Extending Claude’s capabilities with skills and MCP servers扩展Claude的能力通过技能与MCP服务器https://claude.com/blog/extending-claude-capabilities-with-skills-mcp-serversDecember 19, 2025Update:Weve publishedAgent Skillsas an open standard for cross-platform portability. (December 18, 2025)更新我们已将“智能体技能”发布为跨平台可移植性的开放标准。2025年12月18日https://agentskills.io/homeSince launching Skills, two of the biggest questions we’ve heard from customers are: How do skills and MCP work together? When should I use one versus the other?自推出技能功能以来我们最常听到客户提出的两大问题是技能与MCP如何协同工作何时该使用其中一种而非另一种https://claude.com/blog/skillsModel Context Protocol (MCP) connects Claude to third-party tools, and skills teach Claude how to use them well. When you combine both, you can build agents that follow your team’s workflows, not generic processes that require constant correction.For example, an MCP connection to Notion lets Claude search your workspace. Add a skill for meeting prep, and Claude knowswhichpages to pull from,howto format the prep document, andwhatyour team’s standards are for delivering meeting notes. The connection becomes useful instead of just available.In this article, we break down the relationship between skills and MCP, how to combine them to build agents that follow your workflows to produce consistent outputs, and walk through a few real-world examples of how they work together in practice.模型上下文协议MCP将Claude与第三方工具连接而技能则教会Claude如何高效使用这些工具。当二者结合时您就能构建出遵循团队工作流的智能代理而非需要不断修正的通用流程。例如通过MCP连接Notion后Claude可搜索您的工作区。若再添加会议准备技能Claude就能知道该调用哪些页面、如何格式化准备文档以及团队提交会议记录的标准规范。这样的连接才能真正发挥价值而非仅停留在技术可用层面。本文将解析技能与MCP的协作关系演示如何通过二者组合构建符合工作流的智能代理以输出稳定成果并通过几个真实案例展示它们在实际场景中的协同运作方式。Understanding skills and MCPYou walk into a hardware store looking to fix a broken cabinet. The store has everything you need (wood glue, clamps, replacement hinges) but knowing what items to buy and how to use them is a different problem.MCP is like having access to the aisles. Skills, meanwhile, are like an employees expertise. All the inventory in the world wont help if you dont know which items you need or how to use them. A skill is like the helpful employee who walks you through the repair process, points you to the right supplies, and shows you proper technique.Put more concretely, an MCP server gives Claude access to your external systems, services, and platforms, while skills provide the context Claude needs to use those connections effectively, teaching Claude what to do now that it has this access.Without the context that skills provide, Claude has to guess at what you want. With a skill, Claude can follow your playbook instead.理解技能与MCP当你走进五金店想修理破损的橱柜时店里应有尽有木工胶、夹具、替换铰链。但知道该买哪些物品以及如何使用它们则是另一个问题。MCP就像拥有进入货架通道的权限而技能则如同店员的专业知识。若不清楚需要什么物品或如何使用纵使拥有全世界库存也无济于事。技能就像是那位协助你完成维修流程的员工为你指明正确工具并示范专业手法。具体而言MCP服务器让Claude能接入你的外部系统、服务和平台而技能则提供Claude有效利用这些连接所需的上下文教会Claude在获得接入权限后该如何操作。若缺乏技能提供的上下文Claude只能猜测你的意图。但有了技能Claude就能遵循你的操作手册来执行任务。Why skills and MCP work well togetherMCP handles connectivity: secure, standardized access to external systems. Whether youre connecting to GitHub, Salesforce, Notion, or your own internal APIs, MCP servers give Claude the ability to reach your tools and data.Skills handle expertise: the domain knowledge and workflow logic that turn raw tool access into reliable outcomes. A skill knows when to query your CRM, what to look for in the results, how to format the output, and which edge cases require different handling.This separation keeps the architecture composable. A single skill can orchestrate multiple MCP servers, while a single MCP server can support dozens of different skills. Add a new connection, and existing skills can incorporate it. Refine a skill, and it works across all your connected tools.