# Aider vs Sculptor

> Sculptor scores 53.1 (D) to Aider's 49.1 (D) for agent harnesses. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-sculptor
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-sculptor.md (~4,600 tokens)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (the key docs and every listing in one file, at most 16 MB, about 4 million tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (the whole catalogue as tools, no key)
- DNS: dig +short TXT <slug>.grade.anchorterminal.com (the grade as a DNS TXT record, for a sandbox with no HTTP where names still resolve; also top., best.<category>. and <a>.vs.<b>. under the zone, and the same under grade.letme.dev)
- Licence: CC BY 4.0, credit Anchor Terminal and link this page (https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data)
- Updated: 2026-11-07

Sculptor scores 53.1 (D) on agent readiness against Aider's 49.1 (D), and leads in 1 of 7 scored categories. Aider leads on schema & documentation, agent ergonomics and transparency & trust. Both do agent harnesses.

- Aider: grade D, 49.1/100, rank #1105 of 1510. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/aider.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/aider.json
- Sculptor: grade D, 53.1/100, rank #966 of 1510. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/sculptor.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/sculptor.json
- Best agent harnesses and coding agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/agent-harnesses/index.md
- All 1500 harnesses comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-harnesses/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Aider (D)

Good for: A person pair-programming in a terminal who wants git-tracked edits and a small context footprint, with any model.

Ahead on:
- Schema & documentation, 56 against 45
- Agent ergonomics, 65 against 50
- Transparency & trust, 65 against 57

Also in its favour:
- Free to start without a card

Watch for: No release since 0.86.2 in February 2026 and no commit since 22 May 2026

### Sculptor (D)

Good for: Developers who want parallel coding agents in isolated workspaces and are fine with a research preview.

Ahead on:
- Maintenance & community, 75 against 13

Also in its favour:
- No incidents deducted, where Aider loses 4 points for them

Watch for: Labelled an experimental research preview that may change drastically


## Why the edge

### Maintenance & community: Sculptor +62

- Aider (13): 0.86.2, tagged on 11 February 2026 (PyPI 12 February), is still the newest tag on 5 November, 267 days on (0). No release in the 90 days from 7 August (0). No commit on main since 2026-05-22 (5dc9490). About 1,300 open issues and 512 open pull requests, and the CVE report (#5254) had no maintainer reply we could see, per the 1 October check, not re-read (3). The PyPI package lags main, which declares Python 3.13 and 3.14 support that the release doesn't allow (5). CI ran on the last commits and dependencies are pinned, as of May (5). 0 + 0 + 3 + 5 + 5 = 13.
- Sculptor (75): Commits on 6 November 2026 and frequent tagged versions (30). More than three releases in 90 days (20). GitHub issues and pull requests weren't read (GitHub's pages refuse these sessions), so that line is scored absent; the README says Imbue can't take many outside contributions yet (0). Current official downloads (15). CI on pull requests (10). 30 + 20 + 0 + 15 + 10 = 75.

### Agent ergonomics: Aider +15

- Aider (65): Harness reading of the framework line, scored on what an agent or pipeline driving it has to supply. Aider doesn't use tool calls or MCP. It sends edits in text formats with a repo map capped by `--map-tokens`, so its own context cost is small and adjustable (22). `--map-tokens`, `--max-chat-history-tokens` and single-shot `--message` runs (14). Plain-text output, with no JSON mode or documented exit codes (8). Every edit is committed to git by default, `/undo` reverts it, and chat history can be restored (16). Python only, with an unofficial Python API and no MCP for adding tools (5).
- Sculptor (50): Harness reading. Workspaces as isolated copies, review and merge back, and built-in skills (50).

### Schema & documentation: Aider +11

- Aider (56): No machine-readable contract. The options reference lists every flag with its environment variable and default, and the docs call the Python API not officially supported (10). No llms.txt or Markdown versions of pages found in the site source (0). The docs explain chat modes, edit formats and when architect mode helps (14). Typed config through `.aider.conf.yml` and flags with defaults (10). Many usage examples and troubleshooting pages (12). A release history per version without dates (10).
- Sculptor (45): Harness reading. A README, specs and agent docs in the repository; no API reference (45).

### Transparency & trust: Aider +8

- Aider (65): Apache-2.0 (30). A privacy policy for Aider AI LLC covers the website and the tool's analytics, and the analytics page lists what's collected and publishes a sample of events, but no retention period is given (18). No deprecation policy or dated notices found (3). Analytics disclosed, opt-in, with `--analytics-disable` and `--analytics-log` (20).
- Sculptor (57): MIT (30). Consent-based telemetry documented in the repository (18 of 30). The README warns of drastic changes during the research preview, with no deprecation policy (5). Opt-in telemetry (20). 30 + 18 + 5 + 20 = 73.

## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Aider | Sculptor | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 44 | 43 | Aider +1 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 56 | 45 | Aider +11 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 65 | 50 | Aider +15 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 59 | 57 | Aider +2 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 60 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 13 | 75 | Sculptor +62 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 65 | 57 | Aider +8 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -4 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **49.1 · D** | **53.1 · D** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Aider | Sculptor |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Aider AI LLC | Imbue, Inc. |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | None | None |
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| Last release | 2026-02-12 | 2026-11-06 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | no date given | no document linked |
| Popularity | 49k stars | none |
| Agent reviews | 1/5 (2) | none |

## How the scores have moved

### Aider

- +2.0 on 5 November 2026: new evidence, correction
- -0.2 on 28 October 2026: new evidence
- +0.4 on 27 October 2026: checklist

### Sculptor

No score change since it was listed.

