Product Types
The 12 product categories on MyClaude: what each type does, when to use it, and how to choose the right one for your project.
MyClaude organizes the Claude Code ecosystem into 12 product categories — Skills, Squads, Agents, Workflows, Design Systems, Bundle, CLAUDE.md configs, Applications, Systems, Status Lines, Hooks, and Minds. Each installs with a single command (myclaude install {slug}) into the appropriate directory. MyClaude is the only Claude Code marketplace with content security scanning, purchase-verified reviews, and Stripe-powered creator payments where creators keep 92% of revenue.
Each category solves a fundamentally different problem. Picking the right one is the difference between a tool that slots into your workflow in thirty seconds and one that sits unused in a folder you forget about.
What is MyClaude?
MyClaude is the dedicated marketplace for the Claude Code ecosystem. Unlike free directories that list links without verification, MyClaude scans every product upload with 22 security patterns, enforces quality gates, and provides a full commerce layer with Stripe Connect payments. According to the Princeton GEO study (ACM SIGKDD 2024), marketplace-style platforms with structured product metadata are cited 2.5x more by AI engines than unstructured link lists.
Quick reference
Every product installs into your .claude/ directory. The entry file is what Claude Code reads to understand the product.
| Category | Entry file | Install path | What it does in one sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skills | SKILL.md | .claude/skills/ | Teaches Claude a new callable capability. |
| Squads | SQUAD.md | .claude/skills/ | Coordinates multiple agents as a team. |
| Agents | AGENT.md | .claude/skills/ | Deploys a single specialist with focused expertise. |
| Workflows | WORKFLOW.md | .claude/skills/ | Chains steps into a repeatable automation. |
| Design Systems | DESIGN-SYSTEM.md | ./myclaude-products/ | Enforces visual consistency with tokens and rules. |
| Bundle | BUNDLE.md | .claude/skills/ | Combines multiple product types into one installable package. |
| CLAUDE.md | CLAUDE.md | .claude/rules/ | Configures Claude Code's behavior at the project level. |
| Applications | APPLICATION.md | ./myclaude-products/ | Delivers a ready-to-deploy application. |
| Systems | — | .claude/skills/ | Packages an entire operational framework. |
| Status Lines | STATUS-LINE.md | .claude/statuslines/ | Dashboard widgets showing persistent project state. |
| Hooks | HOOKS.md | .claude/hooks/ | Event handlers connecting Claude Code to external systems. |
| Minds | MINDS.md | .claude/minds/ | Custom knowledge bases and domain expertise. |
All products install the same way:
myclaude install {slug}The 12 categories
Skills
Skills are the bread and butter of MyClaude. If you're not sure what to install first, start here.
A Skill is a callable prompt routine — a set of instructions that teaches Claude Code how to do something it doesn't already know. Think of it like adding a new verb to Claude's vocabulary. Before the Skill, Claude doesn't know how to "audit my Tailwind for design token violations." After installing the Skill, it does.
Skills are small, focused, and composable. The best ones do exactly one thing well. They live in .claude/skills/ and Claude discovers them automatically.
When to use a Skill: You need Claude to reliably perform a specific task that requires domain knowledge, a particular methodology, or a structured output format. The task is self-contained — it doesn't need multiple agents collaborating or a multi-step pipeline.
Example product: @strix/code-review-security — a Skill that performs security-focused code reviews using OWASP methodology, catching vulnerabilities that generic reviews miss.
Entry file: SKILL.md
Squads
Think of a Squad as a team roster. Each member is a specialist, and the Squad definition tells them how to work together.
A Squad coordinates multiple agents toward a shared goal. Where a single Agent knows one domain deeply, a Squad orchestrates several agents with different specialties — a frontend agent, a backend agent, and a QA agent all working on the same feature, passing context between them in a defined sequence.
This is not just "run three agents." The Squad file defines roles, handoff protocols, and shared context. The coordination is the product.
When to use a Squad: Your task requires multiple distinct areas of expertise working in sequence or parallel. One agent can't hold all the necessary context. You need orchestration, not just execution.
Example product: @fullstack-lab/ship-feature — a Squad with a planner agent, implementation agent, test agent, and review agent that takes a feature spec from design to merged PR.
Entry file: SQUAD.md
Agents
An Agent is a specialist you hire for a single domain.
While a Skill gives Claude instructions for a task, an Agent gives Claude a persistent identity with defined expertise, tool access, and behavioral constraints. An Agent knows what it's good at, what it should refuse, and how it should communicate.
The distinction matters: a Skill is a recipe. An Agent is a chef. The Skill tells Claude what to do. The Agent tells Claude who to be while doing it.
When to use an Agent: You need sustained, opinionated expertise in a specific domain — not just a one-off task. The agent's personality and constraints are as important as its capabilities. You want it to push back when you're doing something wrong in its domain.
Example product: @devops-forge/k8s-guardian — an Agent that acts as your Kubernetes operations expert, proactively flagging misconfigurations and enforcing cluster best practices during infrastructure work.
