FinderAtlas
Sign in

Kilo Code vs OpenAI Codex

Features, pricing, ratings, and pros and cons, side by side.

OpenAI Codex logo

OpenAI Codex

OpenAI's coding agent that writes, reviews and runs code from terminal, IDE, desktop or cloud

Freemium
Visit websiteView details

Verdict

Kilo Code and OpenAI Codex are both Coding AI tools. OpenAI Codex scores higher in FinderAtlas's editorial review (8.5 vs 8.0 out of 10), led by ease of use. Both have a free plan or trial. Only Kilo Code is available on iOS, Android and Slack App. Only OpenAI Codex offers an API.

Best overall

OpenAI Codex

  • Software developers
  • Engineering teams
  • Enterprise engineering organizations
  • Open-source maintainers

Choose Kilo Code if

  • You want a tool built for developers who want to choose their own models and providers, pay provider rates without markup, and keep an auditable open-source agent inside their existing IDE.
  • MIT-licensed and open source, with a public GitHub repository of more than 27,000 stars.
  • Access to 500+ models across 60+ providers with no stated inference markup.

Choose OpenAI Codex if

  • You want a tool built for delegating coding tasks to an agent.
  • Included with ChatGPT plans, with a free tier and an $8 Go tier.
  • Open-source CLI under the Apache-2.0 license.
Best for beginners
Kilo Code
Best for business
Kilo Code

Features

19 features compared.

  • Multi-Environment Agent
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • 500+ Models
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Auto Model
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Specialised Modes
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • MCP Support
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Cloud Agents and Code Review
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Parallel Agent Management
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Mobile Companion App
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Open Source and Transparent
    Kilo Code
    Available
    OpenAI Codex
    Not available
  • Codex CLI
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • IDE extension
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Desktop app
    Kilo Code
    Limited
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Cloud tasks
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Code review
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Non-interactive mode
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • MCP, skills and plugins
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Subagents and web search
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Session resume and images
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available
  • Mobile remote control
    Kilo Code
    Not available
    OpenAI Codex
    Available

Limited means partial support or a paid add-on.

Pricing

Plans as listed by each vendor. Check their sites for current prices.

  • Pricing model
    Kilo Code
    Freemium
    OpenAI Codex
    Freemium
  • Free plan
    Kilo Code
    Yes
    OpenAI Codex
    Yes
  • Starting price
    Kilo Code
    $0
    OpenAI Codex
    $0
  • Plans
    Kilo Code
    3 plans
    OpenAI Codex
    7 plans

Kilo Code plans

  • Free & Open Source

    Most popular

    $0

    Open-source extensions for individuals, with model usage billed separately

    • VS Code
    • JetBrains and CLI extensions
    • agentic coding
    • code completion and generation
    • any AI model
    • BYOK or local models

  • Teams

    $15/user/mo

    Shared tooling and billing for engineering teams

    • Everything in Free
    • usage analytics
    • AI adoption score
    • shared custom agents
    • centralised billing
    • shared BYOK
    • data privacy controls
    • priority support

  • Enterprise

    Custom/custom

    Governance and support for larger organisations

    • Everything in Teams
    • model and provider limits
    • shared private gateway BYOK
    • audit logs
    • SSO/OIDC/SCIM
    • SLA commitments
    • dedicated support

OpenAI Codex plans

  • Free

    $0

    Quick coding tasks

    • GPT-6 Luna in the desktop app
    • Subject to rollout

  • Go

    $8/month

    Lightweight coding tasks

    • GPT-6 Luna in the desktop app

  • Plus

    Most popular

    $20/month

    Focused coding sessions

    • Web
    • CLI
    • IDE and iOS access
    • Automatic code review and Slack
    • GPT-6.1 Sol and GPT-6 Luna
    • Can add credits

  • Pro

    $100/month

    Plans at $100, $200 or $500 per month

    • Everything in Plus
    • No five-hour limit currently
    • Ultrafast mode on the $500 plan

  • Business

    $25/user/mo

    2 or more users; $20 per user per month when billed annually

    • Desktop and mobile apps
    • Larger cloud VMs
    • Add-on credits
    • SAML SSO and MFA
    • No training on business data by default

  • Enterprise & Edu

    Custom/user/mo

    Contact sales

    • Priority request processing
    • SCIM
    • EKM and RBAC
    • User analytics
    • Compliance API audit logs
    • Retention and residency controls

  • API Key

    Pay-as-you-go/usage

    Billed at OpenAI API pricing

    • Codex in the CLI
    • SDK and IDE extension
    • No cloud features
    • Models depend on the API key

Our ratings

Scored out of 10 by the Finder Atlas editorial team. Last reviewed October 2026.

