Claude Code vs Cline

Claude Code

Coding

Cline

Coding

Tagline

Claude Code

Anthropic's agentic coding tool that reads, edits, and ships code from the terminal, IDE, or web.

Cline

Open-source agentic coding assistant that plans, edits, and runs code inside your IDE

Pricing

Claude Code

Freemium· Free: $0 · Pro: $20 · Max 5x: $100 · Max 20x: $100 · Standard seat: $20

Cline

Freemium· ClinePass: $9.99/month

Lowest paid tier

Claude Code

$20 · Pro

captured 2026-08-10

Cline

$9.99 · ClinePass

captured 2026-08-08

Free trial

Claude Code

Yes

Cline

Yes

API

Claude Code

Yes

Cline

Yes

Platforms

Claude Code

macoslinuxclivscode-extensionjetbrains-pluginapi

Cline

apicliweblinuxmacoswindowsslackdiscordjetbrains-pluginvscode-extension

Open source

Claude Code

Not listed

Cline

Yes · Apache-2.0

GitHub stars

Claude Code

—

Cline

69,573

checked 2026-09-29

Last GitHub push

Claude Code

—

Cline

2026-09-29

First commit

Claude Code

—

Cline

2024-07

Company

Claude Code

Anthropic, Inc.

Cline

—

Model used

Claude Code

Claude (Opus / Sonnet / Haiku)

Cline

Model-agnostic: Claude (Anthropic), GPT (OpenAI), Gemini (Google), DeepSeek, Grok, Mistral, Cerebras, plus local Ollama/LM Studio

Best for

Claude Code

Pick Claude Code if you live in a terminal, want a true agent (not just autocomplete), and are already paying for Anthropic.

Cline

Developers and engineering teams who want a powerful open-source agentic coding assistant inside their existing IDE, with full control over which model provider and API key are used.

Not for

Claude Code

Skip it if you need an open-source agent, offline operation, or a cheap pay-per-token CLI without a subscription.

Cline

Non-technical users, teams that want a fully managed all-in-one subscription with hosted models, or shops that require zero configuration and no API key management.

Editorial score

Claude Code

8.2 / 10

Cline

8.7 / 10

Use cases

Claude Code

agentic-codingcodebase-refactorissue-to-prterminal-automationide-assistant

Cline

Multi-file feature scaffoldingLarge-scale refactorsAPI migrationsUnit and integration test generationDebugging failing CI runsCodebase exploration and documentationPrototyping with local LLMs via OllamaMCP-driven browser and database automationLegacy code modernizationAgentic tasks inside CI pipelines

Pros

Claude Code

• True agentic CLI plus first-party VS Code and JetBrains extensions
• Native GitHub/GitLab issue-to-PR loop with computer-use fallback
• MCP, hooks, and Routines make automation and scheduling first-class
• Same Claude model as the API, so prompts and skills port cleanly
• Bundled into existing Pro/Max plans rather than a separate SKU

Cline

• Truly model-agnostic — bring your own Claude, GPT, Gemini, DeepSeek, Grok, Mistral, or local Ollama/LM Studio key
• Open source under Apache 2.0 with an active contributor community and no vendor lock-in
• Plan/Act mode plus per-step approval and checkpoints give strong human-in-the-loop control
• First-class MCP support means it can drive browsers, databases, and third-party APIs, not just edit files
• .clinerules let teams codify project conventions the agent must honour
• Runs in VS Code, JetBrains, Cursor, Windsurf, and headless via CLI/SDK for CI use
• Transparent cost model — you pay upstream model providers directly, no markup subscription required

Cons

Claude Code

• Closed source; you are locked to Anthropic's model and billing
• Opus runs burn Max quotas fast on large agent loops
• Windows terminal experience still lags macOS/Linux
• No offline or self-host story for regulated environments

Cline

• Token spend can escalate quickly on long agentic runs, especially with Claude Opus or GPT-4-class models
• No hosted model included in the free tier — you must supply API keys or set up ClinePass
• Quality is bounded by whichever model you plug in; weaker models produce noticeably worse plans
• Enterprise features (SSO, RBAC, JetBrains extension, audit logs) are gated behind a sales conversation
• Autonomous multi-file edits still need careful review on large legacy codebases to avoid regressions

Website

Claude Code

www.claude.com

Cline

cline.bot

Editorial score: rule-based, 0–10, from AI-assisted profile inputs (see /methodology) — not a user rating; “—” means unscored. “Not listed” means we have no record of it, not that it is absent. GitHub figures and prices carry the date they were checked or captured; prices are shown as published, unconverted.