Claude Code mods: what they are and how to install one

A Claude Code mod is a plugin that changes how Claude Code looks or behaves while you work. Here's what that means, how to install, update and remove one, and how to check one before you trust it.

What is a Claude Code mod?

Claude Code has a plugin system: a plugin is a package you install that adds something to Claude Code. A mod is the kind of plugin that changes your experience of Claude Code itself, rather than adding a single command. Mods hook into what Claude does as it works (editing a file, running tests, making a commit) and can react to it, and some draw their own interface beside the conversation.

Mods are installed the same way as any plugin: from a marketplace, which is a list of plugins that a person or team publishes at a URL, in a GitHub repo, or in a folder on your machine.

How to install a Claude Code mod

Two commands in your terminal. First add the marketplace the mod comes from, then install the mod from it, as name@marketplace:

$ claude plugin marketplace add <url, path or github-user/repo>
$ claude plugin install <mod>@<marketplace>

Then start Claude Code. If a session is already open, run /reload-plugins in it. For example, maiyu installs with:

$ claude plugin marketplace add https://maiyu.dev/marketplace.json
$ claude plugin install maiyu@maiyu

Inside Claude Code, /plugin opens the same thing as a menu: browse marketplaces, install, enable and disable.

Check a mod before you trust it

A mod runs on your machine, alongside your code. Before installing one:

Read the source. Install from people you trust, and prefer open-source mods you can look through.
See what's in it. claude plugin details <mod> lists everything the plugin adds and its projected token cost.
Read its privacy notes. A good mod says plainly what, if anything, leaves your machine.

Update, turn off or remove a mod

$ claude plugin list                     # what's installed
$ claude plugin update <mod>@<marketplace>
$ claude plugin disable <mod>@<marketplace>
$ claude plugin uninstall <mod>@<marketplace>

An update applies after a restart. To get new versions without asking, turn on auto-update for the marketplace in /plugin, under Marketplaces. claude plugin marketplace update refreshes every marketplace's list of plugins.

Plugin or mod? Every mod is a plugin. "Mod" is what people call the plugins that change the experience of using Claude Code, the way game mods change a game. Plugins that only add a skill, a slash command or a tool connection are usually just called plugins.

Where to find Claude Code mods

awesome-claude-code-mods, a community list of mods on GitHub.
GitHub search: repos tagged claude-code-mod or claude-code-plugin.
Inside Claude Code: /plugin shows what the marketplaces you've added offer.

A mod to start with: maiyu

Ai-chan, maiyu's pixel-art companion, celebrating

maiyu is a free, open-source Claude Code mod that puts a pixel-art friend in a pane beside Claude Code. They say what Claude is doing in plain words, cheer when your tests go green, keep you company when they fail, and get closer over months. Meet them →