# Claude Code plugins: how to install them, the official marketplace, and the most popular ones

One command installs a bundle of skills, hooks and tools. What's in Anthropic's marketplace, which plugins people actually use, and what to check before you install one.

Published 2026-10-07 by Richard Kaminsky and Mitchell Lipyansky, the co-founders of Poly. Canonical: https://usepoly.co/claude-code-plugins
Poly is a multiplayer AI coding workspace: a shared room where your team works with one AI agent, together. Free to start: https://usepoly.co/

**A Claude Code plugin is a package of skills, slash commands, subagents, hooks, MCP servers or language servers that installs in one step. Type /plugin to browse: Claude Code adds Anthropic's official marketplace, claude-plugins-official, on first launch, with 315 plugins as of October 7, 2026. Install one with /plugin install name@claude-plugins-official, or add another marketplace with /plugin marketplace add owner/repo. The most installed are Anthropic's frontend-design (about 1.1 million installs), the community superpowers collection, and Anthropic's code-review. Anthropic warns that a plugin "can execute arbitrary code on your machine with your user privileges," so install only from sources you trust.**

## Key takeaways

- **What:** a bundle of skills, commands, subagents, hooks, MCP and LSP servers, installed and updated as one unit.
- **Where:** `/plugin` has Discover, Installed, Marketplaces and Errors tabs; the official marketplace also lists install counts on the web.
- **Popular:** frontend-design, superpowers, code-review, context7, code-simplifier, playwright and github top the list.
- **Not free in context:** every enabled plugin adds its skill and command descriptions to every turn; Claude Code shows a context cost for official plugins.
- **Teams:** list a marketplace and plugins in the repository's `.claude/settings.json`, or lock them down with managed settings.

*The most installed Claude Code plugins, from Anthropic's marketplace, October 7, 2026.*

| Plugin | Made by | What it does | Installs |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| frontend-design | Anthropic | Production-grade interfaces | 1.13 million |
| superpowers | Jesse Vincent | Development skills collection | 1.01 million |
| code-review | Anthropic | Multi-agent pull request review | 439,000 |
| context7 | Upstash | Current library docs | 418,000 |
| code-simplifier | Anthropic | Refines code for clarity | 347,000 |
| playwright | Microsoft | Browser automation | 320,000 |
| github | GitHub | GitHub tools | 319,000 |
| claude-md-management | Anthropic | Audits CLAUDE.md | 287,000 |

## What is a Claude Code plugin?

A folder Claude Code loads as one unit, usually with a manifest at `.claude-plugin/plugin.json` ([Anthropic](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins)). It can contain skills, commands, subagents, hooks, MCP servers, language servers (LSP), output styles and more. A plugin's skills are namespaced, so a skill `hello` in `my-plugin` runs as `/my-plugin:hello`.

**Plugins vs skills:** a skill is one set of instructions ([Claude Code skills](/claude-code-skills)). Anthropic suggests a plugin "when you want several skills, subagents, hooks, or MCP servers packaged as one unit," with one-command install and updates.

## How do you install Claude Code plugins?

From Anthropic's guide ([Anthropic](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins/install)):

- **Browse:** type `/plugin` and open Discover. Official plugins show what they'll install and their context cost.
- **Install:** `/plugin install frontend-design@claude-plugins-official`, then choose a scope: user (all your projects), project (`.claude/settings.json`, shared through git) or local.
- **Add a marketplace:** `/plugin marketplace add owner/repo` (a GitHub repository, git URL or local path).
- **Manage:** `/plugin enable`, `disable` and `uninstall`; `/reload-plugins` applies changes without restarting.
- **From the shell:** `claude plugin install`, `list`, `update` and more.

Official marketplace plugins update automatically; community and third-party marketplaces don't unless you turn it on. Cloud sessions on claude.ai/code don't load your local plugins.

## What are the best Claude Code plugins?

The ten most installed on Anthropic's marketplace, October 7, 2026 ([Anthropic](https://claude.com/marketplace/plugins)):

1. **frontend-design** (Anthropic): distinctive, production-grade interfaces, about 1.13 million installs.
2. **superpowers** (Jesse Vincent): a collection of development skills, about 1.01 million.
3. **code-review** (Anthropic): multi-agent pull request review.
4. **context7** (Upstash): up-to-date library documentation.
5. **code-simplifier** (Anthropic): refines code for clarity.
6. **playwright** (Microsoft): browser automation.
7. **github** (GitHub).
8. **claude-md-management** (Anthropic): audits and updates CLAUDE.md.
9. **feature-dev** (Anthropic): a feature workflow with exploration, architecture and review agents.
10. **security-guidance** (Anthropic): flags risky code as Claude edits ([Is Claude Code safe?](/claude-code-security)).

