Suggest Tooling

Suggest Cardano Tooling

Help the developer choose the right tools, SDKs, and libraries for their Cardano project based on their requirements and preferred programming language.

When to use

• Developer is starting a new Cardano project and needs tool recommendations
• Comparing SDKs (Mesh vs Evolution SDK vs PyCardano vs others)
• Choosing a smart contract language (Aiken vs Plutus vs others)
• Selecting infrastructure components (indexers, APIs, testing tools)
• Evaluating wallet integration options
• Understanding which CIPs are relevant to their project

When NOT to use

• Already chosen tools and needs help using them (use specific tool skills)
• Setting up a devnet (use setup-devnet skill)
• Querying chain data with a specific provider (use query-chain skill)
• Detailed wallet integration steps (use connect-wallet skill)

Key principles

1. Start from the project requirements, not the tools. Understand what they are building before recommending.
2. Language preference matters. A Python developer should know about PyCardano; a TypeScript developer about Mesh and Evolution SDK.
3. Recommend production-ready tools first. Flag experimental tools clearly.
4. Fewer tools is better. Do not recommend 10 options when 2 will do.
5. Consider the full stack. Smart contracts, off-chain code, infrastructure, testing, and deployment are all part of the picture.

Workflow

Step 1: Understand the project

Ask the developer (if not already clear):

• What are you building? (dApp, DeFi protocol, NFT platform, governance tool, data analytics, wallet, library)
• What programming language(s) do you prefer?
• Do you need smart contracts? If yes, how complex?
• What is your deployment target? (mainnet, testnet, local devnet)
• What is your experience level with Cardano? (new, intermediate, advanced)
• Any existing infrastructure? (running a node, using hosted APIs)

Step 2: Search Bundled Documentation

Search the bundled documentation for relevant content:

• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../docs/sources/mesh-sdk/ - Mesh SDK docs
• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../docs/sources/evolution-sdk/ - Evolution SDK docs
• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../docs/sources/aiken/ - Aiken language docs
• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../docs/sources/ogmios/ - Ogmios WebSocket bridge docs
• ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../docs/sources/blockfrost-openapi/ - Blockfrost API docs

Step 3: Search the ecosystem map

Reference the ecosystem map for the full landscape:

File: skills/suggest-tooling/references/ecosystem-map.md

Step 4: Recommend by category

Smart Contract Languages

| Language | Best for | Language base | Status | |---|---|---|---| | Aiken | Most new projects, performance-critical validators | Own syntax (Rust-like) | Production | | Plinth (formerly Plutus Tx) | Haskell teams, complex on-chain logic | Haskell | Production | | OpShin | Python developers writing validators | Python | Production | | Pebble | TypeScript developers wanting on-chain code in TS (@harmoniclabs/pebble, successor of Plu-ts) | TypeScript | Production | | Scalus | Scala/JVM teams | Scala | Production | | Helios | Simple validators, quick prototyping | Own syntax (JS-like) | Production |

Default recommendation: Aiken. Best tooling, fastest compilation, growing community, excellent documentation. Unless the team has a strong reason to use another language.

Off-Chain SDKs

| SDK | Language | Best for | Status | |---|---|---|---| | Mesh SDK | TypeScript/JS | Full-stack dApp development, beginners | Production | | Evolution SDK | TypeScript/JS | IntersectMBO's canonical Lucid-lineage successor. Type-safe, Effect-based composable tx building (Client.make(...).withBlockfrost(...).newTx().payToAddress(...).build()) | Production | | PyCardano | Python | Python backends, scripting, data science | Production | | Cardano CLI | Shell | DevOps, scripting, node operators | Production | | cardano-js-sdk | TypeScript | Lace wallet ecosystem, full node interaction | Production | | Blaze | TypeScript | Lightweight, modular tx building | Production | | Cardano Java Client Lib | Java/Kotlin | JVM backends, Android | Production | | whisky | Rust | Transaction building for dApps (Mesh-like API; young project by SIDAN Lab) | Production | | Pallas | Rust | Low-level building blocks: network protocols, ledger primitives, indexers (foundation of Dolos, Oura, Amaru) | Production |

Default recommendation by language:

• TypeScript/JavaScript: Mesh SDK (comprehensive, well-documented, great for beginners) or Evolution SDK (type-safe, Effect-based composable builder)
• Python: PyCardano
• Rust: Pallas
• Java/Kotlin: Cardano Java Client Lib

Infrastructure

| Tool | Purpose | Type | |---|---|---| | Blockfrost | Chain data API | Hosted | | Koios | Chain data API | Hosted (community) | | Ogmios | Node WebSocket bridge | Self-hosted | | Kupo | UTxO indexer | Self-hosted | | DB-Sync | Full chain PostgreSQL | Self-hosted | | Oura | Event pipeline | Self-hosted | | Yaci DevKit | Local devnet | Self-hosted |

Default recommendation: Blockfrost for getting started (easy, hosted). Ogmios + Kupo for production self-hosted.

Testing

| Tool | Purpose | |---|---| | Aiken built-in tests | Unit and property tests for Aiken validators | | Yaci DevKit | Local devnet for integration tests | | Preview testnet | Public testnet with frequent hard forks | | Preprod testnet | Public testnet mirroring mainnet | | tx-village | Transaction-level testing framework |

Wallet Integration

| Tool | Purpose | |---|---| | Mesh SDK | React hooks and components for wallet connection | | CIP-30 direct | Vanilla JS wallet connection | | CIP-95 | Governance extensions for wallets | | WalletConnect | Mobile wallet connection |

Step 5: Recommend a stack

Based on the project requirements, recommend a concrete stack. Example stacks:

Beginner dApp (TypeScript)

• Smart contracts: Aiken
• Off-chain: Mesh SDK
• Infrastructure: Blockfrost
• Testing: Aiken tests + Yaci DevKit
• Wallet: Mesh wallet hooks

DeFi Protocol (TypeScript, advanced)

• Smart contracts: Aiken
• Off-chain: Evolution SDK or Blaze
• Infrastructure: Ogmios + Kupo (self-hosted)
• Testing: Aiken property tests + Preview testnet
• Wallet: CIP-30 direct integration

Python Backend

• Smart contracts: Aiken (or OpShin if team prefers Python on-chain too)
• Off-chain: PyCardano
• Infrastructure: Blockfrost or Koios
• Testing: Aiken tests + pytest with PyCardano

Data Analytics Platform

• Infrastructure: DB-Sync (SQL) + Oura (streaming)
• Language: Python or SQL
• No smart contracts needed

Governance Tool

• Off-chain: Mesh SDK (CIP-95 support)
• Infrastructure: Blockfrost or Koios (governance endpoints)
• Wallet: CIP-30 + CIP-95
• Reference: CIP-1694 for governance actions

Step 6: Mention relevant CIPs

Based on the project type, flag relevant CIPs:

| Project type | Relevant CIPs | |---|---| | Any dApp | CIP-30 (wallet bridge), CIP-57 (blueprints) | | Token/NFT | CIP-25 (NFT metadata), CIP-68 (rich FTs/NFTs) | | Governance | CIP-1694 (governance), CIP-95 (wallet governance) | | Multi-sig | CIP-1854 (multi-sig wallets) | | Metadata | CIP-20 (tx metadata), CIP-25 (NFT metadata) | | DEX | CIP-35 (on-chain message signing) |

Step 7: Flag trade-offs

For each recommendation, briefly note:

• Maturity: How battle-tested is this tool?
• Community: Size and responsiveness of the community
• Documentation: Quality and completeness
• Maintenance: Is it actively maintained? Who maintains it?
• Lock-in: How easy is it to switch later?

References

• skills/suggest-tooling/references/ecosystem-map.md -- Full ecosystem map with all tools
• Cardano developer portal: https://developers.cardano.org
• Aiken: https://aiken-lang.org
• Mesh SDK: https://meshjs.dev
• Evolution SDK: https://github.com/IntersectMBO/evolution-sdk (docs: https://evolution-sdk.dev)
• PyCardano: https://pycardano.readthedocs.io
• Blockfrost: https://blockfrost.io

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: cardano-foundation
• Source: cardano-foundation/cardano-dev-skills
• License: Apache-2.0
• Homepage: https://cardano-foundation.github.io/cardano-dev-skills/

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.