Zed vs OpenAI Codex CLI vs OpenCode

Side by side, as alternatives to Claude Code. Rows that differ are highlighted; the strongest value in a row is marked. Unknown means no source yet.

Zedzed-industries/zed

OpenAI Codex CLIopenai/codex

OpenCodeanomalyco/opencode

Claude Codepaid product

Cost and coverage

Price

$0 software; you run it

Included with Claude Pro ($20/month, or $17/month billed annually), Max (from $100/month), Team and Enterprise; not on the free plan source ↗

Edit code across a repo from the terminal with an AI agent

Partly

Yes

Run commands and tests

Partly

Yes

Use the agent inside VS Code or JetBrains

Partly

Yes

Connect tools and data through MCP

Partly

Yes

Write commits and pull requests

Partly

Yes

Run the agent headless in scripts or CI (GitHub Actions)

Partly

Yes

Jobs covered

3 of 6 jobs

5 of 6 jobs

All 6

Popularity and activity (from GitHub)

Stars

92,013

130,321

219,699Top

—

Gain this week

Unknown

—

Signal

Building history

—

Commits / 4 wk

453

892

986Top

—

Latest release

v1.25.2 · 2026-10-21Top

rust-v0.163.0 · 2026-10-15

v1.19.3 · 2026-10-16

—

Commits / 12 wk

1,417

3,490

2,164

—

People committing / 12 mo

312+

377+

420+

—

Issues opened / closed, 30 days

413 / 484

7371 / 1498

3742 / 4694

—

Facts, with sources on each project page

Runs on my machine?Differs

Yes, a desktop editor installed on your computer

Yes, a command-line agent that runs on your computer; cloud models run on OpenAI's servers unless you use --oss

Yes, CLI and desktop app

Hosted by the vendor

Code licenceDiffers

GPL-3.0-or-later for most code, with some Apache-2.0 components (LICENSE-GPL and LICENSE-APACHE)

Apache-2.0

MIT

—

Model weights licenceDiffers

No separate model weights

No single bundled model licence. OpenCode connects to models/providers; their individual terms apply.

—

Commercial useDiffers

Allowed; GPL-3.0 is copyleft, so changes you distribute must stay GPL

Allowed under Apache-2.0

Yes, MIT code

—

Paid services needed?Differs

Editor is free; AI works with your own API keys or local models (Ollama, LM Studio, llama.cpp); Zed Pro is optional for hosted models and Zed edit prediction

Not required with local models (--oss with Ollama or LM Studio) or the limited ChatGPT Free plan; paid ChatGPT plans and OpenAI API keys are optional

Needs a model provider: local models via Ollama, LM Studio or llama.cpp, or a paid API

Subscription

HardwareDiffers

64-bit OS; Windows needs a DirectX 11 GPU, Linux a Vulkan 1.3 driver, Macs from about 2015 on; local models need more

Not documented in the README or CLI docs

No hardware requirements documented in the README or docs (checked 2026-10-21)

—

Operating systemsDiffers

macOS (10.15+, Intel and Apple Silicon), Windows 10 1903+ and 11, Linux x86_64 and Arm64; no web version

macOS, Linux and Windows (native PowerShell with a Windows sandbox, or WSL2)

Windows, macOS and Linux; on Windows the docs recommend WSL for the CLI, and there is a Windows desktop app

—

Setup effortDiffers

Easy; download installer, Homebrew, winget or a one-line Linux script, then add an API key or local model

Easy; one-line install script, npm or Homebrew, then sign in with ChatGPT

Easy; one-line install script, npm, Homebrew, Chocolatey or Scoop, then add a model provider

—

Stars over time

Switch to Growth % to compare projects of different sizes fairly.

Zed
OpenAI Codex CLI
OpenCode

Focus a point, use arrow keys, or tap for its value.

Tracked daily since 19 Oct 2026. Dashed history: estimated from public records of when people starred the repo. Lines connect observations only; gaps contain no measured points.

