Qwen Code
Alibaba's open-source coding agent for terminal, IDE and desktop
Overview
Qwen Code is the Qwen team's free, Apache-2.0 coding agent. It began as a Gemini CLI fork and has developed independently since v0.1. It runs in the terminal, VS Code, Zed, JetBrains and a desktop app, and connects to Alibaba Model Studio, OpenAI-, Anthropic- or Gemini-compatible APIs, or local models. Its free login tier ended in April 2026.
Pricing
Pricing shown for reference only. These figures reflect RECATOOLS research as of 12 Oct 2026 and may be out of date or incomplete. This is not financial or purchasing advice — always confirm the current price on the provider’s official website before making any decision.
What you can produce with Qwen Code
- Apache-2.0 coding agent as a CLI, desktop app and experimental web UI
- VS Code, Zed and JetBrains integrations
- Models from Alibaba Model Studio, OpenAI-, Anthropic- or Gemini-compatible APIs, OpenRouter or local servers
- Sub-agents, agent teams, auto-memory, skills and hooks
- MCP and LSP support, sandboxing and Git worktrees
- Headless mode for CI plus TypeScript, Python and Java SDKs
- Chat channels for Telegram, WeChat, DingTalk and Feishu
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, DeepSeek, Kimi, Claude, GPT or a local model without changing tools.
It is no longer free to use in practice. Alibaba ended the free Qwen OAuth tier on 15 April 2026, so you need your own API key or Alibaba's $50-a-month Coding Plan Pro, whose slots are limited. Best for developers who want model choice and auditable code.
What we found
Qwen Code is the Qwen team's open-source coding agent, released alongside the Qwen3-Coder model on 22 July 2025. Alibaba's launch post said it was forked from Google's Gemini CLI; the repository now says it started from Gemini CLI v0.8.2, stopped syncing with upstream at its own v0.1 and has developed independently since. It is Apache-2.0 licensed and moves quickly: version 0.25.1 shipped on 11 October 2026, with nightly and preview builds most days.
The biggest change for anyone who tried it in 2025 is cost. The free Qwen OAuth tier, which let a qwen.ai login run the CLI at no charge, was discontinued on 15 April 2026, and the auth guide warns that new requests will be rejected. The CLI is still free, but every useful session now needs a paid or bring-your-own model behind it. Alibaba's own route is the Model Studio Coding Plan: Pro costs $50 a month for up to 6,000 requests per five hours, 45,000 a week and 90,000 a month, with limited slots restocked daily. The cheaper Lite plan closed to new subscribers in March 2026. Teams can instead use the usage-billed Token Plan, which has a Singapore endpoint, or connect DeepSeek, OpenRouter, Kimi, Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini or a local Ollama or vLLM server.
The tool has grown well beyond a terminal. There are VS Code, Zed and JetBrains integrations, a desktop app, an experimental web UI, TypeScript, Python and Java SDKs, and chat channels for Telegram, WeChat, DingTalk and Feishu. Agent features include sub-agents, agent teams, auto-memory, skills, hooks, MCP, sandboxing and a headless mode for CI.
Read the benchmark figures with care. The README reports 76 to 78 per cent on SWE-bench Verified, but that is the Qwen team's own run with Qwen 3.7 Max, not an independent result, and it measures model and harness together. Earlier versions of this page presented a vendor score as independent.
Compiled by RECATOOLS from public sources: vendor documentation and pricing, code repositories and published reporting.
About this listing
This entry was compiled from publicly available data including Qwen Code's official website, press releases, documentation, and reputable third-party publications. RECATOOLS is not affiliated with Qwen Code unless explicitly stated.
Third-party AI tools update their pricing, features, availability, and policies frequently. Information here may be outdated by the time you read this — we make reasonable efforts to keep listings current, but cannot guarantee absolute accuracy.
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