Continue
Open-source AI code assistant for VS Code and JetBrains, with full BYOK and local-model support.
Continue is an open-source AI code assistant for VS Code and JetBrains, with full BYOK and local-model support. Apache 2.0 licensed and fully self-customisable.
About Continue
Continue is an open-source AI code assistant for VS Code and JetBrains, built around bring-your-own-key and local models.
Its edge is control: Apache-2.0 licensed and fully customizable, with first-class local-model support via Ollama and llama.cpp, and custom slash commands and context providers through simple YAML config.
It's for developers who want to own their setup and run models locally or via their own keys. The trade-offs are honest: onboarding is less polished than Copilot's, it needs manual configuration, and output quality depends entirely on the model you bring.
It's the open, BYOK option where Copilot and Cursor are managed and opinionated.
Sources: continue.dev, this listing
Continue pros and cons
Pros
- Apache 2.0 licensed and fully self-customisable.
- First-class support for local models via Ollama and llama.cpp.
- Custom slash commands and context providers via simple YAML config.
Cons
- Requires manual configuration — less polished onboarding than Copilot.
- Quality depends entirely on the model you bring.
Tagged
- Bring Your Own Key
- Supports Claude
- Supports GPT
- Supports Local Models
- VS Code Extension
- JetBrains Plugin
- MCP Support
- Free
- Open Source
Continue alternatives
More from Code Completion.
- 01Freemium →Codestral
Mistral AI's code-generation family of models, available via API and as open weights.
- 02Freemium →Amazon Q Developer
AWS's coding assistant (formerly CodeWhisperer) tuned for AWS APIs, infra-as-code, and migration tasks.
- 03Freemium →JetBrains AI Assistant
JetBrains' first-party AI assistant for IntelliJ, PyCharm, WebStorm, and the rest of the IDE family.
- 04Paid →Augment Code
Enterprise AI coding assistant with deep context across very large monorepos and team memory.
- 05Freemium →Supermaven
Code completion with a 1M-token context window — knows your entire codebase as you type.
- 06Freemium →Tabby
Self-hosted, open-source GitHub Copilot alternative built on open-weights code models.
Featured in
- 6 Best GitHub Copilot Alternatives in 2026
The strongest GitHub Copilot alternative for agentic work is Cursor — an AI-native editor whose multi-file agent goes further than Copilot's. Windsurf is the other agent-first editor. For free unlimited completion, use Codeium; for open-source, bring-your-own-key control, try Cline, Aider, or Continue. Every option here has a free tier.
- 7 Best Cursor Alternatives in 2026
The closest Cursor alternative is Windsurf — the other AI-native editor, with a multi-step Cascade agent and a more generous free tier. To leave the IDE for a terminal agent, use Claude Code or Aider. For free, open-source, bring-your-own-key tools, try Cline or Continue. Every option here has a free tier.
Related reading
Concepts you should know
Featured on Vibedonalds
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</a>Frequently asked questions
- What is Continue?
- Continue is an open-source AI code assistant for VS Code and JetBrains, with full BYOK and local-model support.
- Is Continue free?
- Continue is free to use. There is no paid tier as of the last index update.
- What platforms does Continue support?
- Continue runs on vscode-ext, jetbrains-plugin.
- What are the alternatives to Continue?
- Similar tools in Code Completion on vibedonalds: Codestral, Amazon Q Developer, JetBrains AI Assistant, Augment Code.
- What are the downsides of Continue?
- Requires manual configuration — less polished onboarding than Copilot. Quality depends entirely on the model you bring.