Agent skill

Excalidraw

Hand-drawn diagrams in Excalidraw JSON (architecture, flowcharts)

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedDevelopment

Install Excalidraw

skills CLI

$ npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install taracodlabs/aiden excalidraw --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/excalidraw .claude/skills/excalidraw && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Paste into Claude Code

Install the "excalidraw" agent skill from https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw into .claude/skills/excalidraw/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "excalidraw", then confirm the skill loads.

Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

$skill-installer

$skill-installer install https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw

Type this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a codex

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install taracodlabs/aiden excalidraw --agent codex

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/excalidraw .agents/skills/excalidraw && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.

Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/

Paste into Codex

Install the "excalidraw" agent skill from https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw into .agents/skills/excalidraw/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "excalidraw", then confirm the skill loads.

Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a cursor

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install taracodlabs/aiden excalidraw --agent cursor

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/excalidraw .cursor/skills/excalidraw && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.

Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/

Paste into Cursor

Install the "excalidraw" agent skill from https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw into .cursor/skills/excalidraw/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "excalidraw", then confirm the skill loads.

Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

gemini skills install

$ gemini skills install https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git --path skills/excalidraw

--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a gemini-cli

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install taracodlabs/aiden excalidraw --agent gemini-cli

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/excalidraw .gemini/skills/excalidraw && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.

Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into Gemini CLI

Install the "excalidraw" agent skill from https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw into .gemini/skills/excalidraw/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "excalidraw", then confirm the skill loads.

Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install taracodlabs/aiden excalidraw

Installs for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

skills CLI

$ npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a github-copilot

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/excalidraw .github/skills/excalidraw && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.

GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into GitHub Copilot

Install the "excalidraw" agent skill from https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw into .github/skills/excalidraw/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "excalidraw", then confirm the skill loads.

GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a opencode

OpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install taracodlabs/aiden excalidraw --agent opencode

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/excalidraw .opencode/skills/excalidraw && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.

OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into OpenCode

Install the "excalidraw" agent skill from https://github.com/taracodlabs/aiden/tree/main/skills/excalidraw into .opencode/skills/excalidraw/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "excalidraw", then confirm the skill loads.

OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

Facts

Skill name: excalidraw
GitHub stars: 852
Token cost: ~1.1k tokens
SKILL.md length: 306 words
Files: 2
Skills in repo: 63
Repo updated: Sep 13, 2026
First seen: Oct 7, 2026
Licence: Apache-2.0

At a glance

Hand-drawn diagrams in Excalidraw JSON (architecture, flowcharts)

Works in 5 steps: Understand the Excalidraw JSON schema → Add text labels → Connect shapes with arrows → …
Tasks that involve Diagrams
SKILL.md covers When to Use, How to Use, Examples and Cautions
Reaches excalidraw.com

What it does

Excalidraw is an agent skill from taracodlabs/aiden. Hand-drawn diagrams in Excalidraw JSON (architecture, flowcharts)

Its SKILL.md is about 1.1k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 1 other file (for example `skill.json`).

It sits in Development, covering Diagrams. It works with Excalidraw. The repository describes itself as: Aiden — an autonomous AI agent and work engine built solo. It can operate your browser, terminal, files, apps, APIs, skills and tools, remember context, recover from failures… The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

Tasks that involve Diagrams

Example prompts

“/excalidraw”

Requirements

Python 3

Workflow steps

5 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

Understand the Excalidraw JSON schema
Add text labels
Connect shapes with arrows
Generate and save the file
Open the file

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 3704204. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are json and python).
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
Hosts in commands or code, which the agent is likely to contact:
- excalidraw.com
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Excalidraw loads about 1.1k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 19 tokens; SKILL.md has 306 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it: ~19
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches: ~1.1k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from taracodlabs/aiden at commit 3704204, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© taracodlabs). 306 words, ~1,110 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/excalidraw/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 1 other file; get the full folder from GitHub.

name: excalidraw
description: Hand-drawn diagrams in Excalidraw JSON (architecture, flowcharts)
category: productivity
version: 1.0.0
origin: aiden
license: Apache-2.0
tags: excalidraw, diagram, architecture, flowchart, sketch, visualization, json, drawing, design

Excalidraw Diagram Creation

Generate Excalidraw scene files (.excalidraw) by writing JSON that the Excalidraw app can open directly. Ideal for architecture diagrams, flowcharts, mind maps, and system design sketches in the characteristic hand-drawn style.

When to Use

User wants a system architecture or component diagram
User wants a flowchart or decision tree
User wants a sequence or interaction diagram
User wants a mind map or concept map
User wants any visual sketch they can open and edit in Excalidraw

How to Use

1. Understand the Excalidraw JSON schema

An Excalidraw file is a JSON object with this top-level structure:

json

{
  "type": "excalidraw",
  "version": 2,
  "source": "https://excalidraw.com",
  "elements": [],
  "appState": { "viewBackgroundColor": "#ffffff" },
  "files": {}
}

Each element in "elements" is a shape with a common set of fields:

json

{
  "id": "unique-id",
  "type": "rectangle",
  "x": 100, "y": 100,
  "width": 200, "height": 80,
  "angle": 0,
  "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e",
  "backgroundColor": "#a5d8ff",
  "fillStyle": "hachure",
  "strokeWidth": 2,
  "roughness": 1,
  "opacity": 100
}

Common element types: rectangle, ellipse, diamond, arrow, line, text, freedraw.