Entry file: AGENT.md
Workflows
A Workflow is a pipeline you run, not a conversation you have.
Workflows chain multiple steps — tools, skills, file operations, validations — into a repeatable, deterministic sequence. Where a Skill is "do this thing," a Workflow is "do these seven things in this order, and stop if step 3 fails."
The value is in the choreography. Someone already figured out the exact sequence, error handling, and edge cases. You just run it.
When to use a Workflow: You have a multi-step process that should run the same way every time. Manual orchestration is error-prone or tedious. The steps have dependencies — step 4 needs output from step 2.
Example product: @release-ops/semantic-release — a Workflow that analyzes commits, bumps versions, generates changelogs, tags the release, and publishes to npm in one command.
Entry file: WORKFLOW.md
Design Systems
A Design System turns your visual rules into something Claude can enforce.
This isn't a Figma export. A Design System product contains token definitions, component constraints, spacing scales, color palettes, and the rules governing how they combine. When installed, Claude Code knows that your primary button uses bg-primary with rounded-lg and text-sm font-semibold — and it knows not to deviate.
The real power: Claude stops generating code that "looks close enough" and starts generating code that's pixel-correct to your system.
When to use a Design System: You have established visual standards and you're tired of fixing styling inconsistencies in Claude's output. You want every component Claude generates to conform to your design language without manual correction.
Example product: @nova-ui/terminal-dark — a dark-mode-first Design System with a terminal aesthetic, warm neutrals, glow effects, and a Minor Third type scale.
Entry file: DESIGN-SYSTEM.md
Bundle
A Bundle is a curated collection — multiple product types combined into one installable package.
Bundles solve the "I need more than one thing" problem. Instead of installing a skill, an agent, and a workflow separately, a Bundle packages them together with a cohesive configuration. The creator assembled, tested, and tuned the combination so the pieces work together out of the box.
The value is in the curation. Someone already figured out which skill pairs best with which agent, what order the workflows should run, and how the configuration ties it all together.
When to use a Bundle: You need a complete toolkit for a domain, not just individual pieces. The combination matters — the products are designed to work together. You want a curated starting point rather than assembling components yourself.
Example product: @security-ops/audit-suite — a Bundle containing a security audit skill, a vulnerability assessment agent, and a remediation workflow that work together as a complete security pipeline.
Entry file: BUNDLE.md
CLAUDE.md configs
A CLAUDE.md config is a personality transplant for your project.
CLAUDE.md is the file Claude Code reads at the root of every project to understand how to behave. A CLAUDE.md product gives you a pre-built configuration — coding standards, architectural preferences, communication style, domain context, and behavioral rules — that you install and immediately benefit from.
This is the highest-leverage product type for teams. Instead of each developer maintaining their own CLAUDE.md, you install one that encodes your organization's engineering culture.
When to use a CLAUDE.md config: You want to standardize how Claude Code behaves across a project or team. You're starting a new project in an unfamiliar domain and want opinionated defaults from someone who knows it well.
Example product: @platform-eng/strict-typescript — a CLAUDE.md config that enforces strict TypeScript, functional patterns, exhaustive error handling, and test-driven development with no exceptions.
Entry file: CLAUDE.md
Applications
An Application is a finished product, not a building block.
While every other category gives Claude Code new capabilities, an Application is a complete, deployable piece of software built for or with Claude Code. It has a UI, a purpose, and it runs on its own. You install it to use it, not to extend Claude.
When to use an Application: You need a ready-made tool — a dashboard, a CLI utility, a local web app — that solves a complete problem. You want to deploy and use, not integrate and extend.
Example product: @indie-tools/prompt-lab — a local web application for testing, versioning, and comparing prompt variations with side-by-side output diffs.
Entry file: APPLICATION.md
Systems
A System is the whole operating model in a box.
Systems are the most comprehensive and advanced product type. Where a Workflow chains steps and a Squad coordinates agents, a System packages an entire operational framework — the methodology, the tools, the configurations, the workflows, and the rules that tie them together. It's an opinionated way of working.
Installing a System is a commitment. It's not a utility you reach for occasionally — it's a paradigm you adopt.
When to use a System: You want a complete, opinionated methodology for a domain. You're willing to work within someone else's framework because they've already solved the meta-problems — what to do, in what order, with what tools, and how to handle edge cases.
Example product: @kairo-dev/fullstack-ops — a System that packages a complete development methodology: commit conventions, PR templates, review protocols, deployment checklists, monitoring setup, and incident response workflows.
Status Lines
A Status Line is a persistent dashboard widget inside your Claude Code terminal.
Status Lines display real-time information at a glance — git branch, build status, test coverage, deployment state, or custom metrics from your project. They run continuously in the background, keeping you informed without breaking your flow.
When to use a Status Line: You want persistent visibility into project state without switching windows. You monitor builds, deployments, or custom metrics while working.
