DeepSeek TUI skills vs prompts is really a question about reusable workflow structure vs one-off instruction text

Users search this comparison when prompting still feels repetitive and they want to know whether skills solve a different problem instead of just adding more text to maintain.

Why this distinction matters

A prompt can be enough when the task is isolated. Skills become more valuable when the same context shape, file boundaries, or execution expectations keep returning across sessions.

What to compare

Is the workflow repeatable or one-off?
Do you need stable structure or just good phrasing?
Would the next session benefit from the same guardrails again?