AI coding agents

About

Aider is an open-source CLI coding assistant that edits code in an existing git repository under the developer's direction. It's known for two core design choices: it operates on git (every change becomes a discrete commit with an auto-generated message, making rollback trivial), and it builds a "repo map" of the codebase so the model always has context for where functions and types live across files.

It supports any LLM provider — Anthropic Claude, OpenAI GPT, local models via Ollama or OpenAI-compatible servers, DeepSeek, xAI. Unlike IDE-coupled assistants, Aider lives in the terminal and plays well with any editor the developer already uses.

The /architect mode separates planning (using a reasoning model) from editing (using a fast edit model) for complex changes. The benchmark leaderboard Aider maintains is a widely-cited reference for LLM coding performance. Images (screenshots, mockups) and web pages can be added to the chat for vision-capable models.

Staleness note (checked 2026-10-05): the latest tagged release is v0.86.0 from 2025-08-09, and the last commit to the main branch is from 2026-05-22. Aider still works and its docs are online, but development has slowed sharply — weigh that before standardising on it.

Features

• Git-first workflow with automatic commits per change
• Repo-map context for large codebase awareness
• Any LLM provider (Claude, GPT, local, DeepSeek, xAI)
• Architect mode: reasoning model plans, edit model executes
• Image and web-page input for vision-capable models
• Voice input support
• In-chat commands for file management, linting, testing
• Language-agnostic (Python, JS, Rust, Go, Java, C++, … )

Best for

• Pair programming in the terminal without IDE lock-in
• Refactoring across multi-file changes with git discipline
• Adding features to existing codebases with reviewable commits
• Running local LLMs as coding assistants
• Developers who prefer vim / emacs over IDE-integrated assistants

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Aider-AI

About

Amp describes itself as "a coding agent and development environment built for the frontier". It began inside Sourcegraph and became a separate company on 2025-12-02 ("Amp is becoming a separate company. We're spinning out of Sourcegraph"). It is closed source.

Amp chooses the models: its main agent runs frontier models (GPT-5.6, Claude Fable 5.1 and fast models at the time of writing), with four modes on "the Dial" (low, medium, high, ultra) and specialist subagents (Search, Oracle, Librarian). Model Routing lets you send some or all models through your own API keys, ChatGPT or other subscriptions, cloud platforms (Bedrock, Google Cloud) or gateways (OpenRouter, Ollama Cloud, any OpenAI/Anthropic-compatible URL).

The same threads run in the terminal CLI (amp; macOS, Linux, Windows via WSL), on the web, and in the macOS / iOS apps. Work can run locally, on your own "runners", or in "orbs" — remote machines Amp creates per thread. The CLI connects to VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Zed and Neovim. It supports MCP, plugins, skills and AGENTS.md, and images can be pasted or dragged into the prompt.

Tiers are Hobby (free), Individual (Megawatt / Gigawatt), Teams and Enterprise; usage beyond a tier is paid credits at provider API prices. The former ad-supported "Amp Free" daily grant has been paused or reduced for many users since 2026-05-23. Amp states that neither it nor its subprocessors train on your data unless you opt in, and it is SOC 2 Type II.

Features

• Terminal CLI amp (macOS, Linux, Windows via WSL); web; macOS and iOS apps
• Orbs (per-thread remote machines) and self-hosted runners
• Modes low / medium / high / ultra; Search, Oracle and Librarian subagents
• Model Routing — own keys, ChatGPT and other subscriptions, Bedrock / Google Cloud, OpenRouter and custom endpoints
• Editor connection for VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Zed, Neovim
• MCP, plugins, skills, AGENTS.md; TypeScript and Python SDKs
• Shared threads, multiplayer and workspaces for teams
• Plans — Hobby (free), Individual (Megawatt / Gigawatt), Teams, Enterprise

Best for

• Developers who want the agent to pick frontier models per task
• Long-running tasks that continue on a remote machine
• Teams that share and review agent threads

License

commercial

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Amp Inc. (spun out of Sourcegraph, 2025-12-02)

About

Antigravity CLI (agy) is "the lightweight Terminal User Interface (TUI) surface of Antigravity", built in Go. It shares one agent harness and one set of settings with the rest of Google Antigravity: the Antigravity 2.0 desktop app, the Antigravity IDE, extensions for VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs, Zed and Xcode, and a Python SDK. Conversations started in the CLI can continue in Antigravity 2.0.

On 2026-06-18 Antigravity CLI replaced Gemini CLI for free and Google AI Pro/Ultra users. It imports Gemini CLI extensions (as plugins), skills, settings and MCP servers, and still reads GEMINI.md and AGENTS.md.

It runs natively on macOS, Linux and Windows. All individual accounts get Gemini models with a weekly-limited quota; Google AI Pro and Ultra raise the limits and allow AI-credit overages, and Ultra adds third-party models. Teams use it under Google Cloud terms via Gemini Enterprise. There is no bring-your-own-key for other providers, but the CLI can run on your own Gemini API key. Individual-tier interactions may be used to improve Google products (opt out in Settings). Closed source: the GitHub repo holds only the README, changelog and examples.

