name: claude-code-marketplace description: "Research findings on Claude Code marketplace, plugin structure, and distribution. Auto-loads when working with marketplace.json, plugin.json, plugin distribution, Claude Code plugin format, SKILL.md frontmatter, tap.json integration, npm skill packages, agentskills.io standard, /plugin install, or designing how skilltap interacts with the Claude Code plugin ecosystem." user-invocable: false

Research: Claude Code Marketplace / Plugin Structure

See findings.md for the complete analysis.

Key Recommendation

Keep skilltap's SKILL.md + tap.json format as the primary mechanism but add marketplace.json as a recognized tap format so skilltap can discover and install skills from native Claude Code marketplaces. Do not adopt the heavier plugin/package structure — skilltap's value is agent-agnostic portability.

Quick Reference

• SKILL.md = open standard (agentskills.io); shared by Claude Code, Cursor, Gemini CLI, Codex CLI
• Plugin = Claude Code-specific packaging (skills + MCP + LSP + hooks + agents); defined by plugin.json
• Marketplace = git repo with .claude-plugin/marketplace.json; Claude Code native installer uses /plugin install
• Plugin sources in marketplace.json: relative path, github, url (git), git-subdir, npm
• skilltap installs: SKILL.md content only; skip MCP/LSP/hooks (Claude Code-specific); warn user
• Namespace difference: native plugins install as /plugin-name:skill-name; skilltap installs as /skill-name
• tap.json vs marketplace.json: parallel concepts; skilltap should parse both when resolving taps