DOCX
This skill enables Claude to handle professional Word documents through multiple workflows including reading/analyzing, creating new documents, editing existing ones, and implementing tracked changes.
Install
/plugin marketplace add anthropics/skillsThen run /plugin to install the skill set that includes it. In Claude.ai and the Claude app, Anthropic skills are built in: turn them on in Settings → Capabilities.
npx skills add anthropics/skills --skill docxgit clone --depth 1 https://github.com/anthropics/skills.git /tmp/skills
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -r /tmp/skills/skills/docx ~/.claude/skills/docxPersonal skills live in ~/.claude/skills. Use .claude/skills in a project folder to share a skill with your team.
What this skill does
Comprehensive document creation, editing, and analysis with support for tracked changes, comments, formatting preservation, and text extraction. When Claude needs to work with professional documents (.docx files) for: (1) Creating new documents, (2) Modifying or editing content, (3) Working with tracked changes, (4) Adding comments, or any other document tasks.
Trigger phrases
Claude loads this skill automatically when you say things like:
How it works
- Reading/Analyzing: Extract text via pandoc or access raw XML for complex formatting
- Creating New: Build documents using docx-js library with JavaScript/TypeScript
- Editing Existing: Modify documents using Python-based Document library for OOXML
- Redlining: Implement tracked changes systematically in batches
When to use it
- When creating or editing Word documents
- When extracting content from .docx files
- When implementing tracked changes or comments
Best practices
- Only mark text that actually changes when making edits
- Preserve original formatting when modifying
- Use appropriate tool for the task (pandoc for text, raw XML for structure)
From the SKILL.md
# DOCX creation, editing, and analysis
A `.docx` is a ZIP archive of XML files. Choose your approach by task:
| Task | Approach |
|---|---|
| **Create** a new document | Write a `docx` (npm) script — see gotchas below |
| **Edit** an existing document | `unzip` → edit `word/document.xml` → `zip` (docx-js cannot open existing files) |
| **Read** content | `pandoc -t markdown file.docx` |
> Script paths below are relative to this skill's directory.
## Creating with docx-js — gotchas
`docx` is preinstalled — do not run `npm install` first; write the script and `require('docx')` directly. Only if that require fails: `npm install docx`. The model knows the API; these are the footguns:
- **Page size defaults to A4.** For US Letter set `page: { size: { width: 12240, height: 15840 } }` (DXA; 1440 = 1″).
- **Landscape:** pass portrait dimensions and `orientation: PageOrientation.LANDSCAPE` — docx-js swaps width/height internally.
- **Tables need dual widths:** set `columnWidths` on the table AND `width` on every cell, both in `WidthType.DXA` (PERCENTAGE breaks in Google Docs). Column widths must sum to the table width.
- **Table shading:** use `ShadingType.CLEAR`, never `SOLID` (renders black).
- **Lists:** never insert `•` literally; use a `numbering` config with `LevelFormat.BULLET`.
- **`ImageRun` requires `type:`** (`"png"`, `"jpg"`, …).
- **`PageBreak` must be inside a `Paragraph`.**
- **Never use `\n`** — use separate `Paragraph` elements.Details
- Skill name
docx- Repository
- anthropics/skills
- Path
skills/docx/SKILL.md
FAQ
What does the DOCX skill do?
Comprehensive document creation, editing, and analysis with support for tracked changes, comments, formatting preservation, and text extraction. When Claude needs to work with professional documents (.docx files) for: (1) Creating new documents, (2) Modifying or editing content, (3) Working with tracked changes, (4) Adding comments, or any other document tasks.
How do I install the DOCX skill?
Claude Code plugin: /plugin marketplace add anthropics/skills. Skills go in ~/.claude/skills (personal) or .claude/skills (project), and Claude loads them automatically when a task matches the description.
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