Gemini CLI alternatives after the June 2026 change

The best overall Gemini CLI alternative is Google Antigravity, because its CLI, agy, is where Google moved Gemini CLI's free and Google AI Pro and Ultra users on 2026-06-18, and its Individual plan is free. The best free and open source alternative is OpenCode (MIT, any model provider), and the best for local models with Ollama is Goose, which adds a desktop app. We compared 5 tools on free tier, license, local model support, agent skills and MCP; facts checked on 2026-10-01.

What changed in Gemini CLI on 2026-06-18

Gemini CLI stopped serving two groups on 2026-06-18, according to Google's announcement of 2026-05-19: people using it free of charge through Gemini Code Assist for individuals, and Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers. Both were pointed to Antigravity CLI. Organizations on Gemini Code Assist Standard or Enterprise keep access, and the announcement says Gemini CLI "will remain accessible via paid" API keys. The quota page, last updated 2026-06-18 and read on 2026-10-01, still lists an unpaid Gemini API key tier with a daily request limit, Flash model only. Gemini CLI itself stays Apache-2.0 open source with 107,216 GitHub stars on 2026-10-01, so it is still a fine choice for teams with a license or a paid key. Details: Gemini CLI on CookiesForAI.

Google Antigravity: Google's own successor

Google Antigravity is Google's agentic development platform, and its CLI is the tool Google points Gemini CLI users to; it suits anyone who used Gemini CLI with a personal Google account or an AI Pro or Ultra plan. It differs from Gemini CLI in being proprietary rather than Apache-2.0, and in coming as a desktop command center, a standalone IDE and editor extensions as well as the terminal. Google's announcement says Antigravity CLI keeps Agent Skills, hooks, subagents and extensions (now plugins), so most habits carry over, and project skills in .agents/skills work in both. Its strength is cost: the Individual plan is free, with Gemini Flash and Pro models and unlimited Tab completions and Command requests, read on 2026-10-01. Its limit is model choice: Antigravity does not support your own API key or a custom endpoint, so Ollama is out and usage follows your plan's weekly rate limits. Details: Google Antigravity on CookiesForAI.

OpenCode: best free and open source alternative

OpenCode is an MIT-licensed terminal coding agent by Anomaly, for developers who want what Gemini CLI offered, open source code and a terminal interface, without being tied to one model vendor. Where Gemini CLI runs only Gemini models, OpenCode connects to 75+ providers through Models.dev, including Gemini by API key, local models, and logins from a GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT Plus or Pro plan. Its strength is reach: 211,260 GitHub stars on 2026-10-01, a desktop app and editor extensions next to the terminal, and a GitHub integration that runs when you mention /opencode in an issue. Its limit is churn: OpenCode is moving to v2, and the classic and v2 docs show different MCP config shapes, so a guide may not match your version. OpenCode reads .agents/skills, the same project folder Gemini CLI reads, so existing skills keep working. The tool costs nothing; you pay your model provider, or for the optional Go subscription for open models. Details: OpenCode on CookiesForAI.

Goose: best for local models with Ollama

Goose is an Apache-2.0 open source agent, created by Block and now part of the Agentic AI Foundation at the Linux Foundation, for people who want a free agent that can run entirely on their own hardware. Unlike Gemini CLI, Goose ships both a desktop app and a CLI, and works with 15+ model providers, including Ollama for local models that keep code on your machine, plus Google, Anthropic and OpenAI by key. It can also use an existing Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini subscription through the Agent Client Protocol. Its strength is tools: Goose treats MCP servers as extensions, and its directory lists 70+ of them. Its limit is setup: remote MCP servers must use stdio or streamable HTTP because SSE is not supported, and there is no hosted plan, so you choose and pay a provider yourself. Goose had 54,840 GitHub stars on 2026-10-01 and reads project skills from .agents/skills, like Gemini CLI. Details: Goose on CookiesForAI.

OpenAI Codex: open source CLI plus a cloud agent

OpenAI Codex is a coding agent by OpenAI whose CLI, like Gemini CLI, is open source under Apache-2.0; it fits people who already pay for ChatGPT or want tasks run in the cloud. The difference from Gemini CLI is the second half: Codex cloud runs tasks in isolated environments from ChatGPT, can open pull requests on GitHub, and shares one account with the CLI and the IDE extensions. Its strength is flexible entry: the CLI accepts a ChatGPT login, an OpenAI API key, or the --oss flag, which runs a local open source model through LM Studio or Ollama. Its limit is the subscription route: OpenAI's pricing page, read on 2026-10-01, lists the CLI and IDE extension from the paid Plus plan up, and Plus usage is capped per five-hour window and per week. The CLI repository had 127,502 GitHub stars on 2026-10-01. Codex reads skills from .agents/skills and adds MCP servers with codex mcp add. Details: OpenAI Codex on CookiesForAI.

Claude Code: for paid plans and scripted control

Claude Code is Anthropic's terminal coding agent, for developers who will pay a subscription and want fine control over what the agent does. It differs from Gemini CLI in being proprietary and running only Anthropic's Claude models, and it has no free tier: it needs a paid Claude plan or an API account, read on 2026-10-01. Its strength is extensibility: hooks fire at more than six named points such as SessionStart, PreToolUse and PostToolUse, and subagents, skills and hooks can be bundled into one plugin. The same account runs it in the terminal, VS Code, JetBrains, a desktop app, the web and mobile. Its limit for a Gemini CLI user is the skills folder: Claude Code reads .claude/skills, not .agents/skills, so existing skills need a second copy or a symlink. Companies can also run it through Amazon Bedrock, Google Cloud or Microsoft Foundry. Details: Claude Code on CookiesForAI.

How we chose

We listed tools that do the job Gemini CLI does, an agent that reads code, edits files and runs commands from a terminal, and that were maintained on 2026-10-01. We read each maker's docs, pricing page and GitHub repository on 2026-10-01, plus Google's announcement of 2026-05-19 and the Gemini CLI quota page. The criteria were price of entry, license, local model support, agent skills and MCP. We did not benchmark code quality, speed or token use. Two good options sit outside the list because they live mainly in the editor: Kilo Code and Cline, both open source with CLIs and Ollama support. Aider is free and runs Ollama models, but its last release is from 2026-02-12 and its docs mention neither MCP nor agent skills.

How to choose

• If you used Gemini CLI with a personal Google account or Google AI Pro or Ultra, move to Antigravity CLI: same maker, a free entry plan, and your .agents/skills folder still works.
• If your organization has a Gemini Code Assist Standard or Enterprise license, you can stay on Gemini CLI: Google says that access is unchanged.
• If you want free, open source and any model, choose OpenCode.
• If you want code and models to stay on your machine with Ollama, choose Goose or OpenCode, or Codex with --oss.
• If you already pay for ChatGPT or Claude, start with Codex or Claude Code on the plan you have.