Skills

Skill 7 of 38

Encore Create App

Create a new Encore.ts or Encore.go app with encore app create without interactive prompts, from a template or empty, on Encore Cloud or local only.

2 minutes · 517 words · 9 sections

Install

$ npx skills add encoredev/skills --skill encore-create-app

$ npx skills add encoredev/skills

» /plugin marketplace add encoredev/skills

The first command installs just this skill, by the name in its SKILL.md; the second installs the whole repository.

Creating an Encore App

Instructions

Do the steps in order.

1. Check before creating

CLI: encore version prints a version. If not, see encore-install.
Login: if the app should deploy to Encore Cloud, encore auth whoami must print logged in as <email>. If not, see encore-login. Skip the login only if the user wants a local-only app. If you can’t tell, ask.
Auth key only (logged in as app <app-id>): don’t run encore app create, it fails. Ask the user to create the app in the Cloud Dashboard, then follow Get an existing app.
Already in an app: if the current directory or a parent has an encore.app file, the app exists. Don’t create another one.

2. Pick a template

The user wants	Encore.ts	Encore.go
A small working app (default)	`ts/hello-world`	`hello-world`
An empty app, no services	`ts/empty`	`empty`
A REST API with a SQL database	`ts/url-shortener`	`url-shortener`
Several services, SQL databases, Pub/Sub, cron jobs	`ts/uptime`	`uptime`
A GraphQL API with a SQL database		`graphql`

--example also takes any directory in https://github.com/encoredev/examples (opens in a new tab), or a GitHub URL: https://github.com/<owner>/<repo>/tree/<branch>/<path>.

3. Create it

encore app create my-app --example=ts/hello-world   # Encore.ts
encore app create my-app --example=ts/empty         # Encore.ts, empty
encore app create my-app --example=hello-world      # Encore.go
encore app create my-app --example=empty            # Encore.go, empty

Always pass --example. In a terminal, the CLI asks for a language and template when it’s missing. Without a terminal, which is how agents usually run commands, it can’t ask, and creates an empty Go app, even for a TypeScript project.
Name: lowercase letters, digits, and single dashes, at most 50 characters, not starting or ending with a dash. It becomes the directory, which must not exist yet.
It takes a while: it downloads the template and runs npm install or go get. Wait for it to finish.

Optional flags:

--llm-rules=<tool>: adds Encore’s coding instructions for an AI tool and configures the local Encore MCP server for it. One of cursor, claudecode, vscode, agentsmd, or zed.
--org=<id-or-slug>: creates the app in an org instead of the user’s personal account.
--platform=false: creates a local-only app even when logged in.

4. Check the result

The output ends with Successfully created app <name>!.

Logged in: it also prints App ID: <app-id> and Web URL: https://app.encore.dev/<app-id>. The app ID can differ from the name. The app has an initial commit and an encore git remote, so it’s ready to deploy.
Logged out: encore.app has an empty "id", and there’s no encore remote. To link it to Encore Cloud later, see encore-link-app.

Then cd <name> and run the app (see encore-run).

Get an existing app

On Encore Cloud: encore app clone <app-id> [directory]. It adds the encore remote. The app ID is in the Cloud Dashboard URL, app.encore.dev/<app-id>. If the app is linked to GitHub, git clone the GitHub repository instead.
Code with an encore.app file: it’s already an app. Run it (see encore-run).
Encore code without an encore.app file: register it in place, from its root directory. Always pass --lang, or the app is treated as Go.
```
encore app init my-app --lang ts   # --lang go for Encore.go
```

Errors

directory <name> already exists: pick another name, or ask before removing the directory.
this directory already contains Encore code but isn't initialized as an app: use encore app init (see above) instead of creating a new app.
specify an app name: pass the name as the first argument.
name must only contain lowercase letters, digits, or dashes, or another name error: fix the name.
--org requires being logged in and --platform: log in, or drop --org.
creating app on encore.dev: ...: run encore auth whoami. If it prints logged in as app <app-id>, an auth key can’t create apps: a person must log in (see encore-login).
npm install fails: the app is still created, without dependencies. Install Node.js (see encore-install), then run npm install in the app.

Guidelines

Don’t run encore app create to deploy or link an existing app. It creates a new, separate app.
Next: run the app (encore-run), build it out (encore-service and encore-api, or encore-go-service and encore-go-api), and deploy it (encore-deploy).
Docs: https://encore.dev/docs/quick-start (opens in a new tab) and https://encore.dev/docs/cli/cli-reference (opens in a new tab)

About this skill

Trigger

Create a new Encore.ts or Encore.go app with `encore app create` without interactive prompts, from a template or empty, on Encore Cloud or local only. Also covers getting an app that's already on Encore Cloud with `encore app clone` and registering existing Encore code with `encore app init`.

The verbatim description from this skill’s front matter — the string an agent matches on to decide whether to load it.

Colophon for this issue

Colophon

How this issue was made

Source

github.com/encoredev/skills, branch main, last pushed 26 October 2026.

Licence

Apache-2.0 — the text of every skill is reproduced unmodified, frontmatter included, under the upstream licence.

Discovery

38 skills found by walking the repository tree for SKILL.md, not by matching a directory convention. One layout observed: encore/*/SKILL.md.

