Free Verified

Cline

Name: Cline
Author: Challenging Voice

Open source autonomous coding agent

4.5 Coding

4.5 Excellent 4.5

Bottom line: Cline is a top-tier coding tool, best known for autonomous file edits and command execution with approvals. It has a free plan.

Fully open source with no service fee on requests Token costs can climb fast on large autonomous tasks

Reviewed by Challenging Voice Editorial · Updated Jun 2026 How we rate

PricingFree

Free planYes

PlatformsAPI, Mac, Windows

Best forCoding

UpdatedJun 2026

Ask AI about Cline ChatGPT Claude Perplexity

Overview

Cline is an open-source AI coding agent that runs as a sidebar in VS Code and other editors, executing tasks across your files. It reads code, makes edits, runs commands, and asks for approval at each step so you stay in control. The tool is free, and you pay only for model usage with your own API keys.

Key features

Autonomous file edits and command execution with approvals
Bring your own keys from any major model provider
Works in VS Code, JetBrains, and other editors

Pricing

Pros & cons

Pros

Fully open source with no service fee on requests
Transparent step-by-step approvals keep you in control

Cons

Token costs can climb fast on large autonomous tasks
Requires you to manage your own provider API keys

How it compares

Tool	Rating	Free	From	Best known for
Cline (this tool)	4.5	Yes	Free	Autonomous file edits and command execution with approvals
Cursor	4.7	Yes	$20/mo	Codebase-aware chat
GitHub Copilot	4.6	Yes	$10/mo	Inline code suggestions
Aider	4.6	Yes	Free	Terminal-based editing with automatic git commits per change