A plugin is a package, not a separate app
Anthropic describes a plugin as a package of skills, connectors, and commands and agents that you add to Claude as one unit. Instead of explaining your process every time, you add the plugin and then ask Claude for what you need in plain words.
You add plugins from Customize, then Plugins, in claude.ai or the Claude desktop app. Each plugin is saved to your account.
What is inside a plugin
Skills are instructions Claude follows when a task matches, for example your team’s process for a weekly report.
Commands are named actions. In Cowork and Claude Code you run one by typing /plugin-name:command. In chat, a command loads as a skill.
Connectors give Claude access to an outside tool or data source, such as Google Drive, Gmail, Slack or DocuSign. You connect each one yourself.
Agents are specialists Claude can hand part of a task to. They work in Cowork and Claude Code, not in chat.
Where plugins work and who can use them
Once added, a plugin’s skills, commands and connectors are available in chat on the web, desktop and mobile. Cowork also loads its agents, and Claude Code picks it up when you sign in with the same account.
Anthropic lists the plugin directory as available on the Pro, Max, Ultra, Team and Enterprise plans. At work, an administrator can decide which plugins you see.
What a plugin is not
Adding a plugin does not sign you in to anything. A connector stays unconnected until you connect it, and a service it reaches may need its own account or paid plan.
A plugin does not make Claude infallible. For legal, financial and HR work, treat what Claude produces as a first draft and review it.
An example: the Legal plugin
The Legal plugin reads contracts and NDAs, flags risky clauses and drafts a first-pass summary for you to review. After you add it, you could ask: “Review this NDA and list anything that differs from our standard terms.”
Questions people ask
- Do I need to know how to code to use a Claude plugin?
- No. You add a plugin from Customize > Plugins in claude.ai or the desktop app, then describe the task in plain words. Command-line installs in Claude Code are for developers.
- What is the difference between a plugin, a skill and a connector?
- A skill is a set of instructions. A connector links Claude to an outside tool or data source. A plugin packages skills, connectors, commands and agents so you can add them together.
- Are Claude plugins free?
- Plugins are available on paid Claude plans, and a service a connector reaches may require its own account or paid plan. Check the plugin’s page in Claude for details.