diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 641c1abd..03cd81ca 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -104,4 +104,4 @@ runframe each time you'd like to load a new version of runframe.
 export RUNFRAME_STANDALONE_FILE_PATH=../runframe/dist/standalone.min.js
 cd ../runframe && bun run build
 cd ../cli && bun run dev
-```
+```
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/cli/add/register.ts b/cli/add/register.ts
index a93da756..3dd7f2b2 100644
--- a/cli/add/register.ts
+++ b/cli/add/register.ts
@@ -5,10 +5,13 @@ export const registerAdd = (program: Command) => {
   program
     .command("add")
     .description("Add a tscircuit component package to your project")
-    .argument("<component>", "Component to add (e.g. author/component-name)")
-    .action(async (componentPath: string) => {
+    .argument(
+      "<packageSpec>",
+      "Package to add (e.g. package-name, author/component, https://github.com/user/repo, package@version)",
+    )
+    .action(async (packageSpec: string) => {
       try {
-        await addPackage(componentPath)
+        await addPackage(packageSpec)
       } catch (error) {
         process.exit(1)
       }
diff --git a/lib/shared/add-package.ts b/lib/shared/add-package.ts
index 1d523b97..2f8afbaf 100644
--- a/lib/shared/add-package.ts
+++ b/lib/shared/add-package.ts
@@ -5,46 +5,80 @@ import { getPackageManager } from "./get-package-manager"
 import { resolveTarballUrlFromRegistry } from "./resolve-tarball-url-from-registry"
 
 /**
- * Normalizes a tscircuit component path to an npm package name.
- * @param componentPath - The component identifier (e.g., author/name, @tsci/author.name)
- * @returns The normalized npm package name.
+ * Checks if a package spec is a tscircuit component format and normalizes it.
+ * Returns null if it's not a tscircuit component format (e.g., regular npm package, URL, etc.)
+ * @param packageSpec - The package specifier
+ * @returns The normalized @tsci scoped package name or null if not a tscircuit component
  */
-export function normalizePackageNameToNpm(componentPath: string): string {
-  if (componentPath.startsWith("@tscircuit/")) {
-    return componentPath
-  } else if (componentPath.startsWith("@tsci/")) {
-    return componentPath
-  } else {
-    const match = componentPath.match(/^([^/.]+)[/.](.+)$/)
-    if (!match) {
-      throw new Error(
-        "Invalid component path. Use format: author/component-name, author.component-name, @tscircuit/package-name, or @tsci/author.component-name",
-      )
-    }
+export function normalizeTscircuitPackageName(
+  packageSpec: string,
+): string | null {
+  // Already a tscircuit scoped package
+  if (
+    packageSpec.startsWith("@tscircuit/") ||
+    packageSpec.startsWith("@tsci/")
+  ) {
+    return packageSpec
+  }
+
+  // Check for URLs or git repos - these are not tscircuit components
+  if (
+    packageSpec.startsWith("http://") ||
+    packageSpec.startsWith("https://") ||
+    packageSpec.startsWith("git+") ||
+    packageSpec.startsWith("git://")
+  ) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  // Check for npm package with version (e.g., lodash@4.17.21) - not a tscircuit component
+  if (packageSpec.includes("@") && !packageSpec.startsWith("@")) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  // Check for scoped packages that aren't tscircuit
+  if (
+    packageSpec.startsWith("@") &&
+    !packageSpec.startsWith("@tsci/") &&
+    !packageSpec.startsWith("@tscircuit/")
+  ) {
+    return null
+  }
+
+  // Try to match author/component or author.component format
+  const match = packageSpec.match(/^([^/.@]+)[/.]([^/.@]+)$/)
+  if (match) {
     const [, author, componentName] = match
     return `@tsci/${author}.${componentName}`
   }
+
+  // Anything else is treated as a regular package name
+  return null
 }
 
 /**
- * Installs a tscircuit component package.
- * Handles different package name formats, ensures .npmrc is configured,
- * and uses the appropriate package manager.
+ * Adds a package to the project (works like bun add).
+ * Detects tscircuit component formats and handles @tsci registry setup.
+ * All other package specs are passed directly to the package manager.
  *
- * @param componentPath - The component identifier (e.g., author/name, @tsci/author.name)
+ * @param packageSpec - Any package specifier (e.g., package-name, author/component, https://github.com/user/repo, package@version)
  * @param projectDir - The root directory of the project (defaults to process.cwd())
  */
 export async function addPackage(
-  componentPath: string,
+  packageSpec: string,
   projectDir: string = process.cwd(),
 ) {
-  const packageName = normalizePackageNameToNpm(componentPath)
+  // Check if this is a tscircuit component format
+  const normalizedName = normalizeTscircuitPackageName(packageSpec)
 
