clerk-backend-api Skill for Claude: What It Does and How to Install It

Lets Claude browse and call Clerk's Backend API to list users, manage organizations and update metadata.

Installs: 55K; on skills.sh
Stars: 89; on GitHub
Files: 5; besides SKILL.md
Updated: Oct 2026; last repo commit

This is Clerk's own skill for the Clerk Backend REST API. Claude can browse the API by tag, show an endpoint's schema, or call it with curl and your CLERK_SECRET_KEY. Common jobs such as listing users, creating an organization with an invite and updating metadata have ready-made commands.

It can write and delete real data, so read the safety box. The folder bundles 4 scripts that fetch and parse Clerk's API specs, plus an evals file.

Good for

Developers who manage Clerk users and organizations from the terminal
Teams that need to look up or bulk-check Clerk data without opening the dashboard
People who already have a Clerk secret key and want guarded write access

Install clerk-backend-api

Claude Code

Copy this prompt.

Install the clerk-backend-api skill in Claude Code. Run this command:

/plugin marketplace add clerk/skills
/plugin install clerk@clerk-skills

Then check that it loaded and tell me how to use it.

2
Paste it into Claude Code. It shows the change and asks before running it.

Pick one route. The Clerk plugin installs all 20 skills in the repo plus the hosted Clerk MCP server (mcp.clerk.com/mcp) from its .mcp.json; the skills CLI routes install skills only. Per the README, the clerk plugin replaces the earlier clerk-skills@clerk Codex plugin and the earlier core, frameworks, features and mobile Copilot plugins, and Copilot may leave clerk@clerk-skills disabled until you run copilot plugin enable clerk@clerk-skills.

From the project README. Source.

What's in the skill

When it loads

Clerk Backend REST API explorer and executor. Browse tags, inspect endpoint schemas, and execute authenticated requests. Use when listing users, managing organizations, or calling any Clerk API endpoint.

Sections in SKILL.md

Options context
CRITICAL: Mandatory checks before EVERY write request
FAST PATH: Common operations (use directly, no spec fetching needed)
Create organization + invite member (two-step)
SDK equivalent (for Next.js / TypeScript projects with @clerk/nextjs or @clerk/backend)
Update user metadata
List users (last 7 days)
Delete user (confirm required)
Clerk Backend API — Full Endpoint Reference
Users
Organizations
How to execute requests
API specs context
Rules
Rate Limits & Gotchas
Rate Limits

Key facts

Author: Clerk (vendor's own repo)
Repo: clerk/skills
License: MIT (README, plugin.json and the SKILL.md frontmatter say MIT; the repo has no LICENSE file)
Installs on skills.sh: 54,991 (Nov 2, 2026)
GitHub stars: 89 for the whole repo (Nov 2, 2026)
Last repo commit: Oct 30, 2026
Audits on skills.sh: Gen Agent Trust Hub: pass, Socket: pass, Snyk: warn
What it includes: 6 files including SKILL.md: 4 scripts (3 shell, 1 JavaScript) and an evals file
Part of: Plugin clerk: 20 skills plus the Clerk MCP server
Needs: CLERK_SECRET_KEY (sk_*), curl, Node.js, python3

What it includes

Before any write: verify the key is set, check scopes, warn on delete
SKILL.md calls these mandatory before every POST, PATCH, PUT and DELETE.
Runs code · Pre-write checks
Creates an organization, then invites a member with org:admin or org:member
Runs curl against api.clerk.com/v1.
Try: “Create an organization and invite a member”
Runs code · Fast path: orgs and invites
Updates public, private or unsafe metadata after explaining the three types
Runs code · Fast path: user metadata
Lists users, for example those created in the last 7 days
Runs code · Fast path: list users
Deletes a user only after explicit confirmation
Delete · Fast path: delete user
Lists API tags, or the endpoints under one tag such as Users
Uses api-specs-context.sh, extract-tags.js and extract-tag-endpoints.sh.
Try: “/clerk-backend-api tags”
Runs code · browse mode
Shows an endpoint's schema without calling it (add help)
Uses extract-endpoint-detail.sh.
Try: “/clerk-backend-api GET /users help”
Runs code · detail mode
Looks up an endpoint and calls it with curl, in natural language or by path
Options: --admin, --version <date>, --help.
Try: “/clerk-backend-api get user john_doe”
Delete · execute mode
Lists production and development limits and common gotchas
Production 1,000 requests per 10 seconds; development 100.
Rate limit notes

