Aider
Aider is an open source terminal coding agent from the Aider-AI project that edits files in your git repo with the model of your choice and commits each change automatically.
What Aider does
Aider is a command-line tool for editing code with a language model inside a git repository. You add the files you want changed to the chat, describe the change, and Aider edits them and commits each edit with a descriptive message. /undo reverts the last change, and /diff and /commit work as you would expect. A repository map gives the model an outline of the rest of the codebase.
Aider works with many models. It connects to cloud providers by API key, to any OpenAI-compatible API, and to local models through Ollama. Its chat modes include code, ask, architect (one model plans, a second model edits) and help, and it can also lint and run tests, take voice input, and read images and web pages.
Aider has slowed down in 2026. The last release on PyPI is 0.86.2 from 2026-02-12, and the last commit to the main branch is from 2026-05-22. Some model advice in its docs refers to older models, so check the provider's current model list before following it.
Who Aider is for
- Developers who want every AI edit committed to git with a clear message, easy to undo
- People who want a free tool and pay only for the model tokens they use
- Running local models through Ollama on your own machine
- Scripting edits from the command line or Python
Who should pick something else
- Anyone who wants to connect MCP servers or install agent skills; Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode document both
- People who want an actively updated tool: the last release is from 2026-02-12
- Developers who prefer working inside an editor UI; Cline or Kilo Code run as extensions
Aider: one strength, one limit
Strength. Aider commits every AI edit to git automatically with a descriptive message, so each change can be reviewed or undone with /undo, and the tool itself is free under Apache-2.0.
Limit. Aider's docs do not mention MCP or agent skills, and its latest release (0.86.2) dates from 2026-02-12, with the last commit on 2026-05-22.
What Aider costs
Free and open source under Apache-2.0 with no paid plan; you pay your model provider for tokens, or nothing with local models.
Current prices: aider.chat . We do not list prices: vendors change them often, so check the maker's own page before you buy.
Aider with agent skills and MCP servers
Skills. The open skills CLI 1.7.0 has no install target for Aider (it lists AiderDesk, a separate app), and Aider's own docs do not mention agent skills (checked 2026-10-01). A SKILL.md file can still be added to a chat by hand with Aider's /read-only command.
MCP. Aider's own docs do not mention MCP or the Model Context Protocol (checked 2026-10-01), so there is no documented way to connect an MCP server.
Browse agent skills and MCP servers that work with Aider.
Alternatives to Aider
- OpenCode: OpenCode is an open source terminal coding agent by Anomaly that works with 75+ model providers, local models included, and also ships as a desktop app and IDE extension.
- Claude Code: Claude Code is a terminal coding agent by Anthropic that reads a codebase, edits files and runs commands, and also works in VS Code, JetBrains, a desktop app and the web.
- OpenAI Codex: OpenAI Codex is a coding agent by OpenAI that runs as an open source CLI on your machine and as a cloud agent in ChatGPT, editing code, running commands and opening pull requests.
- Goose: Goose is an open source AI agent, created by Block and now part of the Agentic AI Foundation at the Linux Foundation, that runs as a desktop app and CLI with any model provider.
- Gemini CLI: Gemini CLI is an open source terminal coding agent by Google that runs Gemini models from the command line, with MCP, agent skills, subagents and hooks, under the Apache-2.0 license.