Claude Plugins Explained: What They Do and How to Install One Today

Wooden puzzle pieces labeled Input, Process, and Output arranged on a workbench with mechanical drawings and tools

Claude now has a plugin directory, and it changes how you set Claude up for real work. Instead of hunting down individual tools and connectors one by one, you browse a catalog, click install, and get a bundle of commands, integrations, and automations in one shot. Here is what plugins actually do and how to install your first one in the next five minutes.

What Exactly Is a Claude Plugin?

A plugin is a packaged bundle of tools that extends what Claude can do. Anthropic describes it simply: a plugin bundles multiple MCP connections, skills, and tools into a single download, so instead of wiring up each piece separately, you get everything at once.[1]

Think of a Figma plugin. On its own, you would need to connect the Figma MCP server, then separately teach Claude how you want design files interpreted. A plugin does both in one install. Click once, and Claude can pull your Figma files and already knows how to turn them into code.

Plugins first shipped for Claude Code in October 2025 as slash commands, subagents, MCP servers, and hooks that installed with a single command.[2] Since then, Anthropic opened a proper plugin directory at claude.com, and plugins now work with both Claude Code and Claude Cowork, the desktop app built for non-developers who want Claude working across their files, apps, and browser tabs.[3]

One thing worth flagging early: plugins are built for Claude Code and Cowork specifically. If you only use the regular Claude.ai chat window, this feature will not show up for you yet. What you have access to there is Connectors, which link your account to outside apps like Notion or Asana but do not bundle in custom skills or commands the way a plugin does.[4]

Plugins vs Skills vs Connectors: The Quick Version

These three terms get mixed up constantly, so here is the shortest possible breakdown.

  • Skills teach Claude your process. A skill is a folder with instructions Claude reads and applies automatically. No tools involved, just knowledge. I covered this in detail in my Claude Skills guide if you want the full walkthrough.
  • Connectors link your Claude account to an outside app so Claude can read or act on your data there. One connection, one app.
  • Plugins bundle several of the above together, connectors, skills, and slash commands, so installing one plugin can hand Claude an entire workflow instead of a single capability.

If Skills are recipes and MCP is the kitchen equipment, as Anthropic put it in their skills guide, then a plugin is the fully stocked kitchen delivered in one box.

Where to Find Claude Plugins

Anthropic runs a public plugin directory at claude.com/plugins. You can filter by what the plugin works with, Cowork or Claude Code, and browse by install count, which is a decent proxy for how battle-tested a plugin is.

Some are built and maintained directly by Anthropic and carry an Anthropic Verified badge, meaning they went through an additional review for quality and safety. Most, though, come from the developer community. Popular options right now include a Frontend Design plugin with well over a million installs, an official GitHub integration, Figma, Slack, and Stripe plugins, and dozens of database, deployment, and testing tools.[5]

How to Install a Plugin, Step by Step

There are two paths depending on where you work. Pick the one that matches your setup.

Path A: The Plugin Directory (Cowork or Claude Code)

  1. Go to the directory. Open claude.com/plugins and log into your Claude account.
  2. Filter by what you use. Use the Works With filter to narrow results to Cowork or Claude Code, whichever you have installed.
  3. Open a plugin’s page. Every listing links out to its source code. Click through and skim it, especially if the plugin is not Anthropic Verified.
  4. Click Install. That is it. The plugin’s commands, connections, and automations become available the next time you start a session.
  5. Confirm it loaded. In Claude Code, type /help to see the new commands. In Cowork, just try asking for the task the plugin covers and see if Claude reaches for it.

Path B: The Terminal (Claude Code power users)

If you want more control over which marketplace a plugin comes from, or you are installing something not yet in the main directory, do it from the command line.

  1. Open Claude Code in your terminal or VS Code.
  2. Check your marketplaces. Run /plugin marketplace list. Anthropic’s own official marketplace registers itself automatically the first time you launch Claude Code, so it should already be there.[6]
  3. Add a new marketplace if needed. Run /plugin marketplace add user-or-org/repo-name for any community marketplace you want to pull from.
  4. Install the plugin. Run /plugin install plugin-name@marketplace-name. For example, /plugin install code-simplifier@claude-plugins-official.
  5. Verify and manage it. Run claude plugin list to see everything installed, and claude plugin disable plugin-name anytime you want to turn one off without uninstalling it.

Plugins are designed to toggle on and off freely, so there is no penalty for installing something, testing it for a day, and removing it if it does not earn its keep.[2]

Eight Plugins Worth Trying First

Skip the scroll-and-guess approach. Here is where to start depending on what you actually do.

PluginGood forWorks with
Frontend DesignBuilding landing pages and prototypes that do not look like generic AI outputClaude Code
FigmaPulling design files straight into working codeClaude Code
SlackDrafting messages and surfacing threads without leaving ClaudeCowork, Claude Code
DataWriting SQL, cleaning datasets, and building dashboards from raw filesCowork
StripePayments and invoicing work for solo founders running their own billingClaude Code
LegalZoomA first pass on contracts, with a flag for when you actually need a lawyerClaude Code
CirclebackPulling meeting notes, calendar events, and email context into one placeClaude Code
AtlassianJira and Confluence work for teams already living in that ecosystemCowork, Claude Code

None of these need you to touch a config file. Install, and they show up ready to use.

The Safety Check You Should Not Skip

A plugin can load in remote MCP servers, local software, and other tools that run on your machine or touch your accounts. Anthropic is upfront about this: they run basic automated review on everything submitted to the directory, but that is a floor, not a guarantee. Only the Anthropic Verified plugins have gone through a deeper quality and safety pass.[7]

Before installing anything from an unverified developer, do two things. Open the source code link on the plugin’s page and skim what it actually connects to. And ask yourself whether you would give this same level of access to a random browser extension, because functionally, that is close to what you are doing.

Where This Still Falls Short

Plugins for Claude Code have been in public beta since launch, and the feature is still filling in gaps. A few things to know going in:

  • Plugin availability depends entirely on whether you use Claude Code, Cowork, or the plain Claude.ai chat. Chat users are locked out for now.
  • Not every plugin works everywhere. Always check the Works With tag before installing, or you will click install and find nothing changed.
  • Community plugins vary wildly in maintenance quality. A plugin with ten installs and no recent commits is a different bet than one with a hundred thousand installs and an Anthropic Verified badge.
  • Uninstalling a plugin does not always undo everything it touched, especially MCP servers that created accounts or API keys elsewhere. Clean those up manually if you stop using a plugin.

If you are still explaining the same workflow to Claude every single session, plugins are the fastest fix you have not tried yet. Share this with the one person on your team still doing everything manually.

Sources

  1. Plugins for Claude, official directory and FAQ, Anthropic
  2. Customize Claude Code with plugins, Anthropic blog, October 9, 2025
  3. Claude Cowork product page, Anthropic
  4. Connectors for Claude, Anthropic
  5. Plugin directory listings and install counts, Anthropic, accessed August 2026
  6. Create plugins, Claude Code documentation
  7. Plugins reference, Claude Code documentation

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