Payload Skill for Claude Code

Claude Code skill providing comprehensive guidance for Payload development with TypeScript patterns, field configurations, hooks, access control, and API examples.

Installation

From GitHub

Install this skill directly from the Payload repository:

bash

/plugin install github:payloadcms/payload

What's Included

The payload skill provides expert guidance on:

Collections: Auth, uploads, drafts, live preview configurations
Fields: All field types including relationships, arrays, blocks, joins, virtual fields
Hooks: beforeChange, afterChange, beforeValidate, field hooks
Access Control: Collection, field, and global access patterns including RBAC and multi-tenant
Queries: Local API, REST, and GraphQL with complex operators
Database Adapters: MongoDB, Postgres, SQLite configurations and transactions
Advanced Features: Jobs queue, custom endpoints, localization, plugins

Usage

Once installed, Claude will automatically invoke the skill when you're working on Payload CMS projects. The skill activates when you:

Edit payload.config.ts files
Work with collection or global configurations
Ask about Payload-specific patterns
Need guidance on fields, hooks, or access control

You can also explicitly invoke it:

@payload how do I implement row-level access control?

Documentation Structure

skills/payload/
├── SKILL.md                              # Main skill file with quick reference
└── reference/
    ├── FIELDS.md                         # All field types and configurations
    ├── COLLECTIONS.md                    # Collection patterns
    ├── HOOKS.md                          # Hook patterns and examples
    ├── ACCESS-CONTROL.md                 # Basic access control
    ├── ACCESS-CONTROL-ADVANCED.md        # Advanced access patterns
    ├── QUERIES.md                        # Query patterns and APIs
    ├── ADAPTERS.md                       # Database and storage adapters
    └── ADVANCED.md                       # Jobs, endpoints, localization

Resources

License

MIT