-  console.log(`Adding ${packageName}...`)
+  // Determine what to display and what to install
+  const displayName = normalizedName || packageSpec
+  let installTarget = normalizedName || packageSpec
 
-  let installTarget = packageName
+  console.log(`Adding ${displayName}...`)
 
-  if (packageName.startsWith("@tsci/")) {
+  // Only handle @tsci registry setup if it's a tscircuit component
+  if (normalizedName && normalizedName.startsWith("@tsci/")) {
     const npmrcPath = path.join(projectDir, ".npmrc")
     const npmrcContent = fs.existsSync(npmrcPath)
       ? fs.readFileSync(npmrcPath, "utf-8")
@@ -77,19 +111,19 @@ export async function addPackage(
     }
 
     if (!hasTsciRegistry) {
-      installTarget = await resolveTarballUrlFromRegistry(packageName)
+      installTarget = await resolveTarballUrlFromRegistry(normalizedName)
     }
   }
+  // For all other cases (URLs, scoped packages, regular npm packages), use packageSpec as-is
 
   // Install the package using the detected package manager
   const packageManager = getPackageManager()
   try {
     packageManager.install({ name: installTarget, cwd: projectDir })
-    console.log(`Added ${packageName} successfully.`)
+    console.log(`Added ${displayName} successfully.`)
   } catch (error) {
     const errorMessage = error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)
-    console.error(`Failed to add ${packageName}:`, errorMessage)
-    // Re-throw the error so the caller can handle it
-    throw new Error(`Failed to add ${packageName}: ${errorMessage}`)
+    console.error(`Failed to add ${displayName}:`, errorMessage)
+    throw new Error(`Failed to add ${displayName}: ${errorMessage}`)
   }
 }
diff --git a/lib/shared/remove-package.ts b/lib/shared/remove-package.ts
index b32dabf9..bb79bedb 100644
--- a/lib/shared/remove-package.ts
+++ b/lib/shared/remove-package.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { getPackageManager } from "./get-package-manager"
-import { normalizePackageNameToNpm } from "./add-package"
+import { normalizeTscircuitPackageName } from "./add-package"
 import path from "node:path"
 import fs from "node:fs"
 /**
@@ -13,7 +13,8 @@ export async function removePackage(
   componentPath: string,
   projectDir: string = process.cwd(),
 ) {
-  const packageName = normalizePackageNameToNpm(componentPath)
+  const normalizedName = normalizeTscircuitPackageName(componentPath)
+  const packageName = normalizedName || componentPath
 
   console.log(`Removing ${packageName}...`)
 
