Univer Skills

---
name: build-with-univer
description: Build applications with Univer Office SDK, covering the Web SDK (browser Office editors, headless Sheets and Docs in Node), Server SDK (self-hosted OT collaboration, storage, auth, Office import/export), AI SDK (agent-operated Office CLIs, reviewable Worktrees), and Binding SDK (plain HTML pages bound to live Sheet data). Use when starting or designing any Univer-based app or choosing Univer packages, including when the user describes a spreadsheet, document, collaboration, or AI-office need without naming a Univer package.
---

# Build with Univer

Univer Office SDK is a family of npm packages, not a single library. Pick the SDK by what you are
building, then follow its example repository where one exists. Do not guess APIs from memory: Univer changes
quickly and older material is widely mis-remembered.

## Pick the SDK

| You are building | SDK | Packages | Start from |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| An embedded spreadsheet, document, or slide editor in a web app | Web SDK | `@univerjs/*`, `@univerjs-pro/*` | [references/web-sdk.md](references/web-sdk.md) |
| Generate or modify Sheet or Doc data, or calculate formulas in Node.js | Headless Web SDK | `@univerjs/*` without editor UI | [references/web-sdk.md](references/web-sdk.md#headless-in-node) |
| Real-time multi-user editing with your own auth and storage | Server SDK + Web SDK client | `@univerjs-pro/collaboration-*` | [references/server-sdk.md](references/server-sdk.md), `quick-start` example |
| Server-side Office import/export (xlsx, docx, pptx) | Server SDK | `@univerjs-pro/exchange-node` | [references/server-sdk.md](references/server-sdk.md), `exchange` example |
| Your own CLI or tool that lets agents read and edit Office content | AI SDK | `@univer-cli/*` | [references/ai-sdk.md](references/ai-sdk.md), `01-content-operations` example |
| A plain HTML/CSS/JS page showing or editing live Sheet cells | Binding SDK | `@univerjs-labs/*` | [references/binding-sdk.md](references/binding-sdk.md) (installed packages' docs) |

Real products often combine them. A collaborative editor is Web SDK in the browser plus Server SDK
behind it. An HTML dashboard over shared data is Binding SDK on top of a Server SDK backend.
Running in Node does not by itself select Server SDK or AI SDK: use Headless Web SDK for document
processing, Server SDK for collaboration/storage or Office import/export, and AI SDK for agent tools.

## The four SDKs

- **Web SDK** is the engine. It runs in the browser or headless in Node and covers six products:
  Sheets and Docs (open source), Slides, Boards, Bases and PDFs (Pro). Choose the runtime before
  assembling plugins: browser editors need UI; headless Node processes document data without an
  editor UI. Follow each product's runtime guide rather than assuming Node support. For new Web SDK
  integrations, default to plugin mode; preserve existing presets or an explicit request for them.
  All programmatic control goes through the Facade API.
- **Server SDK** is a set of Node.js packages you assemble inside your own backend: transport,
  endpoint, service and a database adapter, with an OT collaboration engine and history, comment and
  Worktree services. Your application owns users, permissions, storage and deployment.
- **AI SDK** builds Office CLIs for agents. Your app owns the Commander program and its commands;
  the SDK supplies headless runtimes, content inspection and execution, offline Facade API search,
  rendering and layout lint, and Worktree-based review.
- **Binding SDK** connects ordinary HTML pages to Sheet data with `data-univer-*` attributes. Pages
  render in a sandboxed iframe connected to a host, and need a Server SDK collaboration backend.

## Working principles