Features

• Terminal CLI agy (Go), native on macOS, Linux and Windows; headless agy -p
• Same harness as the Antigravity 2.0 desktop app and Antigravity IDE
• Extensions for VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Zed, Xcode
• Plans — free individual quota, Google AI Pro, Google AI Ultra; Gemini Enterprise for teams
• Gemini models (third-party models on Ultra); own Gemini API key supported in the CLI
• MCP, plugins, skills, hooks, subagents; imports Gemini CLI setups
• Image paste into the prompt

Best for

• Former Gemini CLI free and Google AI Pro/Ultra users
• A no-cost Google terminal agent with a weekly quota
• Moving between terminal, desktop app and editor on one Google harness

License

commercial

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Google

About

Claude Code is Anthropic's official agentic coding tool, available in the terminal, IDEs (VS Code, JetBrains), the Claude desktop app, the browser (cloud sessions at claude.ai/code) and the Claude iOS/Android app. It runs only Claude models — via Anthropic directly or via Amazon Bedrock, Claude Platform on AWS, Google Cloud's Agent Platform (formerly Vertex AI) or Microsoft Foundry, optionally through an LLM gateway — and has first-class tool use for reading and editing files, running shell commands, searching codebases, browsing the web, and orchestrating sub-agents. It ships with a hook system, slash commands, MCP server support, and IDE integrations (VS Code, JetBrains).

Unlike chat-only coding assistants, Claude Code is agentic by design: it plans, executes multi-step changes, reads its own output, and recovers from errors. The Claude Agent SDK (Python and TypeScript) gives developers the same tools, agent loop and context management that power Claude Code. The public GitHub repo hosts the changelog, official plugins and the issue tracker, not the source.

Privacy depends on how you sign in. With a Free, Pro or Max account, Claude Code falls under Anthropic's Consumer Terms: data is used to train future models when the account's model-improvement setting is on (5-year retention; 30 days if off). Under the Commercial Terms (Team, Enterprise, API and cloud platforms), Anthropic does not train on Claude Code prompts or code and retains them for 30 days by default. Claude Code is included in Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise (not Free), or billed through a Claude Console/API account or a cloud provider.

Images can be dragged in, pasted (Ctrl+V; Alt+V on Windows/WSL) or referenced by file path in a session.

Anthropic publishes both llms.txt and llms-full.txt for the Claude Code documentation at code.claude.com, making it one of the best-indexed coding-agent references available to other AI assistants.

Features

• Terminal CLI with native tool use (Bash, Read, Edit, Write, Grep)
• Hook system for shaping agent behavior per-project
• Slash commands and user-defined skills via SKILL.md
• MCP server support for connecting external tools and data
• IDE integrations for VS Code and JetBrains; also in the desktop app, on the web (cloud sessions) and on iOS/Android
• Image input (drag-and-drop, paste or file path)
• Background task support and session persistence
• Claude Agent SDK exposes Claude Code's agent loop and tools for custom agents

Best for

• Refactoring and migration across large codebases
• Debugging and fixing issues with full shell + git access
• Writing new features with reviewed commits and CI awareness
• Onboarding to unfamiliar repos via guided exploration
• Building and testing in one loop without leaving the terminal

License

commercial

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Anthropic

About

Claude Desktop is Anthropic's official native app for macOS, Windows, and Linux (beta; Ubuntu 22.04+ / Debian 12+). While not exclusively a coding tool, it combines: MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers that give it filesystem, git, GitHub, database, and shell access; a skills system for packaging repeatable coding workflows; the Code tab (Claude Code inside Desktop) and Cowork for autonomous multi-step tasks; long-context conversations synced to your Claude account; and Anthropic's current Claude models (Fable 5.1, Opus 5.5, Sonnet 5.5, Haiku 4.5) running underneath.

Compared to Claude Code (Anthropic's terminal CLI agent): same underlying models and tool-use primitives, different interface. Claude Desktop is faster for visual work (drop in screenshots, read PDFs, inspect designs), and the chat-first UX suits multi-turn coding sessions where you're thinking through architecture rather than typing-to-edit. Claude Code wins for terminal-native workflows and CI integration; Claude Desktop wins for the "I want to talk through a problem with full repo access" mode.

Compared to Cursor / Devin Desktop (formerly Windsurf): those are IDE-bound. Claude Desktop is editor-agnostic — works alongside any editor (VS Code, JetBrains, Neovim) by reading/writing files via MCP. In the Code tab, Claude Code edits files directly, with a visual diff viewer, integrated terminal and file editor.

Plus: Claude Desktop is the place where MCP server experimentation happens. New community MCP servers ship constantly (puppeteer, Stripe, Slack, Postgres, Sentry, ...) — adding any of them gives Claude Desktop a new capability without changing the app.

