How Codex, Claude Code and Gemini CLI load agent skills

Codex and Gemini CLI read agent skills from the same project folder, .agents/skills, so one copy serves both; Claude Code reads .claude/skills, so it needs a second copy or a symlink. Pick Codex or Gemini CLI if you want one shared folder with other agents, and Claude Code if you want the longest-running native support (since 2025-10-16) and plugins that bundle skills with hooks and subagents. OpenCode, the fourth tool here, reads both folders. We compared 4 terminal agents on skill folders, native skill features, plugins, MCP setup and price of entry; facts checked on 2026-10-01.

Side by side

The project folder each of 78 agents reads is in where every agent looks for skills.

OpenAI Codex: the shared .agents/skills folder

OpenAI Codex is a coding agent by OpenAI with an Apache-2.0 open source CLI, a cloud agent and IDE extensions, for teams that want one skills folder shared with other agents. Codex says its skills build on the open agent skills standard, and it reads repo skills from .agents/skills in the current folder, its parent and the repo root, user skills from ~/.agents/skills, admin skills from /etc/codex/skills, and skills bundled with Codex. Skills arrived on 2025-12-19, and on 2026-01-22 OpenAI deprecated custom prompts in favour of skills. Codex plugins, browsed with /plugins in the CLI, can bundle skills and MCP servers, per OpenAI's plugins page read on 2026-10-01. Its strength is the folder: .agents/skills is the same one Gemini CLI, Cursor, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode read. Its limit is cost on a ChatGPT plan: the pricing page lists the CLI from the paid Plus plan up, though an API key or --oss avoids that. Details: OpenAI Codex on CookiesForAI.

Claude Code: its own folder and the deepest plugins

Claude Code is Anthropic's terminal coding agent, for developers who want skills to sit alongside hooks and subagents in one package. It reads project skills from .claude/skills/name/SKILL.md, personal skills from ~/.claude/skills, and skills inside installed plugins, and it says its skills follow the agentskills.io open standard. Native support arrived in version 2.0.20 on 2025-10-16, the earliest of the four. Its strength is the plugin: one install can bring skills, subagents and hooks, and hooks fire at more than six named points such as SessionStart and PreToolUse. MCP servers are added with claude mcp add, scoped local, project or user, and project servers live in .mcp.json at the repo root. Its limit is the folder: .claude/skills is read by Claude Code and a few others (OpenCode, GitHub Copilot, Cursor) but not by Codex or Gemini CLI. It has no free tier: it needs a paid Claude plan or an API account, read on claude.com/pricing on 2026-10-01. Details: Claude Code on CookiesForAI.

Gemini CLI: skills commands and extensions

Gemini CLI is Google's Apache-2.0 open source terminal agent, for developers who want skills managed from the command line and a free way to start. It reads workspace skills from .gemini/skills or .agents/skills, user skills from ~/.gemini/skills or ~/.agents/skills, and skills shipped inside extensions. Skills arrived as an experimental preview in v0.23.0 on 2026-01-07 and were on by default later that month; gemini skills list and gemini skills install manage them. MCP servers are added with gemini mcp add, where --scope picks user or project, and are saved under mcpServers in .gemini/settings.json. Its strength is entry: a Gemini API key has a free tier on the Flash model, per the quota page read on 2026-10-01. Its limit is access: since 2026-06-18 free personal Google accounts and Google AI Pro and Ultra plans are served by Antigravity CLI instead, which also reads .agents/skills. Details: Gemini CLI on CookiesForAI.

OpenCode: reads both folders

OpenCode is an MIT-licensed terminal coding agent by Anomaly, included here because it removes the folder split: it reads .opencode/skills, .claude/skills and .agents/skills in a project, searching up to the git worktree root, and the matching folders in your home directory. Skills load through a built-in skill tool; the docs give no date it was added. Its strength is that a team mixing Claude Code with Codex or Gemini CLI can point OpenCode at either folder, and use it with 75+ model providers or local models. OpenCode plugins, loaded from .opencode/plugins or npm packages named in opencode.json, add event hooks and custom tools; the plugins page we read on 2026-10-01 does not say they ship skills. MCP servers go under the mcp key in opencode.json. Its limit is the v2 move: classic and v2 docs give different MCP config shapes. OpenCode had 211,260 GitHub stars on 2026-10-01. Details: OpenCode on CookiesForAI.

How we compared

We read each tool's skills, MCP and plugin docs and its pricing page on 2026-10-01, and recorded the result in each tool's file on CookiesForAI; this page draws on those files. For Codex we also read OpenAI's plugins page, and for OpenCode its plugins page, the same day. The criteria were where each agent reads skills, when native support arrived, how skills are bundled, how MCP servers are added, and whether a working setup is possible for free. We did not test how reliably each agent picks the right skill for a task, and we did not compare model quality.

How to choose

• If your team uses several agents, keep skills in .agents/skills: Codex, Gemini CLI and OpenCode read it, and so do Cursor and GitHub Copilot.
• If you use Claude Code too, add a symlink from .claude/skills to the same skill, or install with the open skills CLI, which makes the symlink for you.
• If you want skills shipped together with hooks and subagents, Claude Code plugins do that; Codex plugins bundle skills with MCP servers.
• If you want to start for free, use OpenCode with a local model or Gemini CLI with a Gemini API key.
• If you used Gemini CLI on a personal Google account, your .agents/skills folder works in Antigravity CLI.