PlugWiki

dbt-transformation-patterns Skill for Claude: What It Does and How to Install It

Helps your assistant build dbt projects with staging, intermediate and mart layers, tests and incremental models.

Installs
11.2K
on skills.sh
Stars
42.1K
on GitHub
Files
1
besides SKILL.md
Updated
Oct 2026
last repo commit

SKILL.md sets a four-layer model (sources, staging, intermediate, marts) and naming rules: stg_ for staging, int_ for intermediate, and dim_ or fct_ for marts. It includes a sample dbt_project.yml and project tree. Its do and don't lists say to test aggressively, use incremental models for tables over 1M rows, extract repeated logic to macros and use the dev target rather than prod.

Its "When to Use" list covers transformation pipelines, layer organization, data quality tests, incremental models, documentation and project setup. Seven patterns and a list of dbt commands sit in references/details.md. It bundles no scripts.

Good for

  • Analytics engineers organizing dbt models
  • Teams adding data quality tests
  • Developers moving to incremental models

Install dbt-transformation-patterns

Claude Code

  1. 1

    Copy this prompt.

    Install the dbt-transformation-patterns skill in Claude Code. Run this command:

/plugin marketplace add wshobson/agents
/plugin install data-engineering@claude-code-workflows

Then check that it loaded and tell me how to use it.
  2. 2

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

Pick one route. The plugin routes install the whole data-engineering plugin: 2 agents, 2 commands and 4 skills (counted from the plugin folder in the repo tree, which has no hooks or MCP config files). The skills-only routes install just this skill, with no agents or commands. Running generated models needs dbt and a warehouse profile in your own project.

From the project README. Source.

What's in the skill

When it loads

Master dbt (data build tool) for analytics engineering with model organization, testing, documentation, and incremental strategies. Use when building data transformations, creating data models, or implementing analytics engineering best practices.

Sections in SKILL.md

  1. When to Use This Skill
  2. Core Concepts
  3. 1. Model Layers (Medallion Architecture)
  4. 2. Naming Conventions
  5. Quick Start
  6. Detailed patterns and worked examples
  7. Best Practices
  8. Do's
  9. Don'ts

Key facts

Author
wshobson (repo owner)
License
MIT
Installs on skills.sh
11,175 (Nov 2, 2026)
GitHub stars
42,081 for the whole wshobson/agents repo (Nov 2, 2026)
Last repo commit
Oct 30, 2026
What it includes
2 files including SKILL.md: references/details.md (no scripts)
Part of
The data-engineering plugin (version 1.3.3) in wshobson/agents. Counted from the plugin folder: 2 agents, 2 commands and 4 skills
Works in
Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, OpenCode, Antigravity CLI, GitHub Copilot and Pi, per the README. Skills-only installers ask which tool you use

What it includes

  • Sources, staging, intermediate and marts

    Sources, staging, intermediate and marts.

    Model layers

  • stg_, int_, dim_ and fct_ prefixes with examples

    stg_, int_, dim_ and fct_ prefixes with examples.

    Naming conventions

  • A sample dbt_project.yml (view, ephemeral, table materializations)

    A sample dbt_project.yml (view, ephemeral, table materializations) and a models/ folder tree.

    Quick start

  • Do and don't lists, such as no hardcoded dates and no testing in prod

    Do and don't lists, such as no hardcoded dates and no testing in prod.

    Best practices

  • Source YAML with a freshness block

    Source YAML with a freshness block (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 1: Source definitions

  • A staging model that selects from a source and renames columns

    A staging model that selects from a source and renames columns (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 2: Staging models

  • Shared joins and pivots

    Shared joins and pivots (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 3: Intermediate models

  • Dimension and fact tables

    Dimension and fact tables (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 4: Mart models

  • Model and column YAML with tests and descriptions

    Model and column YAML with tests and descriptions (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 5: Testing and documentation

  • Reusable SQL macros such as cents_to_dollars and generate_schema_name

    Reusable SQL macros such as cents_to_dollars and generate_schema_name (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 6: Macros

