What are the main alternatives to Claude Code?
The closest Claude Code alternatives are other terminal agents: OpenAI's Codex CLI, GitHub Copilot CLI, Google's Antigravity CLI and the open source OpenCode all read your repo, edit files and run commands from a prompt. If you prefer to work in an editor, Cursor, Kiro, Cline and Devin Desktop cover the same jobs, and Aider, Goose and OpenCode let you bring any model, including local ones.
Which one fits depends on why you are leaving. Price, model choice, open source and an editor-first workflow are the four usual reasons, and each points to a different tool. This page sorts them that way and links to kipt.me's deeper head-to-head comparison for each.
Why do people look for a Claude Code alternative?
Claude Code is "an agentic coding tool that reads your codebase, edits files, runs commands, and integrates with your development tools." It runs in the terminal, VS Code, JetBrains, a desktop app and the browser. The reasons people shop around are usually practical:
- It needs a paid plan. As of October 2026, claude.com/pricing marks Claude Code as not included on the Free plan. Pro costs $20 a month ($17 billed annually) and Max starts at $100 a month. See Claude Code pricing for limits.
- Model choice. Claude Code runs on Anthropic's Claude models. The CLI, VS Code and JetBrains surfaces also support third-party providers such as cloud platforms, but if you want GPT, Gemini or open-weight models side by side, other tools make that easier.
- Open source or local models. Some teams want to read the agent's code, self-host it or keep code on their own hardware.
- Editor-first work. If you write most of the code yourself, an AI editor with autocomplete may suit you better than an agent you delegate to.
How do the main Claude Code alternatives compare?
Prices below are the cheapest way in, as of October 2026, from each vendor's own pricing page. Every tool also has higher tiers.
| Tool | What it is | Price to start | Good fit if you | Deep comparison |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Codex (OpenAI) | Terminal agent, IDE extension, desktop and web | ChatGPT Free (desktop app, limited); CLI and IDE extension from Plus at $20/mo | Already pay for ChatGPT | Codex vs Claude Code |
| GitHub Copilot CLI | Terminal agent; Copilot also runs in IDEs and an app | Copilot Free; Pro $10/mo | Want models from several providers on one plan | Claude Code vs Copilot |
| Antigravity CLI (Google) | Terminal client, plus desktop app and editor extensions | $0 individual plan with weekly limits | Want Gemini models and a free start | Claude Code vs Antigravity |
| Gemini CLI | Open source terminal agent | Paid Gemini API key | Have a Google Cloud or paid API setup | Gemini CLI vs Claude Code |
| OpenCode | Open source terminal agent and desktop app | Free software; optional OpenCode Go $10/mo | Want any provider or local models | OpenCode vs Claude Code |
| Cline | Open source agent for VS Code-style editors, JetBrains and the CLI | Pay your provider, or ClinePass $9.99/mo | Want an agent inside your current editor | Claude Code vs Cline |
| Aider | Open source pair programmer in the terminal | Pay your provider | Like small, git-committed steps | Aider vs Claude Code |
| Goose | Open source agent, desktop app and CLI | Pay your provider | Want an extensible general agent | Goose vs Claude Code |
| Amp | Agent on the web, desktop and mobile apps, and CLI | Hobby plan (hosted machines billed as you go); Individual $20/mo | Want cloud machines per task | Amp vs Claude Code |
| Kiro | IDE, CLI and web, built around specs | Free (50 credits); Pro $20/mo | Like planning with written specs | Kiro vs Claude Code |
| Cursor | AI code editor, plus a CLI | Free; Plus $8/mo; Premium $30/mo | Prefer an editor with autocomplete | Claude Code vs Cursor |
| Warp | Terminal with a built-in agent | Free; Build $20/mo | Want a terminal that also hosts other agents | Warp vs Claude Code |
| Devin Desktop | AI editor, formerly Windsurf | Free; Pro $20/mo | Want an editor plus Devin cloud agents | Claude Code vs Devin Desktop |
Which terminal agents are closest to Claude Code?
Codex. OpenAI's pricing page lists Codex on the web, in the CLI, in the IDE extension and on iOS from the Plus plan at $20 a month, with Pro from $100. Free and Go get the desktop app with GPT-6 Luna, "subject to rollout." You can also sign in with an API key and pay per token. The CLI is open source under Apache 2.0 on GitHub.
GitHub Copilot CLI. GitHub describes it as a way to "use Copilot directly from your terminal." The draw is model choice: Copilot's supported models list includes OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and xAI models, among others, billed in AI credits. As of October 2026, Pro is $10 a month and Pro+ $39 on GitHub's plans page.
