diff --git a/skills/firecrawl-cli/SKILL.md b/skills/firecrawl-cli/SKILL.md
index 41f4cdd..7f719ef 100644
--- a/skills/firecrawl-cli/SKILL.md
+++ b/skills/firecrawl-cli/SKILL.md
@@ -32,6 +32,13 @@ Must be installed and authenticated. Check with `firecrawl --status`.
 
 If not ready, see [rules/install.md](rules/install.md). For output handling guidelines, see [rules/security.md](rules/security.md).
 
+Before doing real work, verify the setup with one small request:
+
+```bash
+mkdir -p .firecrawl
+firecrawl scrape "https://firecrawl.dev" -o .firecrawl/install-check.md
+```
+
 ```bash
 firecrawl search "query" --scrape --limit 3
 ```
diff --git a/skills/firecrawl-cli/rules/install.md b/skills/firecrawl-cli/rules/install.md
index 6d5379a..1e0addb 100644
--- a/skills/firecrawl-cli/rules/install.md
+++ b/skills/firecrawl-cli/rules/install.md
@@ -12,11 +12,19 @@ description: |
 ## Quick Setup (Recommended)
 
 ```bash
-npx -y firecrawl-cli -y
+npx -y firecrawl-cli@latest -y
 ```
 
 This installs `firecrawl-cli` globally, authenticates via browser, and installs all skills.
 
+This setup is safe to re-run when the CLI is missing, stale, or only partially configured.
+
+If `firecrawl` is already installed and you want to update it first:
+
+```bash
+npm update -g firecrawl-cli
+```
+
 Skills are installed globally across all detected coding editors by default.
 
 To install skills manually:
@@ -28,15 +36,26 @@ firecrawl setup skills
 ## Manual Install
 
 ```bash
-npm install -g firecrawl-cli@1.8.0
+npm install -g firecrawl-cli@latest
 ```
 
 ## Verify
 
+First check status:
+
 ```bash
 firecrawl --status
 ```
 
+Then run one small real request to prove install, auth, and output all work:
+
+```bash
+mkdir -p .firecrawl
+firecrawl scrape "https://firecrawl.dev" -o .firecrawl/install-check.md
+```
+
+The install is healthy when both commands succeed.
+
 ## Authentication
 
 Authenticate using the built-in login flow:
@@ -59,5 +78,5 @@ Ask the user how they'd like to authenticate:
 If `firecrawl` is not found after installation:
 
 1. Ensure npm global bin is in PATH
-2. Try: `npx firecrawl-cli@1.8.0 --version`
-3. Reinstall: `npm install -g firecrawl-cli@1.8.0`
+2. Try: `npx firecrawl-cli@latest --version`
+3. Reinstall: `npm install -g firecrawl-cli@latest`