Agent skill · Anthropic
PDF skill for Claude Code, Codex and Cursor
Officialname: pdf★ 184k (repo)pushed 2026-10-09See repoSKILL.md on GitHubchecked 2026-11-07
What it does, in the publisher's words
Use this skill whenever the user wants to do anything with PDF files. This includes reading or extracting text/tables from PDFs, combining or merging multiple PDFs into one, splitting PDFs apart, rotating pages, adding watermarks, creating new PDFs, filling PDF forms, encrypting/decrypting PDFs, extracting images, and OCR on scanned PDFs to make them searchable.
The description field of the SKILL.md. The agent reads only this at startup and decides from it when to load the full skill.
Install PDF
The skills CLI copies the skill into the folder of each agent you pick (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Windsurf...). Add -g for all projects. Needs Node.js 22.20+. docs
npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf
This repo is a plugin marketplace. Inside Claude Code, add it and install the plugin that holds the skill (document-skills, example-skills, claude-api, academy-guide...), or copy only this skill into ~/.claude/skills. docs
/plugin marketplace add anthropics/skills /plugin install <plugin>@anthropic-agent-skills # or only this skill: npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf -a claude-code
Download the skill folder, zip it, then Customize > Skills > + > Create skill > Upload a skill. Code execution must be on (Settings > Capabilities). docs
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/anthropics/skills.git /tmp/pdf-src cp -r /tmp/pdf-src/skills/pdf ./pdf zip -r pdf.zip pdf
Codex reads skills from .agents/skills in the repo or ~/.agents/skills. Type $ in Codex to use one. docs
npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf -a codex
gh skill (GitHub CLI 2.90+, preview) installs it for Copilot in VS Code, the CLI and the cloud agent. Copilot also reads .github/skills and ~/.copilot/skills. docs
gh skill install anthropics/skills pdf
Cursor reads .cursor/skills, .agents/skills and ~/.cursor/skills (and .claude/skills). It does not install loose skills from a GitHub URL, so copy it in. docs
npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf -a cursor
Installs from the GitHub repo; --path picks this skill out of the repo. Default scope is user (all projects). docs
gemini skills install https://github.com/anthropics/skills.git --path skills/pdf
OpenCode reads .opencode/skills, ~/.config/opencode/skills and the Claude and .agents folders. docs
npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf -a opencode
Windsurf (now Devin Desktop) reads .devin/skills, .windsurf/skills and ~/.codeium/windsurf/skills. docs
npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf -a windsurf
Works with
Claude Code, Claude.ai and Claude Desktop, Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Windsurf and other agents that read the open Agent Skills format.
- Bundles 8 Python scripts the agent can run, so it needs Python on the machine. In the Claude apps, code execution must be on.
What's in the SKILL.md
- Overview
- Quick Start
- Python Libraries
- pypdf - Basic Operations
- pdfplumber - Text and Table Extraction
- reportlab - Create PDFs
- Command-Line Tools
- pdftotext (poppler-utils)
- qpdf
- pdftk (if available)
- Common Tasks
- Extract Text from Scanned PDFs
- Add Watermark
- Extract Images
- Password Protection
- Quick Reference
- Next Steps
Bundled files
- LICENSE.txt
- forms.md
- reference.md
- scripts/check_bounding_boxes.py
- scripts/check_fillable_fields.py
- scripts/convert_pdf_to_images.py
- scripts/create_validation_image.py
- scripts/extract_form_field_info.py
- scripts/extract_form_structure.py
- scripts/fill_fillable_fields.py
- scripts/fill_pdf_form_with_annotations.py
Loaded only when the instructions point to them.
Facts
- Skill name
- Publisher
- Anthropic (official)
- Repo
- anthropics/skills
- License
- Complete terms in LICENSE.txt
- SKILL.md size
- 322 words, 309 lines
- Bundled files
- 11, 8 scripts (Python), 2 docs
- Repo stars
- 184k (as of 2026-10-24)
- SKILL.md checked
- 2026-11-07
More skills from anthropics/skills
- Canvas Design: Produces posters and static artwork as PNG or PDF files, guided by a written design philosophy.
- Claude API: Reference for building on the Claude API and Anthropic SDKs: models, tool use, streaming, caching, pricing.
- Doc Co-authoring: Walks you through drafting specs, proposals and design docs step by step with Claude.
- Word Documents (DOCX): Creates, reads and edits Word .docx files, including templates, tracked changes and formatting.
- Frontend Design: Steers UI work toward deliberate visual direction and typography instead of generic template looks.
- MCP Server Builder: Guide for designing and building Model Context Protocol servers that wrap external APIs as tools.
- PowerPoint (PPTX): Builds, reads and edits PowerPoint decks and templates, including layouts and speaker notes.
- Skill Creator: Helps write new skills, refine existing ones and test how well they trigger and perform.
- Slack GIF Creator: Makes small animated GIFs sized and validated for Slack's emoji and message limits.
- Web Artifacts Builder: Builds multi-component HTML artifacts with React, Tailwind and shadcn/ui, bundled into one file.
- Web App Testing: Uses Playwright to drive a local web app, check behavior, read console logs and take screenshots.
- Excel Spreadsheets (XLSX): Opens, cleans, edits and creates spreadsheets (.xlsx, .csv), including formulas and charts.
FAQ
What does the pdf skill do?+
Extracts text and tables, merges, splits, fills forms and creates PDF files. In its own SKILL.md, Anthropic describes it as: "Use this skill whenever the user wants to do anything with PDF files. This includes reading or extracting text/tables from PDFs, combining or merging multiple PDFs into one, splitting PDFs apart, rotating pages, adding watermarks, creating new PDFs, filling PDF forms, encrypting/decrypting PDFs,..."
How do I install the pdf skill?+
Run npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill pdf and pick your agents, or use the tab for your agent above. In Claude Code the skill ends up in ~/.claude/skills/pdf/SKILL.md; in Codex and Cursor in .agents/skills/pdf/.
Does PDF work in Codex, Cursor and Copilot, or only Claude?+
It's a standard SKILL.md, so any agent that reads the Agent Skills format can use it: Claude Code, the Claude apps, Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Windsurf and more.
Who maintains PDF?+
Anthropic, the company or project behind it, in the anthropics/skills repo on GitHub, last pushed 2026-10-09. License: Complete terms in LICENSE.txt.
Read a skill's SKILL.md and scripts before you install it: skills aren't verified by any agent vendor. Claude skills marketplace · How to install skills · MCP servers