Cline
Open-source autonomous coding agent for VS Code, formerly known as Claude Dev.
Cline is an open-source autonomous coding agent for VS Code, formerly known as Claude Dev. Runs inside VS Code as an extension, no separate app to install.
What it does well
- Runs inside VS Code as an extension, no separate app to install.
- Open source under Apache 2.0; transparent agent loop you can inspect.
- Supports plan/act modes and approval-gated terminal execution.
Where it falls short
- Requires bringing your own API key — no managed pricing tier.
- Cost can escalate quickly without per-task budgets.
Tagged
- Bring Your Own Key
- Supports Claude
- Supports GPT
- VS Code Extension
- Agentic Mode
- Multi-file Edits
- Terminal Execution
- Free
- Open Source
Compared with similar things
Picked by shared tags inside the AI Coding Agents.
- 01Freemium →OpenHands
Open-source autonomous coding agent platform, formerly OpenDevin, by All Hands AI.
- 02Free →Aider
Open-source CLI coding agent that pair-programs in your terminal and commits to git automatically.
- 03Freemium →Skyvern
LLM-powered browser automation that handles forms, captchas, and multi-page flows reliably.
- 04Free →Continue
Open-source AI code assistant for VS Code and JetBrains, with full BYOK and local-model support.
- 05Free →Stagehand
Browserbase's library for building reliable AI agents on top of Playwright with structured actions.
- 06Free →BabyAGI
Minimal task-driven autonomous agent in ~100 lines of Python — a foundational reference implementation.
Concepts you should know
- AI agent
An LLM-powered program that pursues a goal over multiple steps by calling tools, observing results, and replanning. Agents differ from single-turn chatbots in that they can take real actions (run shell commands, edit files, hit APIs) and iterate without human intervention between steps.
- Coding agent
An AI agent specialised for software-engineering tasks. Exposes file editing, terminal execution, code search, and git operations as tools and pursues multi-step coding goals like "add a /signup route with tests".
- MCP
Model Context Protocol — an open protocol introduced by Anthropic in November 2024 that lets LLM clients (editors, agents, assistants) connect to external tools and data sources through a standard JSON-RPC interface.
- Plan/Act mode
A two-stage agent workflow: in Plan mode the agent reasons about the task and outputs a structured plan; in Act mode the agent executes the plan with file edits and commands. Lets the user approve the plan before any code is touched.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Cline?
- Cline is an open-source autonomous coding agent for VS Code, formerly known as Claude Dev.
- Is Cline free?
- Cline is free to use. There is no paid tier as of the last index update.
- What platforms does Cline support?
- Cline runs on vscode-ext.
- What category does Cline belong to?
- Cline is in the AI Coding Agents category — Autonomous agents that write, edit, run, and review code. Includes CLI agents, agentic IDE add-ons, and code-review bots.
- What are the downsides of Cline?
- Requires bringing your own API key — no managed pricing tier. Cost can escalate quickly without per-task budgets.