Kilo Code
8.0overall
OpenAI Codex
8.5overall

Kilo Code leads in 1 category and OpenAI Codex in 1.

  • Ease of Use

    OpenAI Codex leads by 0.5
    Kilo Code
    7.8
    OpenAI Codex
    8.3

  • Feature Depth

    Kilo Code
    8.6
    OpenAI Codex
    Not rated

  • Value for Money

    Kilo Code leads by 0.4
    Kilo Code
    8.4
    OpenAI Codex
    8.0

  • Performance & Speed

    Kilo Code
    7.8
    OpenAI Codex
    Not rated

  • Documentation & Support

    Kilo Code
    7.6
    OpenAI Codex
    Not rated

  • Code Generation

    Kilo Code
    Not rated
    OpenAI Codex
    9.0

  • Agentic Autonomy

    Kilo Code
    Not rated
    OpenAI Codex
    8.8

  • Ecosystem & Integrations

    Kilo Code
    Not rated
    OpenAI Codex
    8.5

Scores weigh documented features, plan value, platform coverage, integrations and user feedback. A missing score means we have not rated that area yet.

Pros and cons

Kilo Code

Pros

  • MIT-licensed and open source, with a public GitHub repository of more than 27,000 stars.
  • Access to 500+ models across 60+ providers with no stated inference markup.
  • Works in VS Code, JetBrains and the terminal, plus cloud agents, Slack and mobile.
  • Supports bring-your-own-key and local models, which avoids lock-in to one provider.
  • Teams plan is $15 per user per month with shared agents and analytics.

Cons

  • Costs are usage-based, so spend is less predictable than a flat subscription.
  • A 5% processing fee applies to credit purchases.
  • Trustpilot reviewers report billing and refund disputes, including an unexpected renewal charge and a declined refund on purchased credits.
  • The desktop app is in beta, and some reviewers cite bugs and rate-limit issues.

OpenAI Codex

Pros

  • Included with ChatGPT plans, with a free tier and an $8 Go tier
  • Open-source CLI under the Apache-2.0 license
  • Available in the terminal, VS Code-based editors, the ChatGPT desktop app and the cloud
  • Supports MCP, skills, plugins and subagents
  • API-key option lets teams pay at API rates instead of a subscription

Cons

  • Plus has message limits per five hours that vary widely by model
  • Cloud features are not available on the API Key plan
  • Higher usage needs Pro, which starts at $100 per month
  • Free and Go plans offer only GPT-6 Luna in the desktop app

Platforms

  • Web
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • Windows
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • macOS
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • iOS
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Not supported
  • Android
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Not supported
  • API
    Kilo Code
    Not supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • Browser Extension
    Kilo Code
    Not supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Not supported
  • Linux
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • VS Code Extension
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • JetBrains Plugin
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • CLI
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Supported
  • Slack App
    Kilo Code
    Supported
    OpenAI Codex
    Not supported

Integrations

Kilo Code

9 integrations
  • VS Code
  • Cursor
  • Windsurf
  • JetBrains
  • Slack
  • GitHub
  • MCP
  • Ollama
  • LM Studio

OpenAI Codex

8 integrations
  • GitHub
  • Slack
  • Visual Studio Code
  • Cursor
  • Windsurf
  • Xcode
  • JetBrains IDEs
  • MCP

Company

  • Company
    Kilo Code
    Kilo Code, Inc.
    OpenAI Codex
    Not listed
  • Founded
    Kilo Code
    2025
    OpenAI Codex
    Not listed
  • Monthly users
    Kilo Code
    5M+
    OpenAI Codex
    4M+ weekly users
  • Listing
    Kilo Code
    Claimed
    OpenAI Codex
    Not claimed

Frequently asked questions

Is Kilo Code better than OpenAI Codex?

It depends on your workflow. Kilo Code is built for developers who want to choose their own models and providers, pay provider rates without markup, and keep an auditable open-source agent inside their existing IDE. OpenAI Codex is built for delegating coding tasks to an agent.

What are the key feature differences between Kilo Code and OpenAI Codex?

Kilo Code: Open-source AI coding agent for VS Code, JetBrains and CLI with 500+ models. OpenAI Codex: OpenAI's coding agent that writes, reviews and runs code from terminal, IDE, desktop or cloud.

Does Kilo Code or OpenAI Codex have a free plan?

Yes, both do. Kilo Code is freemium and OpenAI Codex is freemium, and each has a free plan or trial.

Which is cheaper, Kilo Code or OpenAI Codex?

Both can be used for free. Paid plans differ in limits and features, so compare the tiers in the pricing table above.