Qwen Code vs OpenAI Codex CLI vs OpenCode vs Kilo Code
A side-by-side look at scores, pricing and features — with RECATOOLS' ASEAN-aware verdict for each.
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| RECATOOLS Score | 7.7 / 10 | 8.2 / 10 | 7.9 / 10 | 7.4 / 10 |
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| Pricing | Open Source | Freemium | Open Source | Open Source |
| Free tier | Apache-2.0 CLI is free to install and use; you supply the model (own API key or local Ollama/vLLM). The free Qwen OAuth tier ended 15 Apr 2026 | CLI is open source (Apache-2.0); ChatGPT Free includes limited Codex usage (GPT-6 Luna, desktop app, subject to rollout); otherwise sign in with a paid plan or API key | MIT-licensed agent is free; bring any provider key, log in with GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus/Pro, or use the free models included | Free MIT-licensed agent for VS Code, JetBrains and CLI; use your own API keys, local models (Ollama/LM Studio) or free models via Auto Free; inference billed separately |
| Paid from | CLI free, model access e.g. Alibaba Coding Plan Pro at $50/month or your own API key | Included in ChatGPT Go $8/mo, Plus $20/mo, Pro from $100/mo; or API-key usage | Go $10/mo; Go Plus $40/mo; Zen pay-as-you-go from $20 credit | Teams $15/user/mo; optional Kilo Pass credits from $19/mo (+5% processing fee) |
| Has API | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Open source | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free to use | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Users | — | — | — | — |
| Founded | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 | 2025 |
| Maker | Alibaba Group (Qwen team) | OpenAI | Anomaly Innovations, Inc. | Anaconda |
| Verdict | Qwen Code is now a broad, fast-moving agent rather than a Gemini CLI fork: sub-agents, agent teams, MCP, hooks, IDE plugins, a desktop app and SDKs, released almost daily under Apache-2.0. You can point it at Qwen, DeepS... |
Codex CLI is one of the strongest terminal coding agents available: open source, fast, actively maintained and now running OpenAI's GPT-6 models, with a scriptable mode for automation. Its value depends on a ChatGPT subs... |
OpenCode is one of the strongest open-source coding agents: one-line install, any model provider or an existing Copilot or ChatGPT login, parallel sessions, undo snapshots and a GitHub integration, all under the MIT lice... |
Kilo Code is one of the most flexible open-source coding agents: free and MIT-licensed, it works with your own API keys, local models or more than 500 models through its gateway at provider rates, so you see exactly what... |
| Full review → | Full review → | Full review → | Full review → |
Comparisons cover up to 4 tools. Scores are RECATOOLS editorial assessments; verify current pricing on each vendor's site.