AI coding agents and CLIs, compared from official sources
A sourced, side-by-side comparison of AI coding agents and CLIs. Every cell links back to an official source, checked 2026-10-12. Unknown means we could not verify it.
The tools
- Claude CodeAnthropicDevelopers already on a paid Claude plan who want one agent across terminal, IDE, desktop and web.
- OpenAI Codex CLIOpenAIChatGPT subscribers who want a terminal agent plus cloud tasks and GitHub review in one plan.
- CursorCursorPeople who want an agent-first editor with both in-house Grok/Composer models and third-party models.
- GitHub Copilot (agent mode / cloud agent)GitHubTeams already on GitHub who want agents tied to issues and pull requests, with a wide editor list.
- Gemini CLIGoogleDevelopers who want a generous free tier and an open-source terminal agent.
- Grok Build (official Grok CLI)xAI / SpaceXAITerminal users who want Grok models with plan mode and subagents.
- AiderAider (open source)Git-centric developers who want a free, open-source terminal pair programmer with any model.
- ClineClineVS Code users who want an open-source agent and full control over model provider and cost.
- Windsurf (now Devin Desktop)CognitionEditor users who want local agent editing plus cloud agents under one quota-based plan.
- GnamiSIGnamiSIUsers who already have Codex CLI or Grok CLI and want a desktop workspace around them.
Comparison table
| Tool | Pricing | Free tier | Local vs cloud | Platforms | Pricing source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Code | Included in paid Claude plans: Pro $20/mo billed monthly ($17/mo billed annually, $200 up front); Max from… | No. The Free Claude plan does not include Claude Code (pricing table: Claude Code – Free: No). | Both: local CLI, IDE extensions and desktop app work on your files; web sessions and Routines run in the… | Terminal CLI (macOS, Linux, WSL, Windows), VS Code and Cursor extension, JetBrains plugin, desktop app… | source |
| OpenAI Codex CLI | Included in ChatGPT plans: Free $0, Go $8/mo, Plus $20/mo, Pro $100, $200 or $500/mo; Business, Edu and… | Yes. Free plan: GPT-6 Luna at Standard speed in the desktop app, subject to rollout. Plus lists Codex in the… | Both: local CLI/IDE/desktop chats plus Codex cloud tasks (cloud features not available with API-key auth). | CLI, IDE extension, ChatGPT desktop app, web, iOS (Plus and up). | source |
| Cursor | Unknown. The two official Cursor sources disagree as of this check. cursor.com/pricing (no redirect, HTTP… | Unknown (cursor.com/pricing lists a Free plan with limited agent/chat requests; the docs pricing page lists… | Both: local desktop app and terminal agent; cloud agents and automations on Premium and above. | Desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux; terminal CLI; web (browser, phone, Slack, GitHub, Linear). | source |
| GitHub Copilot (agent mode / cloud agent) | Free $0; Pro $10/mo; Pro+ $39/mo; Max $100/mo; Business and Enterprise for organizations (prices not shown on… | Yes: limited chat and agent usage; FAQ states 2,000 completions and 50 chat requests. Free supports CLI and… | Both: agent mode in editors and Copilot CLI locally; cloud agent on GitHub that can open pull requests. | GitHub.com and GitHub Mobile, VS Code, Visual Studio, Xcode, JetBrains IDEs, Neovim, Eclipse, Raycast, SQL… | source |
| Gemini CLI | Free with a personal Google account; usage-based billing via Gemini API key for higher limits; paid Gemini… | Yes: 60 requests/min and 1,000 requests/day with a personal Google account (README). | Local CLI in your terminal; models run in Google's cloud. | Terminal, installed via npm (Node.js). Specific OS list: Unknown. | source |
| Grok Build (official Grok CLI) | Unknown. x.ai/cli and the Grok Build docs do not state a price. cursor.com/pricing lists Grok Build inside a… | Unknown (no official free-tier statement found on x.ai/cli or the Grok Build docs). | Local terminal agent; models run in xAI's cloud. | macOS, Linux, Windows (prebuilt binaries); embeddable via Agent Client Protocol (ACP). | source |
| Aider | Free, open source (Apache License 2.0). You pay your chosen LLM provider directly. | The tool is free; model costs depend on your provider. Local models also supported. | Local terminal tool; cloud or local models. | Terminal, installed with Python/pip; usable from your IDE via code comments. Specific OS list: Unknown. | source |
| Cline | Open source: free for individuals; pay only for AI inference (usage-based) or bring your own key. Enterprise:… | The extension and CLI are free; no subscription or seat fee. Inference is paid per use. | Client-side architecture running in your editor/terminal; models from cloud providers you choose. | VS Code extension, CLI; JetBrains extension on Enterprise. | source |
| Windsurf (now Devin Desktop) | Free $0; Pro $20/mo; Max $200/mo; Teams $80/mo plus $40/mo per full dev seat; Enterprise custom. Extra usage… | Yes: light quota to code with agents, limited model availability, unlimited inline edits and Tab completions.… | Both: Devin Desktop locally; Devin Cloud agents on Pro and up. | Devin Desktop and CLI. Specific OS list: Unknown. | source |
| GnamiSI | Pro $29/month (USD, via PayPal), or a limited lifetime deal (price not shown). Pro includes 12,500 cloud… | Unknown (no free tier stated on the fetched pages; IDE extensions require an active subscription). | Both: local runs through your installed CLI (no credits used); cloud runs on Cloudflare Workers AI (20… | Desktop app for Windows 10/11 x64 and macOS (Apple Silicon, Intel; unsigned builds); Linux in progress; VS… | source |
Head-to-head comparisons
- Claude Code vs OpenAI Codex CLI
- Claude Code vs Cursor
- Cursor vs GitHub Copilot (agent mode / cloud agent)
- Cursor vs Windsurf (now Devin Desktop)
- OpenAI Codex CLI vs Gemini CLI
- Claude Code vs Gemini CLI
- Aider vs Cline
- Cline vs Cursor
- GitHub Copilot (agent mode / cloud agent) vs Claude Code
- Grok Build (official Grok CLI) vs Claude Code
- GnamiSI vs Cursor
- Windsurf (now Devin Desktop) vs Claude Code
Guides
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