Cheapest AI coding agent (2026)
Prices from each vendor's official pricing page or docs, checked 2026-10-12. Short answer from the data: Aider and Cline cost nothing for the tool itself (you pay your model provider), Gemini CLI is free with a personal Google account, and Codex, GitHub Copilot and Windsurf list $0 plans. The lowest listed paid plans are ChatGPT Go at $8/mo (includes Codex) and GitHub Copilot Pro at $10/mo; Claude Code starts with Claude Pro at $20/mo and Windsurf Pro is $20/mo. Cursor and Grok Build prices are Unknown because official sources conflict or are silent. Model/API usage costs for bring-your-own-key tools are not included.
Last checked {e(lc)}.
| Tool | Free tier | Pricing (as listed) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aider | The tool is free; model costs depend on your provider. Local models also supported. | Free, open source (Apache License 2.0). You pay your chosen LLM provider directly. | github.com/Aider-AI/aider |
| Cline | The extension and CLI are free; no subscription or seat fee. Inference is paid per use. | Open source: free for individuals; pay only for AI inference (usage-based) or bring your own key. Enterprise: price not published. | cline.bot/pricing |
| Gemini CLI | Yes: 60 requests/min and 1,000 requests/day with a personal Google account (README). | Free with a personal Google account; usage-based billing via Gemini API key for higher limits; paid Gemini Code Assist licenses for organizations. Exact paid prices not stated in the README. | github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli |
| OpenAI Codex CLI | Yes. Free plan: GPT-6 Luna at Standard speed in the desktop app, subject to rollout. Plus lists Codex in the CLI; the CLI is also usable with an API key. A fixed Free-plan message limit is not published. | Included in ChatGPT plans: Free $0, Go $8/mo, Plus $20/mo, Pro $100, $200 or $500/mo; Business, Edu and Enterprise also include it. API-key use is billed at API pricing. | developers.openai.com/codex/pricing |
| GitHub Copilot (agent mode / cloud agent) | Yes: limited chat and agent usage; FAQ states 2,000 completions and 50 chat requests. Free supports CLI and agent mode. | Free $0; Pro $10/mo; Pro+ $39/mo; Max $100/mo; Business and Enterprise for organizations (prices not shown on the fetched plans page). Usage is metered in GitHub AI Credits (1 credit = $0.01); extra credits can be purchased. | github.com/features/copilot/plans |
| Windsurf (now Devin Desktop) | Yes: light quota to code with agents, limited model availability, unlimited inline edits and Tab completions. Quotas refresh daily and weekly. | Free $0; Pro $20/mo; Max $200/mo; Teams $80/mo plus $40/mo per full dev seat; Enterprise custom. Extra usage billed at API pricing. | devin.ai/pricing |
| Claude Code | No. The Free Claude plan does not include Claude Code (pricing table: Claude Code – Free: No). | Included in paid Claude plans: Pro $20/mo billed monthly ($17/mo billed annually, $200 up front); Max from $100/mo (Max 5x / Max 20x); Team and Enterprise ($20/seat/mo + usage at API rates, billed annually). Can also use pay-as-you-go API credits via a Console account. | claude.com/pricing |
| GnamiSI | Unknown (no free tier stated on the fetched pages; IDE extensions require an active subscription). | Pro $29/month (USD, via PayPal), or a limited lifetime deal (price not shown). Pro includes 12,500 cloud credits/month; Gnami 32B cloud model has separate token billing. | gnamiai.com/docs |
| Cursor | Unknown (cursor.com/pricing lists a Free plan with limited agent/chat requests; the docs pricing page lists no free plan). | Unknown. The two official Cursor sources disagree as of this check. cursor.com/pricing (no redirect, HTTP 200) shows a plan set bundled with Grok/X features: Free $0, Plus $8, Premium $30, Super $100, Ultra $200, Teams $30+/user. The Cursor docs pricing page lists Pro $20/mo, Pro Plus $60/mo, Ultra $200/mo, Start ₹649/mo (India only), and Teams Standard $40 or Premium $120 per user/mo. We will update this once the two sources match. | cursor.com/docs/account/pricing |
| Grok Build (official Grok CLI) | Unknown (no official free-tier statement found on x.ai/cli or the Grok Build docs). | Unknown. x.ai/cli and the Grok Build docs do not state a price. cursor.com/pricing lists Grok Build inside a Grok/X subscription bundle, but that page conflicts with Cursor's own docs, so we don't rely on it. | x.ai/cli |
More 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
Get weekly AI coding agent price changes
One short email a week listing what changed in the pricing and free tiers we track. No ads.
Privacy: we store only your email address and signup date, use it only for this weekly email, never share or sell it. To unsubscribe or delete it, email gabfreakypie@mail.grokbot.com.