Growth % starts at each project's first observed point in the shown range. Zero-star starts are unavailable.

Notes for a video or post

A plain summary with today's date and a link to the sources. Check each project page before you publish.

Zed vs OpenAI Codex CLI vs OpenCode (as alternatives to Claude Code)
Figures from RepoQuarry, 22 Oct 2026. Sources: https://repoquarry.dev/compare?ids=zed,codex-cli,opencode&product=claude-code

Claude Code: Included with Claude Pro ($20/month, or $17/month billed annually), Max (from $100/month), Team and Enterprise; not on the free plan
Zed: free software; does 3 of 6 Claude Code jobs
OpenAI Codex CLI: free software; does 5 of 6 Claude Code jobs
OpenCode: free software; does 5 of 6 Claude Code jobs

- Zed: 92,013 GitHub stars, 1,417 commits in 12 weeks, licence GPL-3.0-or-later for most code, with some Apache-2.0 components (LICENSE-GPL and LICENSE-APACHE)
- OpenAI Codex CLI: 130,321 GitHub stars, 3,490 commits in 12 weeks, licence Apache-2.0
- OpenCode: 219,699 GitHub stars, 2,164 commits in 12 weeks, licence MIT

Where they differ:
- Runs on my machine?: Zed Yes, a desktop editor installed on your computer; OpenAI Codex CLI Yes, a command-line agent that runs on your computer; cloud models run on OpenAI's servers unless you use --oss; OpenCode Yes, CLI and desktop app
- Code licence: Zed GPL-3.0-or-later for most code, with some Apache-2.0 components (LICENSE-GPL and LICENSE-APACHE); OpenAI Codex CLI Apache-2.0; OpenCode MIT
- Model weights licence: Zed No separate model weights; OpenAI Codex CLI No separate model weights; OpenCode No single bundled model licence. OpenCode connects to models/providers; their individual terms apply.
- Commercial use: Zed Allowed; GPL-3.0 is copyleft, so changes you distribute must stay GPL; OpenAI Codex CLI Allowed under Apache-2.0; OpenCode Yes, MIT code
- Paid services needed?: Zed Editor is free; AI works with your own API keys or local models (Ollama, LM Studio, llama.cpp); Zed Pro is optional for hosted models and Zed edit prediction; OpenAI Codex CLI Not required with local models (--oss with Ollama or LM Studio) or the limited ChatGPT Free plan; paid ChatGPT plans and OpenAI API keys are optional; OpenCode Needs a model provider: local models via Ollama, LM Studio or llama.cpp, or a paid API
- Hardware: Zed 64-bit OS; Windows needs a DirectX 11 GPU, Linux a Vulkan 1.3 driver, Macs from about 2015 on; local models need more; OpenAI Codex CLI Not documented in the README or CLI docs; OpenCode No hardware requirements documented in the README or docs (checked 2026-10-21)
- Operating systems: Zed macOS (10.15+, Intel and Apple Silicon), Windows 10 1903+ and 11, Linux x86_64 and Arm64; no web version; OpenAI Codex CLI macOS, Linux and Windows (native PowerShell with a Windows sandbox, or WSL2); OpenCode Windows, macOS and Linux; on Windows the docs recommend WSL for the CLI, and there is a Windows desktop app
- Setup effort: Zed Easy; download installer, Homebrew, winget or a one-line Linux script, then add an API key or local model; OpenAI Codex CLI Easy; one-line install script, npm or Homebrew, then sign in with ChatGPT; OpenCode Easy; one-line install script, npm, Homebrew, Chocolatey or Scoop, then add a model provider

Stars show popularity, not quality. Check each project page before publishing.

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Numbers: GitHub, fetched nightly. Facts: read from each project's own documentation, with the source on its page. How we check. zed-industries/zed ↗openai/codex ↗anomalyco/opencode ↗

Zed vs OpenAI Codex CLI vs OpenCode

Stars over time

Notes for a video or post

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