  • delete+insert, merge and insert_overwrite examples

    delete+insert, merge and insert_overwrite examples (in references/details.md)

    Pattern 7: Incremental strategies

  • dbt run, test, build, docs generate and serve, compile, debug and ls, with --select

    dbt run, test, build, docs generate and serve, compile, debug and ls, with --select and --full-refresh (in references/details.md)

    dbt commands

From the official docs

Permissions

Low risk

What it can do

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

Watch out for

  • dbt commands change tables in your warehouse

    references/details.md lists dbt run, dbt build and dbt run --full-refresh (rebuild incremental models). They build or rebuild tables in the warehouse your dbt profile targets. SKILL.md says to use the dev target and not to test in prod. github.com

  • Incremental strategies can rewrite existing rows

    Pattern 7 shows delete+insert, merge and insert_overwrite incremental strategies. Review the strategy and its unique key before a generated model runs against production data. github.com

  • The plugin route installs more than this skill

    The data-engineering plugin has 2 agents, 2 commands and 4 skills. We found no hooks or MCP config files in its folder. The skills-only routes install only this skill. github.com

Security advisories

No published security advisories as of Nov 2, 2026.

Technical details
Turning on read-onlySKILL.md and references/details.md do not describe a read-only mode.
Sign-in and keysSKILL.md and references/details.md do not describe key storage. The quick start names a dbt profile called analytics; dbt commands connect to whatever warehouse that profile points to.
Scopes

  • The assistant may write dbt models, YAML files and macros in your project when you ask for them

  • The command list in references/details.md covers dbt run, build, test, compile, debug, docs and ls

Questions

What does the dbt-transformation-patterns skill do?

It gives the assistant a dbt playbook: a layered model structure, naming rules, tests, docs, macros and incremental strategies.

How do I install dbt-transformation-patterns?

Use the install box at the top of this page. For Claude Code it lists the plugin route (/plugin marketplace add wshobson/agents, then /plugin install data-engineering@claude-code-workflows) and two skills-only commands: npx skills add wshobson/agents --skill dbt-transformation-patterns and gh skill install wshobson/agents dbt-transformation-patterns (GitHub CLI 2.90 or later), which skip the plugin's agents and commands.

Does it need dbt installed or a warehouse login?

SKILL.md names no API key. A dbt project needs dbt and a configured profile for your warehouse; the quick start names a profile called analytics. The skill itself only bundles guidance and sample files.

Is it safe?

Its folder holds two Markdown files and no scripts. The command list in references/details.md includes dbt run, dbt build and dbt run --full-refresh, which build or rebuild tables in the warehouse your profile points to, and dbt docs serve, which serves docs locally. SKILL.md tells you not to test in prod and to use the dev target.

Should I install the whole data-engineering plugin?

Only if you want the rest. The README documents a plugin route for Claude Code and Codex. The data-engineering plugin folder holds 2 agents, 2 commands and 4 skills, and its repo tree shows no hooks or MCP config files. The install box offers the plugin and the skills-only commands.

Does it work in Codex or Cursor?

The README documents Codex CLI as a plugin route and a skills-only install. For Cursor it points to a plugin marketplace and its setup docs, which we did not check, so follow the README there.

Is this skill from Anthropic?

No. It is in wshobson/agents, a community collection. The skill sits in the data-engineering plugin there, alongside airflow-dag-patterns, data-quality-frameworks and spark-optimization.

Information

updated Nov 2, 2026

Repository
wshobson/agents
Folder
plugins/data-engineering/skills/dbt-transformation-patterns

wshobson/agentsskills.sh

Sources

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

Show all 5
  1. dbt-transformation-patterns SKILL.md · github.com
  2. wshobson/agents README · github.com
  3. data-engineering plugin.json · github.com
  4. wshobson/agents marketplace.json · github.com
  5. details.md · github.com

Updated Nov 2, 2026.