Features

• Native apps for macOS, Windows and Linux (beta; Ubuntu 22.04+ / Debian 12+)
• MCP (Model Context Protocol) integration — filesystem, git, GitHub, postgres, shell, browser, custom servers
• Skills system — package coding workflows as reusable invocations
• Code tab (Claude Code) and Cowork for autonomous multi-step tasks (Pro and above)
• Drop in screenshots / PDFs for visual debugging
• Long-context conversations synced to your Claude account
• Multiple models (Fable, Opus, Sonnet, Haiku) selectable; Fable on paid plans
• Editor-agnostic — pairs with any IDE you already use

Best for

• Architecture / planning sessions where you talk through a design
• Multi-file refactors driven by chat with the agent reading the repo
• Visual debugging — drop in a screenshot of a broken UI
• Workflow automation via custom MCP servers and skills
• Power users who want Claude's full capabilities without committing to a CLI or new IDE
• Working alongside an existing editor (VS Code / JetBrains / Neovim) without replacing it

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Anthropic

About

Cline is "the open source coding agent in your IDE, terminal, & desktop", licensed Apache 2.0. The extension installs into VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, VSCodium, Antigravity and JetBrains IDEs (JetBrains is listed as an Enterprise feature on the pricing page); there is also a CLI (interactive or headless for CI/CD), a desktop app (macOS; Windows beta) for open-weight models, Kanban (preview) and an SDK (@cline/sdk).

The open-source version is free and runs on your own API keys ("OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and others"), on Cline's usage-billing provider, or on local models via Ollama and LM Studio. ClinePass is an optional subscription for open models. An Enterprise tier adds team management, SSO, audit logs and VPC deployment.

It supports MCP servers and plugins, and can scaffold new MCP tools on request.

Features

• Extension for VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, VSCodium, Antigravity, JetBrains (listed as an Enterprise feature on the pricing page)
• CLI (interactive or headless) and desktop app (macOS; Windows beta)
• Kanban (preview) and SDK (@cline/sdk)
• Bring your own API keys; local models via Ollama / LM Studio
• MCP servers and plugins
• Plans — Open Source (free) and Enterprise; optional ClinePass subscription for open models

Best for

• Open-source agent inside an existing editor
• Teams that need BYOK with enterprise controls
• Local-model setups for code that can't leave the machine

License

open-source

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Cline

About

CodeBuddy is Tencent Cloud's coding assistant ("Tencent Cloud Code Assistant"), with a China site at codebuddy.cn / copilot.tencent.com and an international site at codebuddy.ai. It comes in three forms: CodeBuddy IDE (Windows and macOS), plugins for VS Code and JetBrains IDEs, and CodeBuddy Code, a terminal agent (codebuddy / cbc).

CodeBuddy Code installs via npm (@tencent-ai/codebuddy-code), Homebrew or a native binary (beta) for macOS, Linux (x86_64 / arm64) and Windows. It supports MCP, sub-agents, agent teams, skills, hooks, plugins, headless mode, an HTTP API, an SDK (Python / TypeScript) and ACP for Zed. Custom models can be added in models.json with any OpenAI-format endpoint, including a local server such as Ollama, and images can be sent to vision models.

Individual plans are Free and Pro, plus a Team plan; usage is metered in credits. The CLI is distributed under a proprietary licence.

Features

• CodeBuddy IDE (Windows, macOS); VS Code and JetBrains plugins
• CodeBuddy Code CLI (npm, Homebrew, native binary for macOS / Linux / Windows)
• MCP, sub-agents, agent teams, skills, hooks, plugins, SDK, ACP (Zed)
• Custom OpenAI-format models via models.json, including local endpoints
• Image input for vision models
• Plans — Free, Pro, Team

Best for

• Teams in the Tencent Cloud / WeCom ecosystem
• A Claude Code-style terminal agent with custom or local model endpoints
• IDE plugin plus terminal agent from one vendor

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Tencent Cloud

About

Continue was an open-source (Apache 2.0) coding agent for VS Code, JetBrains and the terminal, best known for bring-your-own-model configuration and first-class local LLM support (Ollama, LM Studio, vLLM).

It has been discontinued. continue.dev now reads "Continue was acquired by Cursor", and the repository README states that it "is no longer actively maintained and is read-only for all users". The team shipped final releases (final published builds: VS Code extension 2.0.0 stable / 2.1.0 pre-release, tagged 2026-06-19; CLI 1.5.47 on npm, 2026-06-18; JetBrains plugin 1.0.67). The source stays available under Apache 2.0, so existing installs keep working and the code can be forked, but there will be no fixes, new model support or security updates.

Kept on this list as a pointer for people searching for it. For an actively maintained open-source, bring-your-own-model alternative, see Cline, Kilo Code, OpenCode or Qwen Code.

Continue's llms.txt and llms-full.txt have returned 404 since at least 2026-07-24.

Features

• Final releases: VS Code extension 2.0.0 (2026-06-19), CLI 1.5.47, JetBrains plugin 1.0.67
• Source remains Apache 2.0 on GitHub (read-only)
• No further maintenance

Best for

• Existing users planning a migration
• Forks that want an Apache-2.0 IDE-agent codebase to build on

License

open-source

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Continue (acquired by Cursor)

About

Cursor is a commercial fork of VS Code that puts AI coding assistance at the center of the editor rather than as an extension. It ships chat, inline edits, multi-file rewrites, autocomplete, an agent mode for autonomous task execution, and codebase-wide context retrieval out of the box — running Cursor's own models (Composer 2.5, Grok 4.7) alongside OpenAI, Anthropic and Google models.

