Cline vs OpenCode: which open source coding agent should you use?
updated · #3 vs #5 in ai coding agents & IDEs · prices checked
which one should you use?
want an open source agent that ships free models, runs in the terminal, desktop and IDE, and logs in with Copilot or ChatGPT? OpenCode. want an open source agent with plan then act, checkpoints on every edit, and a proper SDK to embed in your own apps? Cline. both let you bring your own key and pick any model.
OpenCode ranks higher on our board: #3 vs #5 of 15 coding agents, 8.5/10 vs 8.0/10.
#3 of 15 in coding agents
OpenCode
numptr says8.5/10
the open-source one that's quietly eating everyone's lunch. over 200k GitHub stars don't lie.
- best for
- devs who want a Claude Code-style agent without being tied to one model
- why 8.5
- MIT, any model, free models thrown in, and 16M devs a month (their number). not tuned to one model like Claude Code is.
#5 of 15 in coding agents
Cline
numptr says8.0/10
open source, no subscription needed. you just pay for the tokens.
- best for
- BYO-key developers who want control
- why 8.0
- full control, BYO key. your bill is only as big as your habits.
who wins for which job
free models included and multi-session in the terminal
OpenCode
open-source (MIT) coding agent for the terminal, desktop and IDE. any model from 75+ providers, local ones included, or the free models it ships with.
plan then act with checkpoints, plus an SDK
Cline
best for: BYO-key developers who want control.
no subscription at all
Cline
Cline free tier: free open-source extension (VS Code + CLI). OpenCode: free and open source (MIT); free models included, or bring your own key, or sign in with your Claude Code login, GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro.
overall, on our scores
OpenCode
#3 of 15 coding agents, 8.5/10. Cline: #5, 8.0/10.
the differences, side by side
rank
OpenCode#3 of 15 in coding agents
Cline#5 of 15 in coding agents
numptr score
OpenCode8.5/10
Cline8.0/10
best for
OpenCodedevs who want a Claude Code-style agent without being tied to one model
ClineBYO-key developers who want control
free tier
OpenCodefree and open source (MIT); free models included, or bring your own key, or sign in with your Claude Code login, GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro
Clinefree open-source extension (VS Code + CLI)
paid plans
OpenCodefree (you pay your model provider); optional OpenCode Go $10/mo, Go Plus $40/mo or Go Teams $20/member/mo; Console pay-as-you-go credits, minimum top-up unknown: not shown on the official docs
Clineno subscription needed; pay for inference at cost or bring your own key; optional ClinePass $9.99/mo for open-weight models (Z.ai, Moonshot AI, DeepSeek, MiniMax, MiMo, Qwen), the standard rate after the promo period, processing fee may apply; Enterprise custom
# straight from our rankings data. prices from each vendor's own page.
pick neither if
quick answer: cline vs opencode is two open source agents fighting over the same seat. OpenCode wins on our coding agents board: #3 at 8.5/10, ahead of Cline at #5 (8.0/10), because it ships free models you can use without an account, talks to 75+ providers (local ones included), runs in the terminal, desktop and IDE, and lets you log in with GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro. Cline is the better pick if you want plan then act with an approve step on every edit, checkpoints to roll back, and an SDK you can embed in your own product. both are free for individuals; you pay the model, not a seat. as of nov 5, 2026.
the short version
| OpenCode | Cline | |
|---|---|---|
| our rank | #3, 8.5/10 | #5, 8.0/10 |
| what it is | an open source (MIT) coding agent | an open source (Apache 2.0) coding agent |
| where it runs | terminal, desktop app and IDE extension (and web) | VS Code extension, CLI, desktop app and SDK |
| models | any of 75+ providers through Models.dev, local models, free models it ships with, or your Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro login | Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, OpenRouter, Bedrock, vertex, Groq, cerebras, Vercel AI Gateway, DeepSeek, Ollama, LM Studio, any OpenAI-compatible API |
| how you steer it | multi-session agents in parallel on the same project | plan mode to agree a strategy, act mode to do the work; approve each step or flip auto-approve |
| cost | free; you pay your model provider, use its free models, or take OpenCode Go from $10 a month | free for individuals; pay for inference at cost or bring your own key; optional ClinePass $9.99/mo for open-weight models |
| teams | OpenCode Go Teams $20 per member | Enterprise: SSO, central billing, role-based access, JetBrains extension |
ranks and scores come straight from our coding agents board, and nobody pays to move up it.
why OpenCode edges it
free models in the box. OpenCode ships a set of free models you can use without creating an account (200 requests a day on the ones it promotes). when you outgrow them you plug in any provider's API key, or log in with GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro. Cline is free too, but it doesn't ship free models of its own: you bring a key from day one.
no model lock-in, properly. OpenCode talks to 75+ providers through Models.dev, local models included. when this month's best model changes (it will, by thursday), you switch in /models instead of switching tools.
multi-session and more surfaces. start several agents in parallel on the same project. it runs as a terminal interface, a desktop app, an IDE extension and on the web. the project counts over 220,000 GitHub stars, 950 contributors and 16M developers a month (their numbers), and the code is MIT.
bring the subscription you've got. OpenCode logs in with GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro with no extra setup. if you want its own curated lineup, OpenCode Go is $10 a month (Go Plus $40, Go Teams $20 per member) and it's optional. more in OpenCode pricing.
the honest bit: Anthropic prohibits using Claude Pro/Max via the old OpenCode plugins, and those aren't bundled as of 1.3.0. you can still use Claude models with an Anthropic API key, or since v2.2.3 through OpenCode's Claude agent, which runs Claude Code on your machine (install Claude Code 2.1.248 or later and sign in first). and if you want GitHub issues turned into pull requests without wiring a workflow yourself, that's still Copilot's party, not OpenCode's.