diff --git a/tests/cli/add/add-package01.test.ts b/tests/cli/add/add-package01.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..2530eac9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/cli/add/add-package01.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+import { getCliTestFixture } from "../../fixtures/get-cli-test-fixture"
+import { test, expect } from "bun:test"
+import { join } from "node:path"
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs"
+
+test("tsci add - adds regular npm package", async () => {
+  const { tmpDir, runCommand } = await getCliTestFixture()
+
+  // Create initial package.json
+  await Bun.write(
+    join(tmpDir, "package.json"),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      name: "test-project",
+      dependencies: {},
+    }),
+  )
+
+  // Test adding a regular npm package
+  const { stdout } = await runCommand("tsci add zod")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("Adding zod")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("successfully")
+
+  // Verify package.json was updated
+  const pkgJson = JSON.parse(
+    await Bun.file(join(tmpDir, "package.json")).text(),
+  )
+  expect(pkgJson.dependencies["zod"]).toBeDefined()
+
+  // Verify package was actually installed in node_modules
+  const nodeModulesPath = join(tmpDir, "node_modules", "zod")
+  expect(existsSync(nodeModulesPath)).toBe(true)
+})
diff --git a/tests/cli/add/add-package02.test.ts b/tests/cli/add/add-package02.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b2a28ec9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/cli/add/add-package02.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+import { getCliTestFixture } from "../../fixtures/get-cli-test-fixture"
+import { test, expect } from "bun:test"
+import { join } from "node:path"
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs"
+
+test("tsci add - adds package from GitHub URL", async () => {
+  const { tmpDir, runCommand } = await getCliTestFixture()
+
+  // Create initial package.json
+  await Bun.write(
+    join(tmpDir, "package.json"),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      name: "test-project",
+      dependencies: {},
+    }),
+  )
+
+  // Test adding from GitHub URL
+  const { stdout } = await runCommand(
+    "tsci add https://github.com/lodash/lodash",
+  )
+  expect(stdout).toContain("Adding https://github.com/lodash/lodash")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("successfully")
+
+  // Verify package.json was updated
+  const pkgJson = JSON.parse(
+    await Bun.file(join(tmpDir, "package.json")).text(),
+  )
+  expect(pkgJson.dependencies["lodash"]).toBeDefined()
+
+  // Verify package was actually installed in node_modules
+  const nodeModulesPath = join(tmpDir, "node_modules", "lodash")
+  expect(existsSync(nodeModulesPath)).toBe(true)
+})
diff --git a/tests/cli/add/add-package03.test.ts b/tests/cli/add/add-package03.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4a7868f2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/cli/add/add-package03.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+import { getCliTestFixture } from "../../fixtures/get-cli-test-fixture"
+import { test, expect } from "bun:test"
+import { join } from "node:path"
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs"
+
+test("tsci add - adds package with version", async () => {
+  const { tmpDir, runCommand } = await getCliTestFixture()
+
+  // Create initial package.json
+  await Bun.write(
+    join(tmpDir, "package.json"),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      name: "test-project",
+      dependencies: {},
+    }),
+  )
+
+  // Test adding with version
+  const { stdout } = await runCommand("tsci add zod@3.22.0")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("Adding zod@3.22.0")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("successfully")
+
+  // Verify package.json was updated with specific version
+  const pkgJson = JSON.parse(
+    await Bun.file(join(tmpDir, "package.json")).text(),
+  )
+  expect(pkgJson.dependencies["zod"]).toBe("3.22.0")
+
+  // Verify package was actually installed in node_modules
+  const nodeModulesPath = join(tmpDir, "node_modules", "zod")
+  expect(existsSync(nodeModulesPath)).toBe(true)
+})
diff --git a/tests/cli/add/add-package04.test.ts b/tests/cli/add/add-package04.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c7d36676
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/cli/add/add-package04.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+import { getCliTestFixture } from "../../fixtures/get-cli-test-fixture"
+import { test, expect } from "bun:test"
+import { join } from "node:path"
+
+test("tsci add - handles author/component format as tscircuit package", async () => {
+  const { tmpDir, runCommand } = await getCliTestFixture()
+
+  // Create initial package.json
+  await Bun.write(
+    join(tmpDir, "package.json"),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      name: "test-project",
+      dependencies: {},
+    }),
+  )
+
+  // Test author/component format (should convert to @tsci/author.component)
+  const result = await runCommand("tsci add seveibar/soup")
+
+  // Should show it's trying to add @tsci/seveibar.soup
+  expect(
+    result.stdout.includes("@tsci/seveibar.soup") ||
+      result.stderr.includes("@tsci/seveibar.soup"),
+  ).toBe(true)
+})
diff --git a/tests/cli/add/add-package05.test.ts b/tests/cli/add/add-package05.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f7a3842c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/cli/add/add-package05.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+import { getCliTestFixture } from "../../fixtures/get-cli-test-fixture"
+import { test, expect } from "bun:test"
+import { join } from "node:path"
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs"
+
+test("tsci add - handles scoped packages", async () => {
+  const { tmpDir, runCommand } = await getCliTestFixture()
+
+  // Create initial package.json
+  await Bun.write(
+    join(tmpDir, "package.json"),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      name: "test-project",
+      dependencies: {},
+    }),
+  )
+
+  // Test adding a scoped package
+  const { stdout } = await runCommand("tsci add @types/node")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("Adding @types/node")
+  expect(stdout).toContain("successfully")
+
+  // Verify package.json was updated
+  const pkgJson = JSON.parse(
+    await Bun.file(join(tmpDir, "package.json")).text(),
+  )
+  expect(pkgJson.dependencies["@types/node"]).toBeDefined()
+
+  // Verify package was actually installed in node_modules
+  const nodeModulesPath = join(tmpDir, "node_modules", "@types", "node")
+  expect(existsSync(nodeModulesPath)).toBe(true)
+})
diff --git a/tests/cli/add/add-package06.test.ts b/tests/cli/add/add-package06.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..60f2699c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/cli/add/add-package06.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+import { getCliTestFixture } from "../../fixtures/get-cli-test-fixture"
+import { test, expect } from "bun:test"
+import { join } from "node:path"
+
+test("tsci add - handles author.component format as tscircuit package", async () => {
+  const { tmpDir, runCommand } = await getCliTestFixture()
+
+  // Create initial package.json
+  await Bun.write(
+    join(tmpDir, "package.json"),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      name: "test-project",
+      dependencies: {},
+    }),
+  )
+
+  // Test author.component format (should convert to @tsci/author.component)
+  const result = await runCommand("tsci add seveibar.soup")
+
+  // Should show it's trying to add @tsci/seveibar.soup
+  expect(
+    result.stdout.includes("@tsci/seveibar.soup") ||
+      result.stderr.includes("@tsci/seveibar.soup"),
+  ).toBe(true)
+})