Cursor differentiates on UX polish: @-mentions to reference files and symbols, diff-style inline edits, a native command palette for AI actions, and proprietary context-selection heuristics. Codebase search uses a local Instant Grep index and an Explore subagent; Cursor "does not store embeddings of your codebase for search". Its Agent (formerly "Composer"; Composer is now Cursor's in-house model) can execute multi-step refactors across many files with user approval gates.

It's closed-source and subscription-based. Plans are Hobby (free), Individual (Pro / Pro+ / Ultra), Teams (Standard / Premium seats), Enterprise, plus a Start plan (India only); paid plans include MCPs, skills, hooks and cloud agents. A terminal agent, Cursor CLI (agent), ships alongside the editor, together with an Agents Window, Cloud Agents (web / iOS) and JetBrains support via ACP. Bring-your-own API keys (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Azure, AWS Bedrock) work for chat models only — per Cursor's docs, Tab completion stays on Cursor's built-in models.

Ownership changed in 2026: "Cursor has officially been acquired by SpaceX" (Cursor blog, 2026-08-14), completing a process that began with a SpaceXAI model-training partnership in April. The product keeps its name. Cursor also acquired Continue in mid-2026 (see that entry).

Features

• VS Code fork with preserved extension compatibility
• Chat with @-file, @-symbol, @-web context references
• Inline edit with diff-preview before applying
• Agent mode for multi-step autonomous refactors
• Codebase search via a local Instant Grep index and an Explore subagent
• Tab autocomplete (runs on Cursor's built-in models)
• Cursor models (Composer, Grok) plus OpenAI, Anthropic and Google models
• Cursor CLI (agent) for terminal use
• Agents Window, Cloud Agents (web / iOS) and JetBrains via ACP
• MCP support

Best for

• Professional developers who want maximum AI integration
• Teams that want a consistent IDE across members with built-in AI
• Large refactors that benefit from multi-file agent coordination
• Developers migrating from pure VS Code who want more AI than extensions provide

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Cursor (Anysphere; acquired by SpaceX, 2026-08-14)

About

DeepSeek Harness (dsh) is "an open-source agent harness developed by DeepSeek AI", MIT-licensed and built on an everything-is-a-plugin architecture powered by the Cordis plugin runtime: models, tools, skills, sessions, sandboxes, the agent loop and the UI are all plugins you can swap. It is in developer preview, and the README warns of compatibility-breaking changes.

It runs as a local Web UI (npx @deepseek-ai/dsh web, needs Node.js) or as a desktop app (macOS 13+ on Apple silicon, Windows 10+ x64). Models: a DeepSeek API key, bundled third-party providers (e.g. Anthropic, OpenAI, Moonshot/Kimi, Z.ai/GLM), or any custom OpenAI Chat Completions, OpenAI Responses or Anthropic Messages endpoint; images can be enabled per model. Ollama documents ollama launch dsh for local and Ollama Cloud models.

It connects MCP servers (stdio or Streamable HTTP), and its tool subsystems include bash, PTY sessions, background jobs, LSP navigation, web access, skills and workflows.

Features

• Everything-is-a-plugin harness on Cordis; create plugins by conversation
• Local Web UI via npx; desktop app (macOS Apple silicon, Windows)
• DeepSeek, bundled third-party providers, custom OpenAI/Anthropic-format endpoints
• Local models via Ollama (ollama launch dsh)
• MCP (stdio, Streamable HTTP), LSP navigation, subagents, scheduled tasks
• MIT licence; developer preview

Best for

• DeepSeek model users who want a first-party agent
• Building a custom agent harness from swappable plugins
• Local-model agent work through Ollama

License

open-source

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

DeepSeek

About

Devin Desktop is the product that used to be called Windsurf. Cognition (the company behind the Devin cloud agent) acquired Windsurf's "IP, product, trademark and brand" on 2025-07-14, after Google hired Windsurf's CEO and licensed its technology. On 2026-06-02 Windsurf was renamed Devin Desktop via an over-the-air update: same editor, settings and extensions, and — per Cognition — the same plans. windsurf.com and codeium.com now redirect to devin.ai/desktop.

The rename also replaced the agent. Cascade, Windsurf's original agent, was succeeded by Devin Local, rewritten from scratch in Rust; the legacy Cascade agent remained available through July 2026. Devin Local shares its agent harness with Devin CLI, Cognition's terminal agent (macOS, Linux, WSL, Windows), which can hand tasks off to Devin Cloud. The editor now positions itself as a command center for local and cloud agents (including Devin itself) and speaks the Agent Client Protocol (ACP).

