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Claude Code

Terminal-based coding agent that runs commands and edits files directly.

Open official site claude.com/product/claude-codeFree tier available · from $20/moAI Coding ToolsAI Agents

Rather than living in an editor, Claude Code runs in the terminal as an agent. It reads the repository, runs builds and tests, and applies edits across files, which suits refactors and debugging sessions where the work is not confined to one file. It also plugs into CI and can be scripted.

People arrive at Claude Code already paying for Claude, which is most of the decision. The real comparison is not against other terminal agents but against staying in an editor: this is for work where the loop is make a change, run the tests, read the output, try again — not where the loop is typing code with completions. If you have never given an agent shell access before, this is also the one whose permission prompts you will spend the first week arguing with, and that friction is the product working as intended.

Our take

An agent that works in the terminal rather than an editor, which suits people whose workflow is already command-line shaped. It reads the repository, makes changes across files and runs the tests, and the honest advantage over completion tools is that it closes the loop — it can check whether what it wrote actually works. The honest disadvantage is the same as every agent: it will occasionally report success on work that needs another look.

Last checked 2026-07-26

Best for

  • Multi-step changes where the steps depend on what is found along the way
  • Work already centred on the terminal and git
  • Tasks where running the tests is the natural way to check the result

Limitations

  • Cost scales with steps taken, not with questions asked
  • Requires meaningful permissions over your files and shell
  • Verifying the result is your job, and it is where the time goes

When to pick something else

  • Tasks with fixed steps you could write as a script
  • Anyone uncomfortable granting a tool write access to a repository
  • Work where a wrong action is expensive to undo

Key features

  • Runs builds and tests, then acts on the output
  • Multi-file edits driven by repository context
  • Scriptable and usable in CI pipelines
  • Editor-agnostic, works alongside any setup

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