Also popular: vercel, typescript-lsp, ralph-loop, commit-commands, figma, supabase and pr-review-toolkit. Note that "Anthropic verified" isn't the same as made by Anthropic: the badge also appears on vendors' plugins such as Slack and Adobe.

## Which plugins reduce token usage?

The one Anthropic documents is **code-intelligence (LSP) plugins**: "A single 'go to definition' call replaces what might otherwise be a grep followed by reading multiple candidate files" ([Anthropic](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/costs)). The official marketplace has them for 12 languages, including TypeScript, Python (pyright), Go, Rust, Java and C#; you also install the language server itself. No official plugin otherwise claims to save tokens, and plugins themselves cost context: check with `claude plugin details <name>` and disable ones you don't use. More in [How to reduce Claude Code token usage](/reduce-claude-code-token-usage).

## How do teams share plugins?

Commit this to the repository's `.claude/settings.json` and teammates are offered the marketplace and plugin when they trust the folder ([Anthropic](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins/org)):

```
{
  "extraKnownMarketplaces": {
    "team": { "source": { "source": "github", "repo": "your-org/plugins" } }
  },
  "enabledPlugins": { "tool@team": true }
}
```

Organizations can allow only listed marketplaces with `strictKnownMarketplaces`, block others with `blockedMarketplaces`, and push settings through managed policy.

## How do you make a Claude Code plugin?

Create a folder with `.claude-plugin/plugin.json` (only `name` is required) and your skills, hooks or MCP config; check it with `claude plugin validate`, and test it with `claude --plugin-dir ./my-plugin` ([Anthropic](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins/create)). To publish, add a `.claude-plugin/marketplace.json` to a git repository; anyone can then add it with `/plugin marketplace add`. Anthropic's `plugin-dev` plugin scaffolds one for you.

## Are Claude Code plugins safe?

As safe as their author. A plugin "can execute arbitrary code on your machine with your user privileges"; its hooks and MCP servers run outside the sandbox, and with auto-update on, the files you reviewed can change ([Anthropic](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/plugins/security)). Before installing, read the details pane, the plugin's `hooks/hooks.json` and `.mcp.json`, and prefer Anthropic's and vendors' own plugins. Anthropic doesn't review third-party marketplaces.

## Plugins in Codex and Cursor

- **Codex:** one plugin directory serves ChatGPT and Codex; open it with `/plugins` in the Codex CLI ([OpenAI](https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/plugins)).
- **Cursor:** a reviewed Cursor Marketplace, plus team marketplaces on Teams and Enterprise ([Cursor](https://cursor.com/docs/plugins)).

## One setup for a whole team

A plugin listed in the repository still runs in each person's own session. In Poly (usepoly.co), a team works with one Claude Code or Codex agent in a shared browser room with one setup, everyone sees each step live, and any member can approve a change before it happens. Free to start. [What is Poly?](/what-is-poly)

## Common questions

**How do I install a Claude Code plugin?**

Type /plugin and pick one from Discover, or run /plugin install name@claude-plugins-official and choose a scope. Add other marketplaces with /plugin marketplace add owner/repo.

**What is the official Claude Code plugin marketplace?**

claude-plugins-official, run by Anthropic and added automatically on first launch. It listed 315 plugins on October 7, 2026, from Anthropic and vendors such as GitHub, Microsoft, Vercel and Figma.

**What is the difference between plugins and skills?**

A skill is one set of instructions Claude loads when relevant. A plugin packages several skills, commands, subagents, hooks or MCP servers so they install and update together.

**What are the most popular Claude Code plugins?**

On Anthropic's marketplace in October 2026: frontend-design, superpowers, code-review, context7, code-simplifier, playwright, github, claude-md-management, feature-dev and security-guidance.

**Are Claude Code plugins safe?**

Only as safe as their source: Anthropic says a plugin can execute arbitrary code with your user privileges. Prefer Anthropic's and vendors' own plugins, and read a plugin's hooks and MCP config before installing.

More guides: https://usepoly.co/guides · Security: https://usepoly.co/security · Pricing: https://usepoly.co/pricing