2. Add text labels

Use a text element positioned over or near shapes:

json

{
  "id": "txt-1",
  "type": "text",
  "x": 130, "y": 130,
  "width": 140, "height": 25,
  "text": "Web Server",
  "fontSize": 16,
  "fontFamily": 1,
  "textAlign": "center",
  "verticalAlign": "middle"
}

3. Connect shapes with arrows

json

{
  "id": "arrow-1",
  "type": "arrow",
  "x": 300, "y": 140,
  "width": 100, "height": 0,
  "points": [[0, 0], [100, 0]],
  "startArrowhead": null,
  "endArrowhead": "arrow",
  "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e",
  "strokeWidth": 2,
  "roughness": 1
}

4. Generate and save the file

python

import json, uuid

def make_rect(x, y, w, h, label, bg="#a5d8ff"):
  eid = str(uuid.uuid4())[:8]
  return [
    { "id": eid, "type": "rectangle", "x": x, "y": y, "width": w, "height": h,
      "angle": 0, "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e", "backgroundColor": bg,
      "fillStyle": "hachure", "strokeWidth": 2, "roughness": 1, "opacity": 100 },
    { "id": eid+"t", "type": "text", "x": x+10, "y": y+(h//2)-10,
      "width": w-20, "height": 20, "text": label, "fontSize": 16,
      "fontFamily": 1, "textAlign": "center", "verticalAlign": "middle",
      "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e", "opacity": 100 }
  ]

elements = []
elements += make_rect(100, 100, 160, 60, "Browser", "#ffd43b")
elements += make_rect(350, 100, 160, 60, "API Server", "#a5d8ff")
elements += make_rect(600, 100, 160, 60, "Database", "#b2f2bb")

scene = { "type": "excalidraw", "version": 2, "source": "https://excalidraw.com",
          "elements": elements, "appState": { "viewBackgroundColor": "#ffffff" }, "files": {} }

with open("architecture.excalidraw", "w") as f:
  json.dump(scene, f, indent=2)
print("Saved architecture.excalidraw — open in https://excalidraw.com")

5. Open the file

The user can open the .excalidraw file by:

Dragging it into https://excalidraw.com in a browser
Opening it via File → Open in the Excalidraw desktop app

Examples

"Draw a simple 3-tier web architecture diagram" → Use step 4 to generate three rectangles (Browser → API Server → Database) with connecting arrows. Save as architecture.excalidraw.

"Create a flowchart for a login process" → Use rectangles for steps, diamonds for decisions, arrows for flow. Generate JSON and save.

"Make a mind map about machine learning concepts" → Place a central ellipse, surround with connected sub-topic ellipses using short arrows.

Cautions

All coordinates are in pixels — plan layout with approximate x/y offsets before generating
Excalidraw IDs must be unique per element — always use uuid.uuid4() or similar
The roughness property (0–2) controls the hand-drawn effect: 0=clean, 1=normal, 2=very rough
Very large diagrams (> 200 elements) may be slow to render in the browser
Excalidraw JSON format may evolve — use "version": 2 which is the stable current format

Files

SKILL.md and 1 other file in skills/excalidraw of taracodlabs/aiden.

SKILL.md
skill.json

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 3704204

Compare with similar skills

Excalidraw next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Excalidraw compared with similar skills
Skill	Stars	Used in	Tokens	Auto-check	Licence	Repo updated
Excalidraw this skilltaracodlabs/aiden	852	—	~1.1k	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	27 days ago
Diagram Designcathrynlavery/diagram-design	48k	1 repos	~7.6k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	today
Excalidraw Diagramcoleam00/excalidraw-diagram-skill	5k	2 repos	~6.1k	Automated safety check: Pass	None	7 mo ago
Excalidraw Diagrambreferrari/obsidian-mind	5k	—	~3.9k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	4 days ago
Excalidraw Skillyctimlin/mcp_excalidraw	2.5k	—	~4.6k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	yesterday
Lanshu Animated Architecture Diagramcclank/lanshu-animated-architecture-diagram	995	—	~1.1k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	1 mo ago

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Questions about Excalidraw

What does Excalidraw do?

Hand-drawn diagrams in Excalidraw JSON (architecture, flowcharts). Excalidraw is an agent skill from taracodlabs/aiden.

When should I use Excalidraw?

Excalidraw fits situations like: tasks that involve Diagrams.

How do I install Excalidraw in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/excalidraw in taracodlabs/aiden) into .claude/skills/excalidraw in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Excalidraw in Codex?

Run `npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/excalidraw in taracodlabs/aiden) into .agents/skills/excalidraw in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Excalidraw in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add taracodlabs/aiden --skill excalidraw -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/excalidraw, .gemini/skills/excalidraw, .github/skills/excalidraw and .opencode/skills/excalidraw in your project.

What does Excalidraw need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Excalidraw is instructions for the agent only. Our summary lists: Python 3.

Does Excalidraw access the network?

SKILL.md names 1 domain. In commands or code: excalidraw.com; the agent is likely to contact it when it follows the instructions. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Excalidraw safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Excalidraw use?

Excalidraw is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Excalidraw use?

About 1.1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 4.4k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Excalidraw?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Excalidraw: Diagram Design (cathrynlavery/diagram-design, 48k stars), Excalidraw Diagram (coleam00/excalidraw-diagram-skill, 5k stars), Excalidraw Diagram (breferrari/obsidian-mind, 5k stars) and Excalidraw Skill (yctimlin/mcp_excalidraw, 2.5k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Excalidraw?

taracodlabs (a GitHub organization) maintains it in taracodlabs/aiden, which has 852 GitHub stars. The repository holds 63 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 13, 2026.

Source: taracodlabs/aiden on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.

Install Excalidraw

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Requirements

Workflow steps

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

Excalidraw Diagram Creation

When to Use

How to Use

1. Understand the Excalidraw JSON schema

2. Add text labels

3. Connect shapes with arrows

4. Generate and save the file

5. Open the file

Examples

Cautions

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

More from taracodlabs/aiden

Related

Questions about Excalidraw