为什么技能与MCP能完美协作MCP负责连接性提供对外部系统的安全标准化访问。无论是连接GitHub、Salesforce、Notion还是内部APIMCP服务器都能让Claude触达您的工具和数据。技能负责专业能力通过领域知识和工作流逻辑将原始工具访问转化为可靠结果。一个技能知道何时查询CRM、在结果中寻找什么、如何格式化输出以及哪些特殊情况需要区别处理。这种分工保持了架构的可组合性。单个技能可以协调多个MCP服务器而单个MCP服务器可支持数十种不同技能。新增连接时现有技能可立即整合优化某个技能时它能立即在所有连接工具上生效。When you combine skills and MCP, you get:Clear discovery: Claude stops guessing where to look. A meeting prep skill might specify: check the project page first, then previous meeting notes, then stakeholder profiles. A research skill might say: start with the shared drive, cross-reference against the CRM, then fill gaps with web search. The skill encodes institutional knowledge about which sources matter for which tasks.Reliable orchestration: Multi-step workflows become predictable. Without a skill, Claude might pull data and format it before checking whether it has everything. Skills define the sequence explicitly, so Claude executes the workflow the same way every time.Consistent performance: Outputs actually meet standards. Generic results need editing. Skills define what done looks like for your team: the right structure, the right level of detail, the right tone for your audience.Over time, teams build up collections of interrelated skills and connections that give Claude expertise in their specific domain.当你将技能与MCP结合时会获得清晰发现Claude不再盲目搜寻。会议准备技能可能规定先查看项目页面再查阅往期会议记录最后检查利益相关者档案。研究技能可能要求从共享云盘开始与客户关系管理系统交叉比对最后用网络搜索填补空缺。这些技能编码了关于何种任务需要何种信息来源的制度性知识。可靠编排多步骤工作流变得可预测。没有技能时Claude可能在未确认数据完整性的情况下就开始提取和格式化数据。技能会明确定义操作序列确保每次执行工作流的方式完全一致。稳定输出成果真正符合标准。通用型结果往往需要二次修改。技能能定义团队专属的完成标准正确的结构、恰当的细节程度、符合受众预期的表达风格。随着时间推移团队将建立起相互关联的技能网络使Claude获得特定领域的专业能力。Further reading: Tim OReilly on what MCP and skills mean for open source AIWhere skills and MCP may overlap‍MCP servers may contain instructions in the form of tool usage hints and prompts for common tasks. This keeps tool-specific knowledge close to the tool. However, these instructions should be kept generic by design.The rule of thumb: MCP instructions cover how to use the server and its tools correctly. Skill instructions cover how to use them for a given process or in a multiserver workflow.For example, a Salesforce MCP server might specify query syntax and API formats. A skill would specify which records to check first, how to cross-reference them against Slack conversations for recent context, and how to structure the output for your teams pipeline review.When combining MCP servers and skills, watch for conflicting instructions. If your MCP server says to return JSON and your skill says to format as markdown tables, Claude has to guess which one is right. Let MCP handle connectivity, and let skills handle presentation, sequencing, and workflow logic.技能与MCP的重叠领域MCP服务器可能包含工具使用提示和常见任务指引形式的指令。这种做法使得工具相关知识紧贴工具本身。但根据设计原则这些指令应保持通用性。基本原则是MCP指令涵盖如何正确使用服务器及其工具而技能指令则说明如何在特定流程或多服务器工作流中运用它们。例如Salesforce的MCP服务器可能规定查询语法和API格式而技能则会指明应优先检查哪些记录、如何根据Slack会话进行交叉引用以获取最新背景信息以及如何构建输出内容以适应团队流水线评审。当结合使用MCP服务器和技能时需注意指令冲突。若MCP服务器要求返回JSON格式而技能要求转为Markdown表格Claude将被迫猜测哪种要求正确。应当让MCP负责连接功能让技能处理呈现方式、顺序安排及工作流逻辑。