Cline vs Codebuff

In short

• Both: Chat about your code, Agent that edits files, Knows the whole codebase, Runs commands, Command line, Choice of models, Official SDKs, Builds agents and workflows
• Only Cline states: VS Code, JetBrains IDEs, Self-hosted, Runs models for you
• Only Codebuff states: Reviews pull requests, API

Cline

Open-source coding agent that reads and edits projects, runs commands, and works across editors, terminals, desktop, and SDK integrations.

Plans

Open Source

Free

• VS Code Extension
• CLI
• Secure Client-Side Architecture
• Purchase and Model Inference at Cost or BYOK
• MCP Marketplace
• Multi-Root Workspaces

Enterprise

Price on request

• All Open Source Features
• JetBrains Extension
• SSO
• SLA
• Dedicated Support
• Centralized Billing

Prices checked 2026-09-25 on the maker’s page.

Capabilities

• Chat about your code — “See how a codebase is structured and ask Cline questions about files, dependencies, and behavior.” source
• Agent that edits files — “Coordinated multi-file changes with linter-aware fixes, diffs, checkpoints, and one-click undo on every step.” source
• Knows the whole codebase — “See how a codebase is structured and ask Cline questions about files, dependencies, and behavior.” source
• Runs commands — “Executes in your terminal and reacts to output as it appears.” source
• VS Code — “VS Code 4.5M+ installs The most installed AI agent on the Marketplace.” source
• JetBrains IDEs — “IntelliJ, PyCharm, WebStorm, GoLand, and the rest.” source
• Command line — “Use Cline CLI in scripts, cron jobs, and CI pipelines to run recurring checks, updates, and custom workflows.” source
• Choice of models — “Claude, GPT, Gemini, local Ollama / LM Studio, or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint.” source
• Self-hosted — “Switch providers or self-host anytime.” source
• Official SDKs — “Register custom tools and lifecycle hooks via the SDK.” source
• Runs models for you — “You can bring your own API keys or use the Cline provider.” source
• Builds agents and workflows — “Coordinator agents delegate to specialists with their own tools and context. Run them on cron for recurring automations.” source

Latest updates

• 2026-09-24 v4.1.21 (v4.1.21)
• 2026-09-24 SDK v0.0.86 (v0.0.86)

  Text-only turns truncated at the output-token limit now get one compact-and-retry attempt per run before the existing recovery.

• 2026-09-24 Desktop v0.0.35 (v0.0.35)

  Cline Desktop now runs on Linux, and plugin slash commands execute their handlers in the desktop app.

Codebuff

Codebuff is an open-source terminal coding agent that analyzes repositories, edits files, runs commands, and reviews code.

Plans

Strong — 1× usage

• $ 100 /mo

• Access the strongest coding agent
• Use all modes with higher usage limits
• 1× usage

Strong — 2.5× usage

• $ 200 /mo

• Access the strongest coding agent
• Use all modes with higher usage limits
• 2.5× usage

Strong — 7× usage

• $ 500 /mo

• Access the strongest coding agent
• Use all modes with higher usage limits
• 7× usage

Pay as you go

• 1¢ /credit

• No subscription required
• Credits are consumed based on task complexity
• Buy only the credits you need

Prices checked 2026-09-25 on the maker’s page.

Capabilities

• Chat about your code — “It can also run CLI commands, adjust build configs, review code, and answer questions about your repo.” source
• Agent that edits files — “Surgical Code Edits Makes pinpoint changes while respecting your codebase's existing structure and style” source
• Knows the whole codebase — “Codebuff deeply understands your entire codebase structure, dependencies, and patterns to generate code that other AI tools can't match.” source
• Runs commands — “It can also run CLI commands, adjust build configs, review code, and answer questions about your repo.” source
• Reviews pull requests — “It can also run CLI commands, adjust build configs, review code, and answer questions about your repo.” source
• Command line — “npm install -g codebuff” source
• Choice of models — “It's like the Claude Code SDK, but with more power: you can choose your model, customize prompts, and seamlessly mix in programmatic code to steer your agent.” source
• API — “All you need is a Codebuff API Key to get started ( click here to get one in 10 seconds ). Then simply call run() on the SDK client:” source
• Official SDKs — “We are launching the open source Codebuff Agent SDK , so you too can delete your spaghetti code and make agents that compete with the best!” source
• Builds agents and workflows — “Using our npm package , you can define agents, use any model on OpenRouter, and run them programmatically.” source