Issue colours

Resolved from a deterministic hash of the owner name. Two accent tones are generated per issue and each is proven against its own ground before it ships: a single accent that passes AA on both light and dark paper is arithmetically impossible.

Heading repairs

1 repair applied to this skill so the document has one h1 and no skipped levels:

Shifted “9 headings” from h1 to h2 so the skill title is the only h1.

Spec compliance

38 editorial notes across 38 of 38 skills. They are printed in the margin of each skill rather than as errors here.

Encore API — 1 note
Encore Architecture — 1 note
Encore Auth — 1 note
Encore Bucket — 1 note
Encore Cache — 1 note
Encore Code Review — 1 note
Encore Create App — 1 note
Encore Cron — 1 note
Encore Database — 1 note
Encore Deploy — 1 note

and 28 more.

Images

Images inside a skill come from the upstream repository. Where the author gave no alternative text we mark the image decorative rather than inventing a description — a plausible caption we made up is worse than none for the reader who depends on it.

Marketplace

A plugin manifest is published at .claude-plugin/marketplace.json by Encore, declaring 1 plugin. It is read for editorial metadata only — never as the skill index, which is always the repository tree.

Signal

Install counts come from skills.sh. They measure downloads, not quality, and an unranked repository is not an unread one.

Agent surfaces

The whole issue is available as one markdown document at /encoredev/skills.md, and each skill at its own .md URL.

Publication

Set by Skills Docs from the source repository. Body text is Literata at the reader’s chosen size and measure; code is Geist Mono. Nothing on this page was written by us except this paragraph.

Creating an Encore App

Do the steps in order.

CLI: encore version prints a version. If not, see encore-install.

Login: if the app should deploy to Encore Cloud, encore auth whoami must print logged in as <email>. If not, see encore-login. Skip the login only if the user wants a local-only app. If you can’t tell, ask.

Auth key only (logged in as app <app-id>): don’t run encore app create, it fails. Ask the user to create the app in the Cloud Dashboard, then follow Get an existing app.

Already in an app: if the current directory or a parent has an encore.app file, the app exists. Don’t create another one.

The user wants	Encore.ts	Encore.go
A small working app (default)	`ts/hello-world`	`hello-world`
An empty app, no services	`ts/empty`	`empty`
A REST API with a SQL database	`ts/url-shortener`	`url-shortener`
Several services, SQL databases, Pub/Sub, cron jobs	`ts/uptime`	`uptime`
A GraphQL API with a SQL database		`graphql`

--example also takes any directory in https://github.com/encoredev/examples, or a GitHub URL: https://github.com/<owner>/<repo>/tree/<branch>/<path>.

encore app create my-app --example=ts/hello-world   # Encore.ts
encore app create my-app --example=ts/empty         # Encore.ts, empty
encore app create my-app --example=hello-world      # Encore.go
encore app create my-app --example=empty            # Encore.go, empty

Always pass --example. In a terminal, the CLI asks for a language and template when it’s missing. Without a terminal, which is how agents usually run commands, it can’t ask, and creates an empty Go app, even for a TypeScript project.

Name: lowercase letters, digits, and single dashes, at most 50 characters, not starting or ending with a dash. It becomes the directory, which must not exist yet.

It takes a while: it downloads the template and runs npm install or go get. Wait for it to finish.

Optional flags:

--llm-rules=<tool>: adds Encore’s coding instructions for an AI tool and configures the local Encore MCP server for it. One of cursor, claudecode, vscode, agentsmd, or zed.

--org=<id-or-slug>: creates the app in an org instead of the user’s personal account.

--platform=false: creates a local-only app even when logged in.

The output ends with Successfully created app <name>!.

Logged in: it also prints App ID: <app-id> and Web URL: https://app.encore.dev/<app-id>. The app ID can differ from the name. The app has an initial commit and an encore git remote, so it’s ready to deploy.

Logged out: encore.app has an empty "id", and there’s no encore remote. To link it to Encore Cloud later, see encore-link-app.

Then cd <name> and run the app (see encore-run).

On Encore Cloud: encore app clone <app-id> [directory]. It adds the encore remote. The app ID is in the Cloud Dashboard URL, app.encore.dev/<app-id>. If the app is linked to GitHub, git clone the GitHub repository instead.

Code with an encore.app file: it’s already an app. Run it (see encore-run).

Encore code without an encore.app file: register it in place, from its root directory. Always pass --lang, or the app is treated as Go.

encore app init my-app --lang ts   # --lang go for Encore.go

directory <name> already exists: pick another name, or ask before removing the directory.

this directory already contains Encore code but isn't initialized as an app: use encore app init (see above) instead of creating a new app.

specify an app name: pass the name as the first argument.

name must only contain lowercase letters, digits, or dashes, or another name error: fix the name.

--org requires being logged in and --platform: log in, or drop --org.

creating app on encore.dev: ...: run encore auth whoami. If it prints logged in as app <app-id>, an auth key can’t create apps: a person must log in (see encore-login).

npm install fails: the app is still created, without dependencies. Install Node.js (see encore-install), then run npm install in the app.

Don’t run encore app create to deploy or link an existing app. It creates a new, separate app.

Next: run the app (encore-run), build it out (encore-service and encore-api, or encore-go-service and encore-go-api), and deploy it (encore-deploy).

Docs: https://encore.dev/docs/quick-start and https://encore.dev/docs/cli/cli-reference