The old Codeium autocomplete extensions live on as "Windsurf plugins", but Cognition's docs put the VS Code, Vim/Neovim, Visual Studio, Jupyter, Chrome and Eclipse plugins in maintenance mode, and say of the JetBrains plugin that "Cascade is being deprecated"; for JetBrains the FAQ now recommends Devin over ACP. This list no longer carries a separate Codeium entry.

Features

• VS Code-based IDE (backwards-compatible with Windsurf and VS Code extensions)
• Devin Local agent (replaced Cascade in June–July 2026)
• Devin CLI — the same agent harness in the terminal (macOS, Linux, WSL, Windows)
• Agent Command Center for managing local and cloud agents
• MCP server integration
• RAG-based codebase indexing and Fast Context retrieval
• Model menu (SWE-2, Claude, GPT, Gemini, Grok) with the Adaptive router
• Plans — Free, Pro, Max, Teams, Enterprise

Best for

• Developers who want a Cursor-style AI IDE from a different vendor
• Teams that also use Devin cloud agents and want one place to manage both
• Former Windsurf / Codeium users (the update carried settings forward)

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Cognition

About

Gemini CLI is "an open-source AI agent that brings the power of Gemini directly into your terminal", licensed Apache 2.0. It runs Gemini 3 models with a 1M-token context window and can build from PDFs, images or sketches using Gemini's multimodal input.

Since 2026-06-18 Gemini CLI no longer serves free (Gemini Code Assist for individuals) or Google AI Pro/Ultra sign-ins — Google moved those users to Antigravity CLI. It remains supported for organisations with a Gemini Code Assist Standard or Enterprise licence, through Google Cloud / Vertex AI, and with paid Gemini API keys. Which privacy terms apply depends on that sign-in method (Code Assist, Gemini API or Google Cloud).

It supports MCP servers and extensions. Editor integration is via the Gemini CLI Companion extension for VS Code-compatible IDEs, and via the Agent Client Protocol for JetBrains IDEs, Zed and other ACP editors.

Features

• Terminal agent, Apache 2.0
• Code Assist Standard/Enterprise licence, Vertex AI or paid Gemini API key (free and Google AI Pro/Ultra sign-in ended 2026-06-18)
• Gemini 3 models, 1M-token context
• Multimodal input (images, PDFs, sketches)
• MCP servers and extensions
• VS Code companion extension; ACP for JetBrains and Zed

Best for

• Teams on Gemini Code Assist Standard/Enterprise or Google Cloud who want an open-source, auditable terminal agent
• Google Cloud / Vertex AI shops
• Very large context tasks (whole-repo reading)

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Google

About

GitHub Copilot is the original and most widely deployed AI coding assistant, integrated natively into VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs, Eclipse, Xcode, Neovim, and GitHub itself. It offers inline code completion, chat, a multi-file agent mode, pull-request summaries, and a terminal agent, GitHub Copilot CLI (copilot), which ships with the GitHub MCP server preconfigured and accepts additional MCP servers. The older gh copilot extension was deprecated on 2025-10-25 in favour of Copilot CLI. Copilot CLI runs on Linux, macOS and Windows (PowerShell and WSL), accepts image and PDF attachments, and supports BYOK including local models (OpenAI-compatible endpoints, Ollama, vLLM, Foundry Local, Azure OpenAI, Anthropic). The GitHub Copilot app, a desktop app built on Copilot CLI for macOS, Linux and Windows, runs parallel agent sessions and is available in all plans.

Under the hood Copilot routes to multiple LLMs — GPT, Claude Sonnet, Gemini — with model choice exposed to users on the paid tiers. In VS Code, Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) connects any compatible model provider, including local models via the Ollama extension; per the VS Code docs, "You can use a local model completely offline", and BYOK models work without a Copilot plan or GitHub sign-in (Business/Enterprise admins can disable BYOK). Its reach within the GitHub platform (issues, PRs, code review, Actions) makes it a practical default for teams already on GitHub.

For enterprise deployments, Copilot offers SOC 2 compliance, data residency, code reference filtering, and the ability to restrict external traffic.

Features

• VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains, Eclipse, Xcode, Neovim integrations
• Inline autocomplete, chat, and multi-file agent mode
• Pull-request and code-review assistance on GitHub
• Multiple model backends (GPT, Claude, Gemini)
• GitHub Copilot CLI (copilot) — terminal agent with MCP, BYOK and local models via Ollama (replaced gh copilot)
• GitHub Copilot app — desktop app for parallel agent sessions, built on Copilot CLI (macOS, Linux, Windows)
• BYOK and offline local models in VS Code (Ollama extension)
• Enterprise tier with SOC 2, data residency, content filtering
• Plans — Free, Student, Pro, Pro+, Max, Business, Enterprise (free Copilot Pro for eligible teachers and popular-OSS maintainers)

Best for

• Professional development at organizations already on GitHub
• Teams needing enterprise compliance posture out of the box
• Users who want PR / issue / code-review AI integrated into Git workflow
• Cross-IDE consistency (one subscription, many editors)
• Students and OSS maintainers on the free tier

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

GitHub / Microsoft

About

goose is "your native open source AI agent — desktop app, CLI, and API — for code, workflows, and everything in between", written in Rust and licensed Apache 2.0. Block created it; it is now "part of the Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF) at the Linux Foundation", and the repository moved from block/goose to aaif-goose/goose (the old URL redirects). The docs moved from block.github.io/goose to goose-docs.ai.

