Cline

Cline is an open-source AI coding agent that runs inside VS Code, your terminal, CI pipelines, or your own product through its SDK. It is built for developers who want an autonomous agent that edits across a whole project, runs commands, and works with supported model providers while you keep control of cost.

Key Highlights

• Coordinated multi-file edits with diffs, checkpoints, and one-click undo on every step
• Plan mode to agree a strategy first, then Act mode to execute with step approval or auto-approve
• Runs bash commands in your terminal and reacts to output live, including servers and tests
• Works with Claude, GPT, Gemini, local Ollama or LM Studio, and any OpenAI-compatible endpoint
• Extends through MCP servers and an SDK, plus Slack, Discord, Linear, and CI integrations
• Apache 2.0 open-source coding project

What Makes It Different

Cline is open source (Apache 2.0) and model-agnostic, with several model-access options, including usage billing, BYOK, and optional ClinePass. Its Plan-and-Act split is the core mechanism: Plan mode lists which files it will touch and the steps it will take, then Act mode carries them out one approval at a time, keeping the agent transparent and reviewable rather than a black box.

Features & Capabilities

You point Cline at a task and it reads the codebase, proposes a plan, then makes coordinated changes across many files while keeping imports, types, and behavior consistent. It runs tests, starts dev servers, and reacts to terminal output live. A .clinerules file teaches it your standards, architecture, and deployment conventions.

Beyond the editor, the CLI runs in scripts, cron jobs, and CI pipelines. You can register custom tools and MCP servers and set up multi-agent teams where a coordinator delegates to specialists. Cline reports contributions from more than 250 contributors.

User Ratings and Testimonials

Evaluate the Plan and Act workflow with representative changes, and inspect commands before approving them. Large tasks can consume substantial model usage. Cline reports more than 11 million installs across supported platforms; an install count is not a count of unique developers.

Pricing & Value

• Open Source: Free for individual developers. Includes the VS Code extension, CLI, MCP marketplace, and multi-root workspaces. Model access uses provider keys, local runtimes, or Cline usage billing; no mandatory subscription or seat fee for the open-source version. Optional ClinePass costs $9.99/month.
• Enterprise: Custom pricing. Adds SSO, role-based access control, model and tool controls, remote configuration, observability, and team management. The JetBrains plugin is also listed among the regular applications.

The extension and model access have separate economics. Compare provider usage charges and optional ClinePass with the tasks you expect to run.