skills.sh alternatives, compared
skills.sh is an open directory of agent skills with its own install command. Here is what else exists, what each one is best at, and where Edge fits.
The main skills.sh alternatives are SkillsMP (the biggest self-reported index, free, no vetting), Agensi (free and paid creator skills with an 8-point scan), Skills Directory (A to F security grades) and LobeHub Skills (CLI and versioned publishing). Edge works on top of the skills.sh catalog: your agent searches it mid-task and loads a screened skill.
Checked 2 October 2026. Edge is our product.
What is skills.sh best for?
skills.sh is a public leaderboard of agent skills plus an open-source command line tool. You find a skill, then install it with npx skills add owner/repo into Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and other agents. Rankings come from anonymous install counts from that tool.
It shows audit results from three outside scanners (Gen Agent Trust Hub, Socket and Snyk) and has an Official section for skills published by the companies behind a product. Its own docs say it cannot guarantee the quality or security of every skill listed, and ask you to review skills before installing.
How do the alternatives compare?
| Option | What it is | How you install | Security information | Cost (2 October 2026) | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| skills.sh | Open skills leaderboard and the open-source skills CLI from Vercel Labs. Ranked by anonymous install counts. | npx skills add owner/repo | Combined audits from Gen Agent Trust Hub, Socket and Snyk | Free; no paid plan seen | Installing popular skills you already know |
| Edge (ours) | An MCP connector: your agent searches over 100,000 public skills in Edge's index of the skills.sh catalog while it works. | One line: set up https://getedge.cc/SKILL.md | Exact-bundle gate; fails are withheld | Free during early access | Letting the agent find and load the right skill mid-task |
| SkillsMP | Search index of 3,337,075 SKILL.md files collected from public GitHub repos. | Copy from the source repo; read-only MCP server | None: says it does not certify quality or safety | 100% free, no paid tiers | Breadth, research, examples to write your own |
| Agensi | Marketplace of 7,500+ free and paid skills from creators, with per-agent stores. | Download, or MCP that installs after you approve | 8-point scan before a skill goes live | Free and paid skills; creators keep 70% | Buying expert skills for business tasks, or selling yours |
| Skills Directory | Directory of 579,755 indexed skills with security grades. | Install command per skill; Pro ZIP download and MCP | Static analysis, 120 patterns, A to F grades | Free; Pro $9/month founding price | Checking a security grade before you install |
| LobeHub Skills | Marketplace of 334,144 skills where authors publish and version releases. | npx -y @lobehub/market-cli skills install | No security grade on the listing we checked (anthropics-skills-pptx); shows ratings and reviews | Free to browse and install | LobeHub users and authors who want versioned releases |
Catalog sizes and prices are what each site said about itself on 2 October 2026. They count different things (files, skills, listings) and we did not verify them.
Is Edge an alternative or an add-on to skills.sh?
Mostly an add-on. Edge does not run its own skill store: it indexes the skills.sh catalog, so the skills are the same public skills. What changes is who searches and what happens before a skill reaches your agent:
- Your agent searches, not you. When a task needs specialist steps, the agent calls Edge with the task and gets up to five ranked matches.
- A gate on the exact files. Edge withholds skills with a high or critical finding or two failing scanners, and checks the exact bundle again before it loads. How Edge screens skills.
- Nothing to install. The skill is handed to the agent for the current task; your skill folders stay as they are.
If you already know which skill you want and want it permanently, npx skills add is simpler. Set up Edge by giving your agent one line: set up https://getedge.cc/SKILL.md.
Which one should I pick?
- You know the skill and want it installed: skills.sh.
- You want the agent to find a fitting skill while it works: Edge. Setup takes one line.
- You want to see everything that exists, including unvetted repos: SkillsMP.
- You want a paid, creator-made skill for a business task: Agensi.
- You want a letter grade before installing: Skills Directory.
- You use LobeHub or publish versioned skills: LobeHub Skills.
Common questions
Is Edge a replacement for skills.sh?
Not exactly. Edge searches over 100,000 public skills in its index of the skills.sh catalog. It adds search by task from inside your agent, a security gate on the exact files, and loading for the current task without installing. If you already know the skill you want, npx skills add is the direct route.
Which skills.sh alternative is free?
On 2 October 2026, SkillsMP said it is 100% free, Skills Directory kept browsing and security grades free with a paid Pro plan, LobeHub Skills had no separate charge, Agensi listed both free and paid skills, and Edge search was free during early access. skills.sh showed no paid plan.
Which option shows security information?
skills.sh shows combined audits from Gen Agent Trust Hub, Socket and Snyk. Skills Directory grades skills A to F. Agensi runs an 8-point scan before listing. Edge withholds skills that fail its gate. SkillsMP says it does not certify quality or safety. A clean scan is never a guarantee.
Can my agent search these by itself?
Several offer an MCP server: Edge, SkillsMP (read-only), Agensi and Skills Directory Pro. Edge is built for that case: the agent asks for a skill for the task it is doing and gets ranked, screened matches back.
How we compared
We opened each site on 2 October 2026 and recorded what it says about itself: what it is, how you install, what security checks it describes, and its price. We quote those claims as the site's own; we did not test their scanners or count their catalogs. "Best for" is our editorial judgement, not a score. Edge is our product, so we describe its limits too: it depends on the skills.sh catalog, and a passed scan is not a safety guarantee.
Sources: skills.sh docs, skills.sh audits, SkillsMP pricing, Agensi security, Skills Directory security, Skills Directory Pro, LobeHub Skills, Edge tools.