Antigravity CLI. Google calls it "a keyboard-first terminal client that runs Antigravity workflows in local shells." The CLI is included on every plan, including the $0 individual plan with a weekly rate limit, per Google's plans docs. It replaced Gemini CLI for personal Google accounts: Google's transition post says Gemini CLI stopped serving free and Google AI Pro or Ultra users on June 18, 2026, and remains available through paid Gemini API keys. See the Antigravity CLI guide.
Which free or open source alternatives work with local models?
If you want to read the code or run a model on your own machine, four open source agents stand out:
- OpenCode (MIT) is "an open source agent that helps you write code in your terminal, IDE, or desktop." Its providers docs say it probes Ollama on
127.0.0.1:11434and has built-in discovery for LM Studio and vLLM. You can also sign in with GitHub Copilot or a ChatGPT plan. - Aider (Apache 2.0) works in your terminal and commits each change to git. Its model docs say it "can work also with local models, for example using Ollama."
- Goose (Apache 2.0) describes itself as "an open source, extensible AI agent that goes beyond code suggestions." It runs as a desktop app and a CLI and lists Ollama among its providers.
- Cline (Apache 2.0) runs in VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, VSCodium and Antigravity, plus JetBrains and a CLI, per its install docs. It works with your own provider keys, including local runtimes.
The software is free; the model is what costs money. Local models avoid API bills but need strong hardware and tend to struggle on long, multi-file tasks, so test them on a real ticket before you commit.
Which editor-based alternatives suit people who prefer an IDE?
If you want to stay closer to the code, an AI editor may fit better than any terminal agent:
- Cursor has a Free plan, Plus at $8 a month (Grok models only) and Premium at $30, where third-party models are billed at API list price, per cursor.com/pricing. It also ships a CLI with an
agentcommand. See Cursor pricing. - Kiro describes its IDE as "for active, local development with real-time agent collaboration" and adds a CLI and web version. As of October 2026, Kiro's pricing runs from Free with 50 credits to Pro at $20 with 1,000 credits.
- Devin Desktop is the new name for Windsurf as of June 2, 2026, per the Devin Desktop FAQ. Devin's pricing page lists Free, Pro at $20 a month with cloud agents, and Max at $200.
- Zed is an open source editor whose Personal plan is free with your own API keys, and it can run Claude Agent, Codex and other agents inside the editor. See Zed AI.
What carries over when you switch: CLAUDE.md, skills, MCP and hooks?
Your instructions are the expensive part to rebuild, and most of them move with little work.
CLAUDE.md. Most other agents read AGENTS.md instead. Codex, Cursor, Kiro and Antigravity all read it, and OpenCode's docs say plainly that "It does not use CLAUDE.md as a fallback." Copy your CLAUDE.md into AGENTS.md, then keep @AGENTS.md at the top of CLAUDE.md so Claude Code reads the same file. The CLAUDE.md vs AGENTS.md guide walks through it. GitHub Copilot is the exception that reads a root CLAUDE.md directly.
Skills. SKILL.md folders follow the open Agent Skills format. Cursor and Copilot load skills from .claude/skills/ as they are. Codex and Antigravity look in .agents/skills/, and Kiro in .kiro/skills/, so you copy or link the folder.
MCP servers and hooks. MCP servers work in most of these tools, but each keeps its own config file, so plan to re-add them. Claude Code's hooks and custom slash commands use its own configuration, so rewrite them for the new tool.
Keeping that know-how outside any one tool makes the next switch cheap too. Kipt stores your prompts and skills as Markdown in a private GitHub repo you own, and installs every skill into Claude Code or Codex with npx skills add https://github.com/<you>/<repo>.git --all -g. The free SKILL.md generator turns a prompt you keep pasting into a skill folder.
Which Claude Code alternative fits your situation?
- You pay for ChatGPT already: Codex.
- You want several model providers on one bill: GitHub Copilot CLI, or Cursor on Premium and above.
- You want to start at $0: Antigravity CLI, Copilot Free or Kiro Free, within their limits.
- You want open source or local models: OpenCode, Aider, Goose or Cline.
- You want an editor rather than a terminal: Cursor, Kiro, Devin Desktop or Zed.
- Your editor is your main tool: see the matching hubs for Cursor alternatives, GitHub Copilot alternatives and Antigravity alternatives.
Many developers keep Claude Code and add a second tool rather than replacing it. Trying two agents on the same real task, with the same AGENTS.md, is the quickest way to see the difference.