Agent skills in GitHub Copilot
GitHub Copilot's coding agent mode supports agent skills from multiple directories: .github/skills/ (primary), .claude/skills/, and .agents/skills/ at the project level, and ~/.copilot/skills/ globally. Copilot scans all these locations at startup and merges skills with project-level taking precedence.
Enabling agent mode in GitHub Copilot
Agent skills require Copilot agent mode. In VS Code, open the Copilot Chat panel and switch from 'Ask' to 'Agent' mode using the dropdown. In GitHub.com's Copilot interface, select 'Agent' from the mode selector. Agent mode is available on Copilot Individual, Business, and Enterprise plans.
Installing skills for GitHub Copilot
Create .github/skills/ in your repository root. Add skill folders directly or use git submodules for shared team skills: git submodule add https://github.com/getsentry/agent-skills .github/skills/code-review. Commit the skills directory. All developers who clone the repo will have access to the same skills.
Using skills with Copilot agent
In Copilot agent mode, reference skills naturally in your prompt: 'Review this PR using the code-review skill' or 'Refactor this with typescript-strict enabled.' Copilot will locate the skill, load its instructions, and apply them. You can chain multiple skills in one prompt.