It runs on your machine, with a native desktop app and a CLI for macOS, Linux and Windows (native Windows install via Git Bash or PowerShell; WSL optional). It works with "15+ providers — Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Ollama, OpenRouter, Azure, Bedrock, and more", can use existing Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini subscriptions via ACP, and runs local models through Ollama, LM Studio, Docker Model Runner, Ramalama and other OpenAI-compatible servers.

Capabilities come from MCP extensions (70+), reusable recipes, subagents and project hints (.goosehints / AGENTS.md).

Features

• Desktop app and CLI for macOS, Linux and Windows; embeddable API
• 15+ providers; subscriptions via ACP; local models via Ollama, LM Studio, Docker Model Runner, Ramalama
• MCP extensions (70+), built-in Developer extension for shell and file editing
• Recipes (shareable task templates), sessions, .goosehints / AGENTS.md
• Apache 2.0, governed under the Agentic AI Foundation (Linux Foundation)

Best for

• Open-source, vendor-neutral agent with a desktop UI as well as a CLI
• Fully local agent work with open-weight models
• Automations shared as recipes across a team

License

open-source

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Agentic AI Foundation (Linux Foundation); created by Block

About

Kilo Code is an MIT-licensed coding agent that "meets you everywhere you work": VS Code, JetBrains, the CLI, and a cloud surface at app.kilo.ai. The Kilo CLI is a fork of OpenCode.

Kilo's pricing page lists a free and open-source tier (VS Code, JetBrains and CLI extensions), plus Teams and Enterprise (14-day Enterprise trial). You can "Bring your own Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Azure, AWS Bedrock, or other provider keys" and "Run local models with Ollama or LM Studio"; through a Kilo account (Kilo Gateway, or the optional Kilo Pass) there are 500+ models with mid-task switching. Opt-in Codebase Indexing adds semantic search with embeddings.

A Kilo Marketplace distributes agents, skills, MCP servers and plugins.

Kilo's llms.txt is served, but as of 2026-10-05 its page links point at kilocode-docs.vercel.app raw-markdown URLs that return 404, so it is of limited use to agents.

Features

• VS Code and JetBrains extensions, CLI (OpenCode fork), cloud agents
• 500+ models; BYOK for major providers
• Local models via Ollama or LM Studio
• Opt-in Codebase Indexing (semantic search)
• Marketplace for agents, skills, MCP servers, plugins
• Plans — Free & Open Source, Teams, Enterprise; optional Kilo Pass for inference

Best for

• One open-source agent across VS Code, JetBrains and terminal
• Teams that want BYOK and model choice with central billing
• Local-model workflows

License

open-source

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Kilo-Org

About

Kiro is AWS's AI coding agent, built around one agent harness shared by the Kiro IDE, the Kiro CLI, a web surface, iOS (TestFlight early access), Kiro Crew (a multi-agent personal agent for macOS, Linux and Windows) and any ACP-compatible editor. Its distinguishing idea is spec-driven development: a feature is planned as requirements, design and tasks before the agent implements it, with steering files and event-driven hooks shaping the agent's behaviour.

Kiro is what AWS points Amazon Q Developer users to. Per AWS's end-of-support announcement, new Q Developer Free Tier accounts and subscriptions were blocked from 2026-05-15, and "Amazon Q Developer IDE plugins and paid Subscriptions will reach end of support on April 30, 2027, giving customers 12 months to transition to Kiro." The Q Developer CLI has already become Kiro CLI — Kiro's docs call it "the next update of the Q CLI", with existing workflows, subscription and authentication carried over. Kiro CLI runs on macOS, Linux and Windows 11 (PowerShell).

Models come from several providers (Anthropic, OpenAI and open-weight families such as DeepSeek, GLM, MiniMax and Qwen). The docs we checked do not describe bring-your-own-key or local-model support. The public GitHub repository (kirodotdev/Kiro) is an issue and feedback tracker; the product source is not hosted there.

Features

• Spec-driven development (requirements → design → tasks)
• Steering files and event-driven agent hooks
• MCP support
• Kiro IDE, Kiro CLI (successor to Amazon Q Developer CLI), web, iOS and Kiro Crew
• ACP support for other editors
• Multi-provider model menu (Anthropic, OpenAI, open-weight models)
• Plans — Free, Pro, Pro+, Pro Max, Power, Enterprise

Best for

• Amazon Q Developer users migrating before the 2027-04-30 end of support
• Teams that want a written spec before the agent touches code
• AWS-centric organisations standardising on an AWS-supported agent

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

AWS

About

MiniMax Code is MiniMax's agent product: a desktop app (macOS, Windows) for software development and other tasks, and MiniMax Code CLI, a terminal agent run as mcode. The CLI source — terminal TUI, headless CLI and ACP components — is open on GitHub under MIT for first-party code; the desktop app is distributed separately. The repo's licence notes say some terminal code derives from Pi and keeps its original licence declarations.

