Context7
Use the co-located Node CLI to search Context7 documentation through the v3 Search API. The v3 endpoint accepts a question and returns relevant snippets in one request. A library ID is optional.
Run the CLI
Resolve the actual directory containing this skill first. The CLI needs Node.js 18+ and no npm dependencies. Run it from that directory:
bashnode ./context7-api.cjs search "How do I clean up a React effect?" node ./context7-api.cjs search "How do I configure route handlers?" --library Next.js --version 15.4.0 node ./context7-api.cjs search "How do I stream a response?" --library Next.js --library OpenAI --language TypeScript
--library accepts a name or Context7 ID and may appear up to four times. --version requires at least one --library; with one library it is a strict filter, and with several it is a preference. --language is a preference. Pass the user's specific question as the query. Do not use a repo-relative path when this skill is installed elsewhere.
The old context <libraryId> <query> command remains an alias for search <query> --library <libraryId> so existing callers can migrate. It also uses v3.
Read the response
The CLI requests type=json and prints the raw codeSnippets[] and infoSnippets[], plus a normalized results[] array. Each normalized result has title, content, source, and libraryId. Use the snippet's source link when citing documentation. When a query has no matching documentation, all three arrays are empty.
The v3 REST endpoint returns plain text by default. Keep type=json when calling it directly if structured snippets are needed.
Authentication and errors
Set CONTEXT7_API_KEY in the environment or in a .env file next to the CLI. An environment variable takes precedence. Use .env.example as the template and get a key from context7.com/dashboard. Requests without a key are for testing and have low IP-based limits.
The CLI exits nonzero and writes errors to stderr for invalid arguments, network failures, invalid JSON, and API errors other than 404 no_documentation_found. For 429, wait for the rate limit before retrying. For other transient failures, retry once and report that current documentation could not be verified if it still fails.
The optional context7-fetcher can run the same command in an isolated worker when the runtime supports one. Direct CLI execution is the default.