Further reading:Learn how skills use progressive disclosure to load context on-demand and programmatic tool calling to orchestrate MCP tools efficiently.Real-world examples of using skills and MCP togetherNow lets look at how skills and MCP combine in real workflows. Well walk through two examples: financial analysts pulling live market data for company valuations, and project managers using Notions Meeting Intelligence skill for meeting prep.In both cases, MCP servers provide access to the tools and the skills define what to do with them.技能与MCP协同应用的现实案例现在让我们看看技能和MCP在实际工作流中如何结合。我们将通过两个案例进行说明金融分析师获取实时市场数据用于公司估值以及项目经理使用Notion会议智能技能进行会议筹备。在这两个案例中MCP服务器提供工具访问权限而技能则定义如何使用这些工具。Financial analysis: Automating company valuations skillAnthropic released a set of pre-built skills for common financial workflows, including comparable company analysis. Comparable company analysis is a standard valuation method. Analysts doing comparable company analysis spend hours pulling financial metrics from multiple sources, applying the same valuation methodology, and formatting outputs to meet compliance standards. Its repetitive, error-prone, and exactly the kind of workflow that benefits from skills and MCP working together.财务分析自动化公司估值技能Anthropic发布了一套预构建技能用于常见财务工作流程包括可比公司分析。可比公司分析是一种标准估值方法。分析师在进行可比公司分析时需要花费数小时从多个来源提取财务指标应用相同的估值方法并格式化输出以满足合规标准。这一过程重复性强、容易出错正是技能与MCP协同工作能显著优化的典型工作流程。Skill: Comparable company analysis automates this valuation workflow, pulling data from multiple sources, applying consistent methodology, and formatting outputs to specific standards.MCP servers: Connections to SP Capital IQ, Daloopa, and Morningstar for live market dataWorkflow:Skill identifies which data sources to query (Discovery)MCP connections pull live financial dataSkill applies methodology and formats output (Orchestration)Skill validates against compliance requirements (Performance)技能可比公司分析自动执行此估值工作流程从多个来源提取数据应用一致的方法论并将输出格式化为特定标准。MCP服务器连接标普Capital IQ、Daloopa和晨星以获取实时市场数据工作流程技能确定要查询的数据源发现MCP连接获取实时财务数据技能应用方法论并格式化输出编排技能根据合规要求进行验证性能Meeting preparation: Notions Meeting Intelligence skillMeeting prep is tedious. You need to pull context from multiple places, such as project docs, previous meeting notes, and stakeholder info, then synthesize it into a pre-read and an agenda. Its the kind of multi-step process you end up re-explaining every time.Skill: Meeting Intelligence defines which pages to search, how to structure outputs, what sections to includeMCP server: Notion connection that searches, reads, and creates pagesWorkflow:Skill identifies relevant pages to search, including projects, previous meetings, stakeholder info (Discovery)MCP connection searches and retrieves content from NotionSkill structures two documents: internal pre-read and external agenda (Orchestration)MCP connection saves both documents to Notion, organized and linkedSkill ensures outputs match formatting standards (Performance)会议准备Notion的会议智能技能会议准备工作繁琐。你需要从多个地方如项目文档、过往会议记录和利益相关者信息提取背景信息然后将其整合成会前阅读材料和议程。这种多步骤流程往往需要反复解释。技能会议智能可定义搜索哪些页面、如何构建输出内容以及包含哪些部分。MCP服务器连接Notion进行搜索、读取和创建页面的服务。工作流程技能识别需要搜索的相关页面包括项目、过往会议和利益相关者信息发现阶段MCP连接从Notion搜索并获取内容技能构建两份文档内部会前阅读材料和外部议程编排阶段MCP连接将两份文档保存至Notion并建立有序链接技能确保输出内容符合格式标准执行阶段When to use skills vs. MCP‍Skills and MCP solve different problems, but deciding which to use for a specific workflow isnt always obvious.何时使用技能与MCP技能和MCP解决的是不同的问题但针对特定工作流决定使用哪种方法并不总是显而易见。What to use skills forSkills capture the knowledge that would otherwise live in your head, or that gets re-explained every time someone new joins the team. They work best for:Multi-step workflows involving tools: Meeting prep that pulls from multiple sources, then creates structured documentsProcesses where consistency matters: Quarterly financial analyses that must follow the same methodology every time, compliance reviews with mandatory checkpointsDomain expertise you want to capture and share: Research methodologies, code review standards, writing guidelinesWorkflows that should survive when team members leave: Institutional knowledge encoded in reusable instructions技能的用途技能可以保存那些原本只存在于你脑海中的知识或是避免每次新人加入团队时都需要重新解释的内容。