every conversation, enable **preload** — the content is injected directly into the system prompt at startup.

Toggle **Preload** on the skill in the **Prompt** tab, or set it in YAML:

```yaml
skills:
  - name: pricing-rules
    skill_id: myteam/pricing-rules
    preload: true
```

Preloaded skills are available from turn one — no tool call needed. Use this for core reference material the agent always needs. Keep large or situational content as on-demand.

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## How It Works at Runtime

**On-demand skills** appear in the `skill_get` tool listing. The agent calls `skill_get` when the conversation matches a skill's description:

```
skill_get(skill="code-review")                          → main instructions
skill_get(skill="code-review", path="references/checklist.md")  → supporting file
```

**Preloaded skills** are already in the system prompt — no tool call needed.

Content is cached per session — loading the same skill twice doesn't re-fetch.

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## Learn More

- [Creating skills](/docs/skills/creating) — build and publish your own
- [The skill registry](/docs/skills/registry) — browse and share public skills
- [Using with other agents](/docs/skills/other-agents) — install to Claude Code, Cursor, and more
- [Skills overview](/docs/skills/overview) — how skills work, the standard, and inference shell's approach