From the official docs

Permissions

High risk

What it can do

Read your data
Create and change things
Delete things
Read-only mode

Watch out for

It can delete users for good
The fast path includes DELETE /v1/users/{id}, which SKILL.md says destroys the user record, sessions, memberships and associated data. It tells Claude to warn and get confirmation first. Use a development instance key while you try it. github.com
It uses your Clerk secret key
Every request sends CLERK_SECRET_KEY as a Bearer token through curl. A production key gives full Backend API access. Use a development key and keep the key out of the chat. github.com
Its key check prints 10 characters of the key
The mandatory pre-check runs `echo $CLERK_SECRET_KEY | head -c 10`, which puts the first 10 characters of the secret into the session. Check that the key is set yourself and skip this if that bothers you. github.com
It can bypass scope limits if you say so
For writes it checks CLERK_BAPI_SCOPES and, if scopes look too narrow, asks "Rerun with --admin to bypass?". Say no unless you intend a wider write. github.com
Metadata updates replace, not merge
SKILL.md says updating publicMetadata overwrites all of it. A careless update deletes existing fields. Ask Claude to read first and spread the old values. github.com
Scripts download specs from GitHub
api-specs-context.sh lists versions from api.github.com/repos/clerk/openapi-specs and fetches the spec from raw.githubusercontent.com, then pipes it into Node scripts. The skill allows Bash, Read, Grep, Skill and WebFetch. github.com
The Clerk plugin also adds an MCP server
The plugin bundles .mcp.json, which registers the hosted Clerk MCP server at mcp.clerk.com/mcp. plugin.json lists no hooks. The skills CLI and folder routes do not add it. github.com

Technical details

Turning on read-only	There is no read-only switch. Reads like GET /users need no write step, and SKILL.md requires confirmation before any POST, PATCH, PUT or DELETE.
Talks to	api.clerk.com. api.github.com. raw.githubusercontent.com
Sign-in and keys	Reads CLERK_SECRET_KEY (sk_*) from the environment, and CLERK_BAPI_SCOPES for the scope check. It does not name a place where keys are stored.
Scopes	Calls the Clerk Backend API with your CLERK_SECRET_KEY Can create, update and delete users and organizations Runs 4 bundled scripts that fetch and parse Clerk API specs

Questions

What does the clerk-backend-api skill do?

It lets Claude browse and call Clerk's Backend REST API. You can list users, manage organizations and invitations, update metadata, or call any endpoint, using curl and your Clerk secret key.

How do I install clerk-backend-api?

Use the install box above. The Clerk plugin installs all 20 skills plus the Clerk MCP server. npx skills add clerk/skills installs the skills alone.

What does it need?

A Clerk secret key (sk_*) in CLERK_SECRET_KEY. It also uses curl, Node.js and python3 on your machine for the spec scripts and for pretty-printing JSON.

Can it delete things?

Yes. It can delete users and organizations. SKILL.md says delete is irreversible, requires a warning that lists what is destroyed, and requires your explicit confirmation before it runs.

Is it safe?

It sends your secret key to api.clerk.com, can write and delete data, and prints the first 10 characters of the key in its check. It asks for confirmation on writes. Our advice: use a development instance key and review each write before approving.

clerk-backend-api vs the Clerk CLI skill?

This skill drives the REST API with curl and your secret key. The repo has a separate clerk-cli skill for Clerk CLI operations such as users, orgs and env keys. The README lists them as different skills.

Can I use the Clerk MCP server instead?

The plugin bundles a hosted Clerk MCP server; see the Clerk MCP page. This skill does not use it. It calls the REST API directly.

Does it work in the Claude app?

The README documents Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot CLI and the skills CLI. It documents no Claude app upload route, so use one of those.

Is it an official Clerk skill?

It is in Clerk's own repo, and the repo's marketplace.json describes the plugin as "Official Clerk skills for AI coding agents".

Information

updated Nov 2, 2026

Repository: clerk/skills
Folder: skills/clerk-backend-api

clerk/skills skills.sh

Sources

Docs, issue trackers and discussions this page is built from.

Show all 6

clerk/skills README · github.com
clerk/skills marketplace.json · github.com
clerk plugin.json · github.com
clerk/skills .mcp.json · github.com
clerk-backend-api SKILL.md · github.com
api-specs-context.sh · github.com