MCP vs Skill in Claude Code: how the two differ

The explainer builds its comparison around a simple analogy: a capable new hire who lacks both account access and a sense of how the team works. Handing over accounts maps to MCP, and handing over a handover document maps to Skill. That framing carries through the rest of the piece, where MCP is described as a common standard sitting between Claude and external systems, with an MCP server acting as an adapter for each system. Skill is described as a reusable folder whose only required file is SKILL.md, with a name and description at the top and procedures written in the body.

The piece also explains why many Skills do not weigh Claude down: at startup only each Skill's description is read, the body loads when a request matches, and references or scripts open only as needed — compared to scanning a library's spines but opening only the books you need. MCP and Skill are then presented as complements rather than rivals, with the choice resting on what is missing: outside access points to MCP, a way of working points to Skill, and rules that must always run point to hook.