How to add agent skills to Cursor

What you need before you start

A pack from a seller on ProvenSkills, free or paid, claimed under an email you can receive a code at. And Cursor, on any plan that allows MCP servers, which today is all of them. If you haven't picked a pack, browse the skill packs or start with a free one.

One thing to know up front. A skill pack on ProvenSkills is instructions, not code. When Cursor calls one, it gets back a set of steps for the Agent to follow, plus any reference files the seller included. Nothing runs on your machine that wasn't going to run anyway. If you want the longer version, read what an agent skill is.

How do I add a skill pack to Cursor with the install link?

1. Open the seller's connect page. Every storefront has one, and the email you got after subscribing links to it.
2. Press "Add to Cursor." Cursor opens and shows you the server it's about to add: the seller's name and the address. Confirm.
3. Cursor lists the new server under its MCP settings with a sign-in prompt. Click it. Your browser opens a page that names the pack and asks for your email.
4. Enter the six-digit code from your inbox. Accept the seller's license once. The browser sends you back to Cursor.
5. Open the Agent and ask for a job the pack covers. The skills show up as tools, one per skill, named after the skill.

The install link carries the server address inside it, so there's nothing to copy. If Cursor doesn't open when you press the button, your browser blocked the handoff. Use the manual route below. It ends in the same place.

How do I add it by hand in Cursor's MCP settings?

Open Cursor Settings, find the MCP section, and choose to add a new server. Cursor opens its mcp.json file. Add an entry with the seller's server address, which is printed under the buttons on every connect page. It looks like this, with your seller's address in place of the example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Seller name": {
      "url": "https://mcp.provenskills.ai/<seller>/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Save the file. Cursor picks it up without a restart and shows the server with a sign-in prompt. From there it's the same as the install link: click to sign in, enter the code, accept the license.

Leave the other fields alone. There's no command to run, no API key to paste, and no headers to set. The address is the whole configuration. Everything else, including who you are and which packs you hold, gets sorted out at sign-in.

How do I use the skills in Cursor?

In the Agent, ask in plain words. "Draft the follow-up email from this transcript." "Here's the carrier estimate, what do I push back on." The Agent sees the tool descriptions and calls the right one. The tool returns the skill's instructions, and the Agent follows them in the same turn. You'll see the call in the transcript, which is a good way to check that the skill you expected is the one that fired.

If the Agent doesn't pick the skill, name it. Type the skill's name or the seller's name in your request. In my experience that's only needed for the first day or two, until you've seen how each skill's description is worded. Cursor also lets you turn individual tools on and off per server in its MCP settings, so if a pack has a skill you never use, switch it off and the Agent stops considering it.

Some skills ask for a value once, like a firm name or a pipeline id, and use it every time after. Your organization admin fills those in on the organization page on ProvenSkills. Until they're filled, the skill tells the Agent what's missing and the Agent asks you.

How does a team share a pack in Cursor?

There's no Owner step in Cursor. Each person adds the server to their own Cursor and signs in with their own email. Access follows the organization that holds the pack, so as long as the admin has added you as a member, your sign-in works.

If your team works in one repository, you can put the same mcp.json entry in a project-level MCP config that lives in the repo. Everyone who opens the project sees the server and signs in once. The address is public, so committing it is safe. What's private is the sign-in, and that never leaves each person's own browser.

What do I do when a skill stops firing?

Start by checking the server's status in Cursor's MCP settings. If it shows a sign-in prompt again, sign in again. On an error, remove the server and add it back with the install link. That resets the connection and fixes most cases. Then look for one of these:

• The subscription lapsed. A card failed or someone cancelled. The tool returns a short message naming the pack and linking to your organization page, where you can see the status and fix billing in the seller's portal. Free access can be removed too, and the message says so.
• Your access was revoked. The admin on your organization page can remove a member's connection. Ask them, then sign in again from Cursor's MCP settings once you're added back.
• The pack changed shape. When a seller updates a skill you already have, you get the new version with nothing to do. If they add or remove a whole skill, Cursor keeps its old tool list until you refresh the server in the MCP settings, or remove and re-add it. The release note says when that's needed.

If none of that applies, the connection is fine and the Agent didn't choose the skill. Name it in your request. If naming it works, the description didn't match the way you asked, and the seller would want to know.

Does the same pack work in Claude too?

Yes. One subscription covers your organization in every app the seller supports, and you can be connected from Cursor and Claude at the same time under the same email. The Claude steps are on how to add skills to Claude. Whichever app you use, the packs and the free ones are the same.