Create Custom Agent

This skill guides you through creating a custom GitHub Copilot agent — an @-invokable chat participant that extends Copilot with domain-specific expertise. Custom agents are distinct from Agent Skills: skills provide reusable instructions loaded on demand, while agents own the full conversational interaction and can orchestrate tools, call APIs, and maintain their own prompt strategies.

When Not to Use

• Adding reusable, invokable workflows — use Agent Skills (.agents/skills/) instead
• Adding background coding guidelines — use file-based instructions (.github/instructions/) instead
• Adding project-wide context for Copilot — use .github/copilot-instructions.md instead
• Creating reusable prompts — use .prompt.md instead

Workflow

Step 1: Choose the agent type