The CLI installs with a one-line script on macOS, Linux and WSL, a PowerShell script on Windows, or npm (@minimax-ai/code). You either sign in with a MiniMax account (mainland China or Global region) or bring your own key — "BYOK does not require a MiniMax login" — by adding any provider with a base URL, API format and model name, including custom/local models. It offers interactive, headless (mcode exec) and ACP modes, with skills, MCP and plugins.

MiniMax's subscription is M Plan (tiers Go, Explore, Build; built on the earlier Token Plan), which also works in other tools such as Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and OpenCode.

Features

• Terminal CLI mcode (macOS, Linux, WSL, Windows); MIT first-party source
• Desktop app for macOS and Windows (closed, separate)
• MiniMax account sign-in or BYOK with any compatible endpoint, incl. local models
• Interactive TUI, headless mcode exec for CI, ACP for editors
• Skills, MCP, plugins
• Plans — M Plan (Go, Explore, Build) / Token Plan

Best for

• MiniMax M-series model users who want a first-party agent
• An MIT-licensed terminal agent that also runs other providers or local models
• Scripted / CI runs with structured output

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

MiniMax

About

Codex CLI is "a coding agent from OpenAI that runs locally on your computer". The CLI is open source under Apache 2.0 and written in Rust; the same agent is available as an IDE extension (VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code Insiders, with Xcode and JetBrains providing their own integrations), inside the ChatGPT desktop app (macOS, Windows; Linux in preview; codex app opens it) and as a cloud agent (Codex Cloud) at chatgpt.com/codex.

You can sign in with a ChatGPT account — Codex in the CLI and IDE extension is included in the Plus, Pro, Business, Edu and Enterprise plans (Free and Go include Codex only in the ChatGPT desktop app) — or use an API key, which OpenAI recommends for CI and shared environments. It is not locked to OpenAI's hosted models: with --oss it runs against a local "open source" provider such as Ollama or LM Studio, and custom model providers can be defined in config.toml.

It supports MCP servers, lifecycle hooks, skills, AGENTS.md project instructions and a configurable sandbox, and accepts image attachments (--image).

Features

• Terminal agent (Rust), Apache 2.0
• Sign in with ChatGPT (Plus through Enterprise) or an API key
• Local models via --oss (Ollama, LM Studio) and custom providers
• MCP servers, hooks, skills, AGENTS.md
• Image attachments (--image)
• IDE extension for VS Code-family editors; ChatGPT desktop app; Codex Cloud

Best for

• ChatGPT subscribers who want a terminal agent included in their plan
• Open-source, auditable CLI agent with a sandbox
• Mixing hosted OpenAI models with local open-weight models

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

OpenAI

About

OpenCode describes itself as "the open source AI coding agent". It is MIT-licensed (about 211k GitHub stars as of 2026-09-29); the repository moved from sst/opencode to anomalyco/opencode, and the project is maintained by Anomaly.

It is provider-agnostic: the docs list support for "75+ LLM providers", and local models through Ollama, LM Studio and llama.cpp; it can also sign in with GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT Plus/Pro accounts. Optional paid offerings are OpenCode Zen (pay-as-you-go access to models tested by the OpenCode team), OpenCode Go / Go Plus (subscriptions for open models) and an Enterprise offering. It ships two built-in agents — build (full access) and plan (read-only, asks before running shell commands) — plus subagents, and built-in LSP integration feeds diagnostics to the agent.

Beyond the terminal UI there is a desktop app (macOS, Windows, Linux) and extensions for VS Code, Cursor, Zed, Windsurf and VSCodium. It supports MCP servers, and images can be dragged into the terminal.

Features

• Terminal agent, MIT licence
• 75+ providers; local models via Ollama, LM Studio, llama.cpp
• Sign in with GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro accounts
• Built-in build and plan agents, subagents
• LSP integration (language-server diagnostics fed to the agent)
• MCP servers
• Image input (drag and drop)
• Desktop app (macOS, Windows, Linux) and extensions for VS Code, Cursor, Zed, Windsurf, VSCodium

Best for

• Open-source, vendor-neutral terminal agent
• Running fully local with open-weight models
• Switching providers without switching tools

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Anomaly (anomalyco)

About

Pi is "a minimal agent harness. Adapt Pi to your workflows, not the other way around." Started by Mario Zechner and now developed by Earendil Inc. and contributors under the MIT licence, it reached 1.0 on 2026-10-01. The repository moved from badlogic/pi-mono to earendil-works/pi (redirects).

It deliberately ships a small core — no built-in sub-agents, plan mode, permission popups or to-dos — and you add features as TypeScript extensions, skills, prompt templates and themes, bundled as Pi packages installable from npm or git. Pi 1.0 added built-in MCP with "Codemode", reversing Pi's earlier no-MCP stance.