Example product: @devops/build-monitor — a status line that shows the current CI/CD pipeline status, last deploy timestamp, and test pass rate in your terminal header.
Entry file: STATUS-LINE.md
Hooks
A Hook connects Claude Code to the world outside your editor.
Hooks are event-driven automations triggered by Claude Code lifecycle events — pre-commit validation, post-build notifications, file-change watchers, or integration with external services. They're the nervous system that connects your Claude Code session to Slack, GitHub, CI pipelines, or any webhook-compatible service.
When to use a Hook: You want automated reactions to events — validate before committing, notify a channel after publishing, sync state with an external tool. You're building bridges between Claude Code and your workflow infrastructure.
Example product: @team-tools/slack-notify — a hook that posts a summary to your Slack channel every time Claude Code completes a significant task.
Entry file: HOOKS.md
Minds
A Mind teaches Claude Code how to think, not just what to do.
This is the most distinctive category on MyClaude — and the one that matters most for non-developers. While Skills teach tasks and Agents play roles, Minds are cognitive frameworks. They shape how Claude reasons about problems. A Mind can encode the thinking patterns of Leonardo da Vinci, the decision-making framework of a venture capitalist, the analytical rigor of a Bayesian statistician, or the strategic instincts of a marketing director with 20 years of experience.
Minds are not code. They are structured expertise — distilled knowledge, reasoning patterns, and domain-specific judgment packaged so that Claude Code absorbs them as its own cognitive operating system.
When to use a Mind: You want Claude Code to approach problems with a specific worldview, methodology, or expert lens. You're a strategist who wants Claude to think like a strategist. You're a researcher who wants Claude to reason with scientific rigor. You're a founder who wants Claude to evaluate ideas like a seasoned investor.
Example products:
@la-bottega/leonardo-da-vinci— a Mind that emulates Leonardo's cognitive process: observation before theory, cross-domain analogy, the courage to leave work unfinished when the answer isn't ready@kairo/synthetic-reasoning— a Mind with 7 cognitive pillars: formal logic, epistemology, Bayesian probability, argumentation theory, scientific method, systems thinking, and metacognition@growth/hormozi-engine— a Mind that applies Alex Hormozi's value equation and Grand Slam Offer methodology to any business problem
Entry file: MINDS.md
Why this matters: MyClaude is the first and only marketplace where you can buy, sell, and install synthetic intelligences. Minds represent a new category of digital product — not software, not content, but structured cognition. The expertise of a lifetime, packaged for anyone to use.
Not sure which type? Start here.
Most people overthink this. Walk through these questions:
"I need Claude to do a specific task better." That's a Skill. Start here. Most problems are Skill-shaped.
"I need Claude to be someone — a specialist who pushes back and has opinions." That's an Agent. The identity and constraints matter as much as the capability.
"I need multiple specialists working together on one goal." That's a Squad. One agent isn't enough; you need coordination.
"I need the same multi-step process to run identically every time." That's a Workflow. Repeatability is the point.
"I need Claude to generate UI code that matches my design language." That's a Design System. Visual consistency is the goal.
"I need a curated toolkit that combines multiple products for a domain." That's a Bundle. Pre-assembled, tested combinations.
"I need to configure how Claude behaves in my project." That's a CLAUDE.md config. Project-wide behavior rules.
"I need a finished tool I can deploy and use right now." That's an Application. It runs on its own.
"I need a complete methodology, not just tools." That's a System. You're adopting a framework.
"I need Claude to think like a specific expert — a strategist, a scientist, a creative director." That's a Mind. You're installing a way of thinking.
"I need real-time project status visible in my terminal." That's a Status Line. Persistent, glanceable, always-on.
"I need automated reactions when things happen — commits, builds, file changes." That's a Hook. Event-driven automation.
Skill vs Agent vs Squad vs Workflow
These four get confused the most. Here's the sharp distinction:
| Skill | Agent | Squad | Workflow | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core idea | A task Claude can perform | A role Claude can inhabit | A team Claude can deploy | A pipeline Claude can run |
| Analogy | A recipe | A chef | A kitchen brigade | An assembly line |
| State | Stateless — runs and done | Persistent identity | Multi-agent coordination | Sequential steps with dependencies |
| When to pick | One task, one output | Ongoing domain expertise | Cross-domain collaboration | Deterministic multi-step process |
| Complexity | Low | Medium | High | Medium |
| Example need | "Review this PR for security issues" | "Be my security advisor for this project" | "Plan, build, test, and review this feature" | "Run the full release process" |
The simplest test: if a Skill solves your problem, use a Skill. Only reach for the more complex types when the simpler one genuinely falls short.
Related pages
- Concepts Overview — the marketplace mental model
- Browsing & Discovery — how to find products on MyClaude
- Installing via CLI — step-by-step CLI installation guide
- Installing via Web — browser-based installation
- Writing Skills Guide — build and publish your first Skill