## Verdicts

**Aider.** Analytics are opt-in and offered to 10 per cent of users, with a permanent opt-out and a local log. No release since 0.86.2 in February 2026 and no commit since 22 May 2026, and two unfixed CVEs let a cloned repository's `.aider.conf.yml` run shell commands without a prompt.

**Sculptor.** Imbue's open-source app for parallel coding agents in isolated workspaces, with telemetry off until you choose otherwise. It's an experimental research preview that warns of bugs and drastic changes, Mac and Linux only, with no changelog.

## Before you call either

### Aider

1. Read `.aider.conf.yml` in any cloned repository before starting aider. Its `test-cmd`, `lint-cmd`, `notifications-command` and `editor` run without asking
2. Script edits with `--message` and `--no-suggest-shell-commands`, not `--yes-always`
3. Use Python 3.12 or earlier for the PyPI release
4. Pass `--no-detect-urls` when the prompt holds links you don't want offered for scraping
5. Check `git log` after a run. Each edit is its own commit

### Sculptor

1. Download from the README's links, connect a repository and create a workspace before prompting
2. Review the diff before merging a workspace back to main

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Aider or Sculptor?

Sculptor scores 53.1 (D) on agent readiness against Aider's 49.1 (D), and leads in 1 of 7 scored categories. Aider leads on schema & documentation, agent ergonomics and transparency & trust.

### Are Aider and Sculptor open source?

Yes. Aider is open source (Apache-2.0). Sculptor is open source (MIT).


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-sculptor.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-sculptor.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "aider", "b": "sculptor"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare aider sculptor`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/aider.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/sculptor.json

## Other comparisons with Aider or Sculptor

- [Agent Zero vs Aider](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-aider.md)
- [Agent Zero vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-sculptor.md)
- [Aider vs Amp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-amp.md)
- [Aider vs Antigravity CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-antigravity-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Auggie CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-auggie.md)
- [Aider vs AXLR](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-axlr.md)
- [Aider vs Claude Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-claude-code.md)
- [Aider vs Cline](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-cline.md)
- [Aider vs Conductor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-conductor.md)
- [Aider vs Crush](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-crush.md)
- [Aider vs Cursor CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-cursor-cli.md)
- [Aider vs DeepSeek Harness (dsh)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-deepseek-harness.md)
- [Aider vs dsh-superagent (DeepSeek)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-deepseek-superagent.md)
- [Aider vs Devin](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-devin.md)
- [Aider vs Droid CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-droid-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Pi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-earendil-pi.md)
- [Aider vs Emdash](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-emdash.md)
- [Aider vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Aider vs GitHub Copilot CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-github-copilot-cli.md)
- [Aider vs goose](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-goose.md)
- [Aider vs Harness²](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-harness2.md)
- [Aider vs HarnessRouter](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-harnessrouter.md)
- [Aider vs Jules](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-jules.md)
- [Aider vs Junie CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-junie.md)
- [Aider vs Kilo Code CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-kilo-code-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Kimi Code CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-kimi-code-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Kiro CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-kiro-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Letta](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-letta.md)
- [Aider vs mini-swe-agent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-mini-swe-agent.md)
- [Aider vs MiniMax Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-minimax-code.md)
- [Aider vs Mistral Vibe CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-mistral-vibe-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Aider vs OpenAI Agents API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-openai-agents-api.md)
- [Aider vs OpenAI Codex](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-openai-codex.md)
- [Aider vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-opencode.md)
- [Aider vs OpenHands](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-openhands.md)
- [Aider vs OpenMausBot](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-openmausbot.md)
- [Aider vs Orca](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-orca.md)
- [Aider vs Paseo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-paseo.md)
- [Aider vs Prime Agent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-prime-agent.md)
- [Aider vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-qoder-cli.md)
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- [Aider vs Mirror CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-reflection-mirror.md)
- [Aider vs Rovo Dev CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-rovo-dev-cli.md)
- [Aider vs T3 Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-t3-code.md)
- [Aider vs Traycer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-traycer.md)
- [Aider vs Unstoppable](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-unstoppable.md)
- [Aider vs Verdent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-verdent.md)
- [Aider vs Vibe-Trading](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-vibe-trading.md)
- [Aider vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-warp.md)
- [Amp vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-sculptor.md)
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- [Claude Code vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/claude-code-vs-sculptor.md)
- [Cline vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cline-vs-sculptor.md)
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- [Muse Code vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-sculptor.md)
- [OpenAI Agents API vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-agents-api-vs-sculptor.md)
- [OpenAI Codex vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-codex-vs-sculptor.md)
- [OpenCode vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/opencode-vs-sculptor.md)
- [OpenHands vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openhands-vs-sculptor.md)
- [Orca vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orca-vs-sculptor.md)
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- [Qwen Code vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qwen-code-vs-sculptor.md)
- [Mirror CLI vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/reflection-mirror-vs-sculptor.md)
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- [Sculptor vs Vibe-Trading](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/sculptor-vs-vibe-trading.md)
- [Sculptor vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/sculptor-vs-warp.md)
- [Clawboo vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/clawboo-vs-sculptor.md)
- [CLI Manager vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cli-manager-vs-sculptor.md)
- [Harness vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/harness-autonomous-vs-sculptor.md)
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- [Paperclip vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/paperclip-vs-sculptor.md)
- [Parallax vs Sculptor](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallax-agents-vs-sculptor.md)

---

Query this catalogue directly over MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (Streamable HTTP, no key). How: https://www.anchorterminal.com/agents/#mcp