How much does Rivet cost?

Rivet is completely free and open source under an MIT-style license. There are no subscription fees or hosted control plane costs, as you own the entire deployment surface yourself.

Is Rivet suitable for Python developers?

Rivet is primarily aimed at TypeScript teams using Node.js. If you work primarily in Python or prefer writing agent logic entirely in code, the documentation suggests you should skip it as it may feel heavy.

Which AI models does Rivet support?

Rivet is model-agnostic. It supports OpenAI, Anthropic, and any other provider you wire up, allowing you to integrate various LLMs into your visual agent graphs without being locked to a single vendor.

How does Rivet handle version control?

Graphs are serialized as version-controlled YAML files. This allows teams to review agent logic in pull requests just like they would review standard code, making it Git-friendly for collaborative development.

Does Rivet offer debugging capabilities?

Yes, it features real-time remote debugging. You can attach the IDE to a running Node process to watch node execution live, a capability described as rare among agent builders.

Rivet

✓ Editorially verified

Open-source visual IDE for building and debugging LLM agent graphs.

Free· Free and open source (MIT)AgentsMulti-model8.0 / 10

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In short

Rivet is a free, open-source visual IDE for TypeScript teams to build and debug LLM agent graphs. It features real-time remote debugging and Git-friendly YAML serialization for self-hosted workflows.

Best for

Pick Rivet if you're a TypeScript team that wants a visual, Git-friendly way to build and debug LLM agent chains without giving up self-hosting.

Skip if

Skip it if you work primarily in Python, want a managed cloud runtime, or prefer writing agent logic entirely in code.

Rivet is an open-source, node-based visual programming environment for designing complex LLM chains and AI agents. Built and battle-tested by Ironclad for their contract-AI workloads, it ships as a desktop app plus a TypeScript/Node.js runtime, letting you prototype prompt graphs visually then embed them in production code. Graphs are serialized as version-controlled YAML, so teams can review agent logic in pull requests the way they review code.

Where Rivet stands out is the developer workflow: real-time remote debugging lets you attach the IDE to a running Node process and watch node execution live, which is a genuinely rare capability among agent builders. It's model-agnostic (OpenAI, Anthropic, and any provider you wire up), free to use, and aimed at engineering teams who want visual clarity without giving up Git, types, or self-hosting. If you're a solo hacker who prefers plain Python or LangChain, this will feel heavy; if you're a team shipping agent features inside a TypeScript app, it's a strong fit.

Contributors include Ironclad, AssemblyAI, and Sourcegraph, which gives it more real-world provenance than most flowchart-style agent tools. Because it's fully open source under an MIT-style license and there's no hosted control plane, you own the deployment surface entirely — for better and for worse.

Editor's take

Rivet is one of the more credible open-source agent IDEs because it's dogfooded by Ironclad in production, not a weekend demo. The YAML-in-Git model and live remote debugger are the killer features. Just know you're buying into a Node/TypeScript world, and you're the one running it.

— The AI Tool Bible editorial team

Pros

✅ Fully open source with an MIT-style license and self-hostable desktop app
✅ Real-time remote debugging attaches the IDE to a live Node.js process
✅ Graphs serialize to YAML, so agent logic reviews cleanly in Git
✅ Model-agnostic — works with OpenAI, Anthropic, and custom providers

Cons

⚠️ Node.js/TypeScript-centric; Python teams are second-class
⚠️ No hosted runtime — you deploy and monitor it yourself
⚠️ Visual-graph paradigm has a learning curve versus code-first frameworks

Use cases

agent-orchestrationprompt-chainingllm-debuggingtypescript-integration

Frequently asked

How much does Rivet cost?: Rivet is completely free and open source under an MIT-style license. There are no subscription fees or hosted control plane costs, as you own the entire deployment surface yourself.
Is Rivet suitable for Python developers?: Rivet is primarily aimed at TypeScript teams using Node.js. If you work primarily in Python or prefer writing agent logic entirely in code, the documentation suggests you should skip it as it may feel heavy.
Which AI models does Rivet support?: Rivet is model-agnostic. It supports OpenAI, Anthropic, and any other provider you wire up, allowing you to integrate various LLMs into your visual agent graphs without being locked to a single vendor.
How does Rivet handle version control?: Graphs are serialized as version-controlled YAML files. This allows teams to review agent logic in pull requests just like they would review standard code, making it Git-friendly for collaborative development.
Does Rivet offer debugging capabilities?: Yes, it features real-time remote debugging. You can attach the IDE to a running Node process to watch node execution live, a capability described as rare among agent builders.