It supports "15+ providers, hundreds of models" (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Azure, Bedrock, Mistral, Groq, xAI, OpenRouter, Ollama and more), signing in with API keys or subscriptions via /login, plus local GGUF models through the llama.cpp router and Ollama / LM Studio / vLLM via models.json. Sessions are trees you can branch, export to HTML or share. Modes: interactive TUI, print/JSON, RPC and an SDK. It installs on macOS, Linux and Windows (PowerShell installer).

Features

• Terminal agent, MIT; install via script (macOS / Linux / Windows) or npm
• 15+ providers; API keys or subscriptions; local models via llama.cpp, Ollama, LM Studio, vLLM
• Extensions, skills, prompt templates, themes, shareable Pi packages
• Built-in MCP with Codemode (since 1.0)
• Branchable session trees, HTML export and sharing
• Interactive, print/JSON, RPC and SDK modes
• Image paste or drag-in

Best for

• Developers who want a small harness they shape themselves
• Embedding an agent loop in other apps (SDK / RPC)
• Switching providers and models mid-session, including local models

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Earendil Inc. & contributors (created by Mario Zechner)

About

Qoder is an agentic coding platform launched by Alibaba in August 2025 and operated by BRIGHT ZENITH PRIVATE LIMITED (Singapore). The product family covers the Qoder IDE (Windows and macOS install guides), a JetBrains plugin, the Qoder CLI, Cloud Agents and QoderWork.

Qoder CLI is "a command-line AI Coding Assistant under the Qoder brand". It installs natively on macOS, Linux and Windows (arm64 / amd64; not Windows on ARM) via a script, or via npm (@qoder-ai/qodercli), and runs as qoder. It reads and edits files, runs shell commands, searches code and the web, accepts images and PDFs, supports MCP, skills, plugins, subagents, hooks, memory, ACP and headless mode, and can generate a Repo Wiki.

Individual plans are Free, Pro, Pro+ and Ultra, with Teams and Enterprise for organisations; usage is metered in credits. Bring-your-own-key works with preset providers (Alibaba Cloud Model Studio, DeepSeek, Z.ai, Kimi, MiniMax, Xiaomi MiMo, OpenAI, Google, OpenRouter) and custom OpenAI- or Anthropic-compatible endpoints; in the CLI, BYOK is available on individual plans. The free Pro trial is not available on virtual machines.

Features

• Qoder IDE (Editor + Quest mode), JetBrains plugin, Qoder CLI, Cloud Agents
• Qoder CLI native on macOS, Linux, Windows; headless mode for CI
• BYOK — preset providers plus OpenAI/Anthropic-compatible custom endpoints
• MCP, skills, plugins, subagents, hooks, memory, ACP
• Repo Wiki and knowledge base for codebase documentation
• Image and PDF input
• Plans — Free, Pro, Pro+, Ultra; Teams, Enterprise

Best for

• Long-running delegated tasks (Quest mode, goal mode)
• Teams standardising on Qwen and other Chinese model providers
• Generating repository documentation (Repo Wiki)

License

commercial

Deployment

local

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

Qoder (Alibaba; operated by BRIGHT ZENITH PRIVATE LIMITED, Singapore)

About

Qwen Code is "the open-source AI coding agent for your terminal, editor, desktop, browser, and chat", from Alibaba's Qwen team, licensed Apache 2.0. It is developed alongside the Qwen models but is multi-protocol: it "Supports OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, and Qwen APIs. Any third-party provider or local model (Ollama / vLLM)."

It ships subagents, agent teams, auto-memory, skills and MCP. Editor integrations are a VS Code companion extension (beta), Zed and JetBrains; there is also a desktop app (macOS, Windows, Linux), web UI, SDKs and chat integrations.

The Qwen OAuth free tier was discontinued on 2026-04-15; the recommended setup is Alibaba ModelStudio (Coding Plan / Token Plan / API key).

Features

• Terminal agent, Apache 2.0
• OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini and Qwen API protocols; local models via Ollama / vLLM
• Subagents, agent teams, auto-memory, skills
• MCP support
• VS Code (beta), Zed and JetBrains integrations; desktop app

Best for

• Qwen-model users who want a first-party agent
• Open-source agent with local-model support
• Teams mixing Chinese and Western model providers

License

open-source

Deployment

cli

Platforms

• linux
• macos
• windows

Maintainer

QwenLM (Alibaba)

About

Cody pairs an AI assistant with Sourcegraph's code search and code graph, which is why it is aimed at very large codebases and monorepos. Its docs describe it as "Supported on Sourcegraph Enterprise", available in VS Code, JetBrains, Visual Studio and the web app, plus a Cody CLI.

Individual plans are gone: Sourcegraph stopped Cody Free and Cody Pro signups on 2025-06-25 and cut off access on 2025-07-23, while stating that "Cody Enterprise customers are not affected by these changes." The client is no longer developed in the open: the public source now lives in sourcegraph/cody-public-snapshot, archived since 2025-08-01.

Sourcegraph's newer agent, Amp, spun out as an independent company in December 2025 (see Amp); Sourcegraph itself now focuses on code search.

License

commercial

Deployment

local