Cline
Cline · Coding
Cline is an open source AI coding agent that reads files, writes code and runs terminal commands inside VS Code, JetBrains, Cursor and the CLI, asking for your approval before each step.
About Cline
What Is Cline
Cline is an AI coding agent that lives inside the editor you already have open. It started in 2024 as the Claude Dev extension and grew into a full agent that opens files, edits them, runs shell commands, checks a browser and reads the errors your terminal throws back.
The workflow is plain. You describe a task in ordinary language, Cline explores the project and proposes a plan, then it carries that plan out one action at a time. Every file write and every command waits for your click unless you hand it auto-approve rules. That approval loop is the main thing separating Cline from a chat window that hands you code and leaves the wiring to you.
The Cline AI agent is an open source AI coding assistant first and a paid model service second, which is an unusual order in this market. You pay for the model behind it, either through Cline usage billing, the $9.99 ClinePass subscription or your own key from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google or a local runtime. That split explains most of the confusion around Cline pricing: the extension costs nothing and the tokens cost whatever your provider charges.
Getting Started
- Install the Cline VS Code extension from the marketplace, or run
npm i -g clineif you want it in the terminal. - Choose a provider. Sign in for Cline usage billing, subscribe to ClinePass, or paste a key from a provider you already use.
- Stay in Plan mode at first. Let Cline read the codebase, then correct the plan before anything changes.
- Switch to Act mode and approve the edits and commands as they arrive, or set auto-approve for commands you trust.
- Check the diff after each step, and restore a checkpoint if the agent took a wrong turn.
Product Information
A quick look at Cline's pricing, supported platforms, and performance.
Best for
The users, tasks, and scenarios where this tool fits best.
Users
- Developers working in a codebase they did not write
- Solo builders and small teams
- Learners who want to watch the work happen
Tasks
- Multi-file refactors
- Debugging from a stack trace
- Boilerplate and test scaffolding
Scenarios
- Adding a feature to an unfamiliar repo
- Fixing a failing CI check before a release
- Prototyping a small internal tool over a weekend
Key features
Plan and Act Modes
Plan mode lets Cline read, search and argue about approach without touching a single file. Act mode executes. The conversation carries over when you switch, so the context you built while planning is still there when the edits start. You can also assign a stronger reasoning model to Plan and a faster, cheaper one to Act.
Human in the Loop Approval
By default Cline asks before it writes a file or runs a command, and the request shows the exact command line, not a summary of it. Auto-approve rules can cover read-only commands, specific tools or everything, with a separate switch for risky actions. That granularity is the reason teams trust it with real repositories.
Checkpoints and Rollback
Cline keeps a shadow Git repository next to your project and commits a snapshot after each tool use. Your own Git history stays untouched. You can compare any checkpoint, restore files only, or restore files and the task history together, which makes a bad agent run cheap to undo.
Cline MCP Marketplace
The Cline MCP Marketplace lists Model Context Protocol servers that plug new tools into the agent: database clients, browser control, issue trackers, design tools. Installing one adds its tools to the same approval flow, so you still see what gets called before it runs.
Editor and Terminal Coverage
The same agent core ships as a VS Code extension, a JetBrains plugin for IntelliJ, PyCharm, WebStorm and GoLand, a desktop app, a CLI and an SDK. Cursor, Windsurf, Zed and Neovim users get it too through the ACP mode. Teams that split across editors don't need separate tooling.
Rules Files and Repeatable Workflows
A .clinerules file holds project conventions: naming, test commands, files the agent should leave alone. Cline reads it on every task, which cuts the repeated explanation that plagues long sessions. Slash commands such as /deep-planning turn a routine sequence into a single call.
Model Choice and ClinePass
Any major provider works, plus local runtimes through Ollama or LM Studio. ClinePass bundles access to open coding models for a flat $9.99 a month with two to five times the usage of standard API rates. People comparing Cline vs Cursor usually land on this point: Cline keeps the model layer open instead of routing everything through one vendor.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Approval first design that shows the actual command before it runs, which makes the agent usable on production code.
- Free and open source core with no seat pricing, so the only recurring cost is model usage.
- Checkpoints tied to a shadow repo let you undo a bad run without rewriting your Git history.
- Broad coverage across VS Code, JetBrains, the terminal and an SDK, with the same behavior everywhere.
Cons
- Token spend is easy to lose track of during long agent runs, and heavy use can cost more than a flat-rate competitor.
- Plan quality depends on the model you pick, so a cheap model often produces shallow plans that need rewriting.
- Checkpoints on large repositories slow the editor down and eat disk space, which forces a tradeoff on big monorepos.
Frequently asked questions
The extension, CLI and SDK are free and open source. You still pay for model calls, either through your own provider key or through Cline's usage billing. ClinePass is an optional $9.99 monthly subscription that adds higher usage on selected open models.
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