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context7 skill

This skill retrieves up-to-date library documentation and examples via Context7 API to ensure accurate usage of APIs and frameworks.

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---
name: context7
description: Retrieve up-to-date documentation for software libraries, frameworks, and components via the Context7 API. This skill should be used when looking up documentation for any programming library or framework, finding code examples for specific APIs or features, verifying correct usage of library functions, or obtaining current information about library APIs that may have changed since training.
---

# Context7

## Overview

This skill enables retrieval of current documentation for software libraries and components by querying the Context7 API via curl. Use it instead of relying on potentially outdated training data.

## Workflow

### Step 1: Search for the Library

To find the Context7 library ID, query the search endpoint:

```bash
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/libs/search?libraryName=LIBRARY_NAME&query=TOPIC" | jq '.results[0]'
```

**Parameters:**
- `libraryName` (required): The library name to search for (e.g., "react", "nextjs", "fastapi", "axios")
- `query` (required): A description of the topic for relevance ranking

**Response fields:**
- `id`: Library identifier for the context endpoint (e.g., `/websites/react_dev_reference`)
- `title`: Human-readable library name
- `description`: Brief description of the library
- `totalSnippets`: Number of documentation snippets available

### Step 2: Fetch Documentation

To retrieve documentation, use the library ID from step 1:

```bash
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/context?libraryId=LIBRARY_ID&query=TOPIC&type=txt"
```

**Parameters:**
- `libraryId` (required): The library ID from search results
- `query` (required): The specific topic to retrieve documentation for
- `type` (optional): Response format - `json` (default) or `txt` (plain text, more readable)

## Examples

### React hooks documentation

```bash
# Find React library ID
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/libs/search?libraryName=react&query=hooks" | jq '.results[0].id'
# Returns: "/websites/react_dev_reference"

# Fetch useState documentation
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/context?libraryId=/websites/react_dev_reference&query=useState&type=txt"
```

### Next.js routing documentation

```bash
# Find Next.js library ID
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/libs/search?libraryName=nextjs&query=routing" | jq '.results[0].id'

# Fetch app router documentation
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/context?libraryId=/vercel/next.js&query=app+router&type=txt"
```

### FastAPI dependency injection

```bash
# Find FastAPI library ID
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/libs/search?libraryName=fastapi&query=dependencies" | jq '.results[0].id'

# Fetch dependency injection documentation
curl -s "https://context7.com/api/v2/context?libraryId=/fastapi/fastapi&query=dependency+injection&type=txt"
```

## Tips

- Use `type=txt` for more readable output
- Use `jq` to filter and format JSON responses
- Be specific with the `query` parameter to improve relevance ranking
- If the first search result is not correct, check additional results in the array
- URL-encode query parameters containing spaces (use `+` or `%20`)
- No API key is required for basic usage (rate-limited)

Overview

This skill retrieves up-to-date documentation for software libraries, frameworks, and components by querying the Context7 API. It helps you find current API descriptions, code examples, and usage guidance when training data may be outdated. Use it to confirm function signatures, discover examples, and check recent changes in libraries.

How this skill works

The skill first searches Context7 for a library by name and topic to obtain a libraryId. It then requests context snippets or plain-text documentation for a specific query using that libraryId. Responses can be returned as JSON or readable text; the text form is often easier to scan for examples and short explanations. No API key is required for basic, rate-limited usage.

When to use it

Verifying current function signatures or parameter lists
Finding concrete code examples for specific APIs or features
Checking library behavior or breaking changes introduced after model training
Looking up framework-specific patterns (routing, hooks, dependency injection)
Quickly comparing similar APIs across versions

Best practices

Be specific in the query parameter to improve relevance (e.g., use function or feature names).
Search first to capture the correct libraryId, then fetch context with that ID.
Use type=txt for human-readable output and jq to filter JSON when scripting.
URL-encode spaces and special characters (use + or %20) to avoid malformed requests.
If the top search result looks wrong, inspect additional results in the array for better matches.

Example use cases

Retrieve React hook docs (useState, useEffect) and copy minimal examples into code.
Fetch Next.js routing docs to validate app router usage and route config.
Query FastAPI dependency injection examples to implement request-scoped dependencies.
Look up Axios request/response interceptor patterns and correct error handling.
Confirm changed function names or parameters after a library major version upgrade.

FAQ

Do I need an API key to use Context7 through this skill?

No API key is required for basic usage; the API is rate-limited for unauthenticated requests.

Which response format should I pick: json or txt?

Use txt for readable, example-focused output. Use json if you need structured fields and plan to parse responses programmatically.

What if the first search result is not the library I want?

Inspect additional items in the search results array and pick the libraryId that best matches before fetching context.