Cline

Open-source autonomous coding agent for your editor, terminal, and CI pipelines

Freemiumcline.botUpdated 19 Oct 2026

About Cline

Cline is an open-source AI coding agent that runs inside the developer's editor, in the terminal, or embedded in other products through an SDK. It reads a codebase, proposes multi-file edits as diffs, runs terminal commands, uses a browser, and asks for approval before each action. The project is released under the Apache 2.0 license and is developed by Cline Bot Inc.

Best for

Developers who want an open-source agent with a choice of model providers, human approval at each step, and extensibility through MCP servers
Multi-File Feature Work: Plan a feature in Plan mode, then have the agent edit several files and run tests in Act mode.
Local-Model Coding: Run the agent against Ollama or LM Studio models when code should not leave the machine.
CI Automation: Run Cline headlessly in GitHub Actions or GitLab to handle repetitive repository tasks.
Custom Agent Products: Embed the agent runtime in internal tools using the SDK.
Team Standards Enforcement: Use `.clinerules` and enterprise controls to keep agent output consistent across a team.

Not ideal for

Non-programmers looking for a no-code app builder, or users who want a fixed monthly price covering all model usage

Popular with

Software Engineers
Full-Stack Developers
Engineering Teams
Enterprise Development Organizations

Screenshots

Key features

Plan and Act Modes
Multi-File Editing with Checkpoints
Terminal and Browser Use
Bring Your Own Model
MCP Servers and Marketplace
Rules Files
Multi-Agent Teams and Scheduling
Headless and Chat Access
SDK

Pros and cons

Pros

Open source under Apache 2.0, with a large public community of 250+ contributors.
No subscription needed: pay only for inference, or bring your own API key.
Works with many model providers, including local models through Ollama and LM Studio.
Approval at every step, plus checkpoints and undo, keeps changes reviewable.
Available in VS Code, a desktop app, CLI, SDK and CI, so it fits several workflows.

Cons

Costs depend on token usage and are not capped on the free plan, so heavy agentic sessions can be hard to predict.
JetBrains support is listed as early access and as an Enterprise feature.
Documentation does not state specific ClinePass token or request allowances.

Pricing

Plans as listed by the vendor on 19 Oct 2026. Check their site for current prices.

See cline.bot

Open Source

ClinePass

$9.99/month

Optional flat subscription for open coding models via the Cline provider

Curated open coding models
2-5x usage versus standard API rates
5-hour
weekly and monthly limits

Enterprise

Custom/custom

Organizations needing security and administration controls

JetBrains extension
SSO
SLA
dedicated support
centralized billing
role-based access control
authentication logs

Our ratings

Scored out of 10 by the Finder Atlas editorial team.

8.2overall

Ease of Use: 7.8
Feature Depth: 8.8
Value for Money: 8.6
Performance & Speed: 8.0
Documentation & Support: 8.0

Platforms and integrations

Available on

macOS
Windows
Linux
VS Code Extension
JetBrains Plugin
CLI
API

Works with

VS Code
JetBrains
Cursor
Windsurf
Slack
Discord
Telegram
Linear
GitHub Actions
GitLab
Ollama
LM Studio

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Release history

v0.0.48Oct 1, 2026
Fixes GPT-6 models on OpenAI and Azure endpoints and restores Claude Sonnet 5.5 as the Cline provider default
Fixes GPT-6 models on OpenAI and Azure endpoints and restores Claude Sonnet 5.5 as the Cline provider default.
v4.1.25Oct 1, 2026
Adds gradual rollout of Cline Cloud sessions that run tasks in hosted sandboxes on a chosen GitHub repo and branch
Adds gradual rollout of Cline Cloud sessions that run tasks in hosted sandboxes on a chosen GitHub repo and branch.

Reviews

No reviews yet

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Frequently asked questions

Is Cline free?

The software is open source under Apache 2.0 and has no subscription or seat fees. You pay for AI inference, either at usage rates through the Cline provider or directly to a model vendor with your own API key.

Which models can Cline use?

Cline lists Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, AWS Bedrock, Azure, GCP Vertex, Ollama, DeepSeek, xAI, Mistral, Cerebras and OpenRouter, plus local models through Ollama and LM Studio and any OpenAI-compatible endpoint.

Does Cline act without my approval?

By default, every action requires explicit approval, according to the docs. Users can enable auto-approve in Act mode.

Which editors does Cline support?

A VS Code extension, a desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux, and a CLI are available. Cursor, Windsurf, Antigravity and Zed are also listed, and the JetBrains plugin is described as early access on the homepage and as an Enterprise feature on the pricing page.

What is ClinePass?

ClinePass is an optional $9.99 per month subscription that gives access to a curated set of open coding models with roughly 2-5x the usage of standard API rates, subject to 5-hour, weekly and monthly limits.

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