OpenCode
OpenCode is an open-source AI coding agent under MIT that runs in the terminal. It ships two agents you switch between with the Tab key: build, a full-access agent for development work, and plan, a read-only agent that denies file edits by default and asks before running commands. It installs with a script, npm, Homebrew, scoop, choco, pacman, mise or nix, and a desktop app is in beta.
What does OpenCode do?
OpenCode calls itself "the open source AI coding agent." Its README is short and describes the agent model: a "build" agent that is the "default, full-access agent for development work", and a "plan" agent that is "read-only" for "analysis and code exploration", which "denies file edits by default" and "asks permission before running bash commands." You switch between them with the Tab key. A "general" subagent for complex searches and multi-step tasks is invoked by writing @general in a message.
A desktop app, marked beta, ships for macOS on Apple Silicon and Intel, Windows, and Linux as .deb, .rpm and .AppImage. The README is translated into 22 languages. Everything else, including which model providers it supports, MCP, sandboxing and IDE integration, is deferred to the documentation at opencode.ai and is not stated in the README, so it is not stated here. The README's badge and links point at anomalyco/opencode, which GitHub now reports as the repository's name; sst/opencode redirects there. Kilo Code's CLI is a fork of it, by Kilo's own README.
Key facts
- Licence: MIT, copyright opencode, with no added conditions.
- Two built-in agents: build (full access) and plan (read-only, denies edits, asks before bash), switched with Tab; a general subagent for searches and multi-step tasks.
- Install: curl script, npm i -g opencode-ai@latest (or bun, pnpm, yarn), Homebrew (anomalyco/tap/opencode recommended, or brew install opencode), scoop and choco on Windows, pacman and paru on Arch, mise, nix.
- Desktop app in beta for macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows and Linux (.deb, .rpm, .AppImage).
- Model providers, MCP, sandboxing and IDE integration are not stated in the README, which defers to opencode.ai/docs.
- The repository now lives at anomalyco/opencode; sst/opencode redirects to it.
- Kilo Code's CLI is a fork of OpenCode, per Kilo Code's README.
- Latest tagged release when read: v1.18.31 on 2026-09-14; 208,201 stars on 2026-09-18, the most of any project in this directory.
What does it replace, and where does it fall short?
OpenCode replaces Claude Code as a terminal agent with an open licence and, by its README's silence on providers, without the single-vendor tie; the documentation site covers the provider list. Its plan agent is a built-in answer to the question every terminal agent raises, what it may touch. It is the pick for a terminal agent with an open licence on the open-source alternatives to Claude Code page.
Where it falls short: the README states almost nothing beyond the agent model and the installers, so provider support, MCP, sandboxing and local models cannot be confirmed from it, and this page does not claim them. The desktop app is beta. For a terminal agent whose README documents local models and MCP in detail, see Crush or Qwen Code.
How does OpenCode run?
Install with the curl script at opencode.ai/install, with npm i -g opencode-ai@latest, with Homebrew from the anomalyco tap, or with scoop, choco, pacman, paru, mise or nix. The README says to remove versions older than 0.1.x before installing. What it needs to run, an API key, a subscription or a local model, is not stated in the README. No hosted or paid OpenCode tier is stated there either.
Who is OpenCode for?
A developer who wants a terminal agent under MIT with a clear line between planning and editing, on any platform. Someone who needs the README to confirm local-model or MCP support before choosing should read the documentation site or pick Crush, whose README lists both.
What limits does the README state?
From the README: remove versions older than 0.1.x before installing; the desktop app is labelled beta.
Questions people ask
Is OpenCode open source?
Yes. The repository is MIT, an OSI approved licence with no added conditions, and its README's own headline is "the open source AI coding agent." Kilo Code's CLI is a fork of it, and Kilo Code's LICENSE carries the OpenCode copyright line alongside its own.
What is the difference between the build and plan agents?
Build is the default, full-access agent for development work. Plan is read-only: it denies file edits by default and asks permission before running bash commands, which the README says is ideal for exploring unfamiliar codebases or planning changes. You switch between them with the Tab key.
Which models does OpenCode support?
The README does not say; it defers to the documentation at opencode.ai. This page states only what the README states, so provider support, local models and MCP are recorded as not stated rather than assumed. Crush and Qwen Code document their provider lists in their READMEs if that matters to your choice.
How does OpenCode compare with Claude Code?
Both are terminal coding agents. OpenCode is MIT with a built-in read-only planning agent and a beta desktop app; Claude Code is Anthropic's proprietary agent for Claude models. The open-source alternatives to Claude Code page compares OpenCode with Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, Qwen Code, Crush, gptme and goose.
Where is the OpenCode repository now?
At anomalyco/opencode. The README's badges and links point there, and GitHub's API reports that name for the repository; the older sst/opencode address redirects to it. The stats on this page are read from the current location.
Sources
- OpenCode README and MIT LICENSE: github.com/anomalyco/opencode, read 2026-09-17.
Compared with the others
On the open-source alternatives to Claude Code page, OpenCode is the pick for a terminal agent with a planning mode. MIT, a full-access build agent and a read-only plan agent switched with Tab, installers for every platform, a beta desktop app, and the largest community in this directory by stars.
Also on that page: Qwen Code for switching between hosted and local models at runtime, Crush for the widest provider list with local models, goose for a desktop app and a cli under foundation governance.
On the open-source alternatives to Cursor page, OpenCode is the pick for a terminal agent with a planning mode. MIT, with a full-access build agent and a read-only plan agent switched with Tab, installers for every platform and a beta desktop app.
Also on that page: Zed for replacing the editor itself, Kilo Code for autocomplete plus agent, inside vs code or jetbrains, Cline for an agent with reviewable diffs and any model.
More coding assistants and agents
OpenAI's Apache-2.0 coding agent that runs locally in your terminal, with a desktop app and IDE extensions, signed in with a ChatGPT plan or an OpenAI API key, so the code is open and the models are OpenAI's.
Google's Apache-2.0 terminal agent for Gemini models with a free tier of 1,000 requests a day on a personal Google account, built-in search grounding, file and shell tools, MCP support, checkpointing and a GitHub Action.
A high-performance code editor from the creators of Atom and Tree-sitter, GPL-3.0-or-later with Apache-2.0 components, with an agent panel, external agents over ACP, edit prediction, MCP tools, sandboxing, and local models through Ollama or llama.cpp.
An MIT self-hosted control centre, called Agent Canvas, that runs the OpenHands agent or Claude Code, Codex, Gemini and any ACP-compatible agent across local, Docker and cloud backends, with automations triggered by schedules and webhooks.
An Apache-2.0 coding agent for VS Code, JetBrains, the terminal and a desktop app that edits files as reviewable diffs, runs commands with your approval, works with any model provider including Ollama, and connects tools through MCP.
An Apache-2.0 general-purpose AI agent from the Agentic AI Foundation at the Linux Foundation, written in Rust, with a desktop app, a CLI and an API, 15+ model providers including Ollama, and 70+ extensions over MCP.
Added September 17, 2026. Every claim above comes from the project's README, LICENSE or model card, read on September 17, 2026, or from the GitHub API on the date shown in the panel. Found an error? Write to reveneau@licheo.com and it is fixed in the next weekly pass. Repository: github.com/anomalyco/opencode.
Running one of these inside your own environment, with your own data and your own security rules, is the kind of work Reveneau does. Read how a forward deployed engagement works.