Cline Review 2026: The Open-Source Autonomous Coding Agent for VS Code

Cline — formerly known as Claude Dev — is an open-source autonomous coding agent that lives inside your editor. Instead of completing the line you are typing, it takes on whole tasks: reading your project, planning a set of changes, editing multiple files, running terminal commands, and checking its own work, with you reviewing and approving each step. Licensed under Apache 2.0 and supporting virtually any model provider, it is the open alternative to proprietary coding agents.

Key features

You describe a task, and Cline explores your project structure, figures out how files relate, and makes coordinated edits across the codebase — every edit shown as a reviewable diff. It runs shell commands in your terminal (installing packages, running builds and tests, managing background dev servers), uses a built-in browser for web tasks, and connects to MCP servers to extend its toolset. Changes are tracked with checkpoints, so you can compare and restore the workspace at each step.

In Plan mode, Cline explores the codebase, asks clarifying questions, and lays out a strategy; once you are aligned, Act mode executes. By default every file edit and terminal command requires your approval — you can toggle auto-approve for fully autonomous runs, but human-in-the-loop is the safe default.

Cline is provider-agnostic: Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, AWS Bedrock, Azure, GCP Vertex, OpenRouter, and local models via Ollama or LM Studio are all supported. Project-specific behavior is guided by .clinerules files (coding standards, architecture conventions, testing requirements), and built-in cost tracking shows what each task costs.

Who it’s for

Cline fits developers who want agent-level autonomy — multi-file refactors, feature implementation, bug fixing with test verification — without surrendering to a closed ecosystem. It is especially attractive if you already pay for API access to a strong model and would rather point an open agent at it than pay a separate subscription per seat.

It also suits privacy-conscious teams and tinkerers. Because the code is open source and you choose the provider, you can run it against local models or your own cloud accounts, audit exactly what the agent does, and extend it via the CLI, the JetBrains plugin, or the @cline/sdk Node.js package for building custom agents on Cline’s engine.

What to watch out for

Autonomy has a price tag measured in tokens. Cline’s model is bring-your-own-API-key: the extension is free, but every plan, edit, and terminal command consumes your provider’s tokens, and agentic loops can burn through them fast on hard tasks. The built-in cost tracking is there for a reason — watch it, especially during your first week. A long autonomous session on a frontier model can cost real money.

Respect the approval model: auto-approve removes the guardrail, and an agent with terminal access and broad workspace permissions can do real damage if it misunderstands a task. Use Plan mode for anything touching many files, keep .clinerules tight, and never auto-approve destructive commands on a machine you care about.

Setup is more involved than a one-click SaaS assistant: you configure a provider, manage API keys, and learn the Plan/Act rhythm before it feels natural.

Pricing

Cline is free and open source under the Apache 2.0 license — the VS Code extension, JetBrains plugin, CLI, and SDK cost nothing. You bring your own API key, and model usage is billed by your chosen provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, AWS, Azure, OpenRouter, or a local model runtime). There is no per-seat subscription from Cline itself; your cost is whatever your provider charges for the tokens your sessions consume.

Pros

• Fully open source (Apache 2.0) — auditable, extensible, no vendor lock-in
• Genuine autonomy: multi-file edits, terminal commands, browser use, MCP tools
• Human-in-the-loop by default — every edit and command needs approval unless you opt out
• Plan mode vs. Act mode separates strategy from execution
• Works with any provider, including local models via Ollama/LM Studio
• Checkpoints let you compare and restore the workspace at each step
• Built-in token and cost tracking per request and per task
• Ships as VS Code extension, JetBrains plugin, CLI, and Node.js SDK

Cons

• Bring-your-own-key model — API costs are yours and can spike on long agent sessions
• Auto-approve mode plus terminal access is genuinely risky if misconfigured
• More setup and learning curve than turnkey commercial assistants
• Agent quality depends on the model you connect; weaker models produce weaker plans
• Long autonomous runs need supervision — checkpoints help, but review is still on you

Frequently asked questions

Is Cline free?

The Cline software itself is free and open source (Apache 2.0). You do need your own API key, and your model provider bills you for token usage — so your cost depends on which models you use and how heavily you run the agent.

What was Cline called before?

Cline started as a VS Code extension called “Claude Dev” before rebranding to Cline. It has since grown beyond the extension into a JetBrains plugin, a CLI, and a Node.js SDK built on the same engine.

Is Cline safe to give terminal access?

By default, Cline requires your approval for every file edit and terminal command — that human-in-the-loop design is the intended safe mode. You can toggle auto-approve for fully autonomous runs, but that should be reserved for sandboxed or disposable environments, never a machine with important data.

Which models work with Cline?

Cline is provider-agnostic: Anthropic, OpenAI, Google Gemini, AWS Bedrock, Azure, GCP Vertex, OpenRouter, and local models via Ollama or LM Studio are supported, plus any OpenAI-compatible endpoint.

How does Cline compare to GitHub Copilot?

Copilot is primarily an inline autocomplete and chat assistant tied to a subscription; Cline is an autonomous agent that plans and executes multi-file tasks with terminal access. Cline is open source and works with any provider, while Copilot is a commercial product in Microsoft’s ecosystem. They solve different problems and many developers use both.