where Cline wins
plan, then act. toggle plan mode to explore the codebase and agree a strategy, then act to do the work. every file edit and terminal command waits for your OK unless you switch on auto-approve. edits show up as diffs with checkpoints to roll back. if you like a human in the loop without writing your own permission rules, this is the smoother day out.
an SDK, not just an app. Cline ships as a VS Code extension, a CLI (npm i -g cline), a desktop app and @cline/sdk, so you can embed the same agent runtime in your own products. MCP servers, .clinerules for project conventions, and hooks for Slack, Linear and CI are on the menu.
no subscription. the open source extension is free for individual developers. you pay for inference and that's it: bring your own key, or buy inference at cost through Cline. optional ClinePass is $9.99 a month for open-weight models. the flip side, as our verdict puts it: your bill is only as big as your habits. long agent sessions on top models add up, so set a spending limit with your provider.
it's open source. Apache 2.0 on GitHub. Enterprise adds JetBrains, SSO, centralised billing, role-based access and the rest for organisations that need it.
the honest bit: Cline doesn't ship free models or a Copilot/ChatGPT login the way OpenCode does, so day one means a provider key (or Cline's own inference). its board rank sits behind OpenCode for that reason, and behind Claude Code and Cursor for multi-file heft and the full-editor experience.
which should you pick?
- you want free models and an agent that costs nothing until you pick a provider: OpenCode
- you already pay for Copilot or ChatGPT and want a terminal agent on the same login: OpenCode
- you want plan then act, diffs and checkpoints on every step: Cline
- you want to embed the agent in your own product via an SDK: Cline
- local models, or a privacy sensitive codebase: either; both talk to Ollama / LM Studio style local setups. OpenCode also lists 75+ providers via Models.dev
- the best single agent on our board: Claude Code (#1). see OpenCode vs Claude Code and Cline vs Claude Code
- a whole ai editor instead: Cursor (#2). see Cursor vs OpenCode and Cline vs Cursor
- an agent across every editor plus GitHub cloud agent on $10: GitHub Copilot (#4). see OpenCode vs GitHub Copilot
the rest of the field
the table: the rest of the field
| rank | tool | best for | free tier | paid from | numptr score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #3 | OpenCode | devs who want a Claude Code-style agent without being tied to one model | free and open source (MIT); free models included, or bring your own key, or sign in with your Claude Code login, GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro | optional OpenCode Go $10/mo, Go Plus $40/mo or Go Teams $20/member/mo | 8.5/10 |
| #5 | Cline | BYO-key developers who want control | free open-source extension (VS Code + CLI) | no subscription needed | 8.0/10 |
| #1 | Claude Code | delegating multi-file features from terminal or IDE | no free access: Claude Code needs a paid Claude plan (Pro and up) | Pro $20/mo | 9.0/10 |
| #2 | Cursor | developers who want ai inside a full editor | limited ai usage | Plus $8/mo, Grok models only | 8.5/10 |
| #4 | GitHub Copilot | teams already on GitHub; budget-conscious devs | limited chat and agent usage | Pro $10/mo | 8.5/10 |
faq
is OpenCode better than Cline?
on our board, yes: OpenCode is #3 (8.5/10) and Cline is #5 (8.0/10). OpenCode wins on free models, multi-session and logging in with subscriptions you already pay for. Cline wins on plan then act, checkpoints and the SDK.
is Cline free?
yes. the open source extension is free for individual developers. you pay for the model you use, either with your own API key or by buying inference at cost through Cline. Enterprise is custom for organisations that need SSO and the rest.
is OpenCode free?
yes. OpenCode itself is free and open source (MIT). it ships free models, and beyond that you pay whoever serves the model, or take optional OpenCode Go from $10 a month. see OpenCode pricing.
can i use Claude in both?
yes. both take an Anthropic API key. OpenCode can also use your Claude plan through Claude agent (Claude Code 2.1.248+ installed and signed in). Cline reaches Claude through Anthropic, OpenRouter, Bedrock or vertex.
Cline vs OpenCode pricing: which is cheaper?
both cost $0 to install. OpenCode can stay at $0 longer because of the free models it ships with; Cline needs a provider key (or Cline inference) from the first prompt. once you're on paid models, both bill at your provider's rates. OpenCode Go starts at $10 a month if you want its curated lineup; ClinePass is $9.99 a month for open-weight models.
sources
checked 2026-11-05, ~00:45 ET
- OpenCode home and faq (open source, MIT, terminal, desktop and IDE, multi-session, Copilot and ChatGPT Plus/Pro login, 75+ providers via Models.dev, local models, free models, 220K stars, 950 contributors, 16M monthly devs, privacy): https://opencode.ai
- OpenCode providers docs (Anthropic Pro/Max plugins prohibited and not bundled as of 1.3.0; ChatGPT Plus, GitHub Copilot, GitLab Duo with zero setup): https://opencode.ai/docs/providers/
- OpenCode Claude agent docs (use your Claude plan or another Claude Code login; Claude Code 2.1.248+ installed and signed in): https://opencode.ai/v2/docs/claude-agent
- OpenCode Go docs (Go $10, Go Plus $40, Go Teams $20 per member, optional): https://opencode.ai/go
- Cline pricing (free open source for individuals, inference at cost or BYOK, ClinePass, Enterprise features): https://cline.bot/pricing
- Cline home (VS Code, CLI, desktop, SDK, plan and act, providers, MCP, .clinerules): https://cline.bot
- Cline licence (Apache 2.0): https://github.com/cline/cline
- ranks, scores, verdicts and plans: numptr data/tools.json (coding agents board)