它们最适合以下场景涉及多步骤工具的工作流程从多个来源汇总信息并创建结构化文档的会议准备需要保持一致性的流程每次都必须采用相同方法的季度财务分析、包含强制检查点的合规审查需要记录和分享的领域专业知识研究方法、代码审查标准、写作指南确保团队成员离职后仍能延续的工作流程以可复用指令形式编码的机构知识What to use MCP servers forMCP extends what Claude can access and use. Use an MCP when you need:Real-time data access: Searching Notion pages, reading Slack messages, querying databasesActions in external systems: Creating GitHub issues, updating project management tools, sending notificationsFile operations: Reading from and writing to Google Drive, accessing local filesystemsAPI integrations: Connecting to services that dont have native Claude supportIf youre explaininghowto do something, thats a skill. If you need Claude toaccesssomething, thats MCP.‍MCP服务器的用途MCP扩展了Claude可访问和使用的范围。在以下情况下请使用MCP实时数据访问搜索Notion页面、读取Slack消息、查询数据库外部系统操作创建GitHub工单、更新项目管理工具、发送通知文件操作读写Google Drive文档、访问本地文件系统API集成连接Claude原生不支持的服务若需指导操作步骤——这是技能范畴若需Claude获取访问权限——则属MCP范畴。Quick reference table: How skills and MCP differSkillsMCPWhat it isProcedural knowledgeTool connectivityWhat it doesTeaches Claudehowto do somethingGives Claudeaccessto somethingWhen it loadsOn demand, when relevantAlways available once connectedContainsInstructions, scripts, templates, assetsTools, resources, promptsToken behaviorLoads on-demand, preserving contextDefinitions loaded upfrontBest forWorkflows, standards, methodologyData access, API calls, external actionsCommon questionsDo skills replace MCP?No. Skills and MCP solve different problems. MCP provides connectivity to external tools and data. Skills provide procedural knowledge for how to use that connectivity effectively. Most powerful workflows use both.Can one skill use multiple MCP servers?Yes. A single skill can coordinate multiple MCP servers at once. A technical competitive analysis skill might search Google Drive for internal research, pull competitor repos from GitHub, and gather market data via web search.Can I build multiple skills for one MCP server?Yes. A skill can enhance the value you get from a single MCP connection. Notion demonstrates this pattern with separate skills for meeting prep, research, knowledge capture, and spec-to-implementation—check them out here.常见问题技能会取代MCP吗不会。技能和MCP解决不同问题。MCP提供与外部工具及数据的连接能力技能则提供如何高效利用这些连接的流程化知识。最强大的工作流往往需要两者结合。单个技能能调用多个MCP服务器吗可以。单个技能可同时协调多个MCP服务器。例如技术竞品分析技能可能同时搜索Google Drive中的内部研究、从GitHub拉取竞品代码库并通过网络搜索收集市场数据。能为单个MCP服务器构建多个技能吗可以。通过不同技能可充分挖掘单个MCP连接的价值。以Notion为例其针对会议准备、研究分析、知识沉淀和方案实施等不同场景分别开发了独立技能点击此处查看范例。Getting startedReady to build with skillsandMCP? Heres how to start:With skills:Enable skills in Settings → Capabilities on claude.aiBrowse the skills library for pre-built examplesRead the skills documentationWith MCP:Browse MCP servers for your toolsRead the MCP documentationBuild your own server with the MCP quick startCombine both:Connect an MCP server, then add a skill that uses itRelated articlesExplore more insights on building with Claudes agentic capabilities.Skills explained: How Skills compares to prompts, Projects, MCP, and subagentsImproving frontend design through SkillsEquipping agents for the real world with Agent Skills--本文链接https://claude.com/blog/extending-claude-capabilities-with-skills-mcp-servers