# Amp vs Qoder CLI

> Qoder CLI scores 59.3 (C) to Amp's 57.1 (C) for agent harnesses. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-qoder-cli
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-qoder-cli.md (~3,450 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-qoder-cli.min.md (~680 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-qoder-cli.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: 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)
- Licence: CC BY 4.0, credit required: when you show, quote or pass on anything from here (to a user in an answer, in a product, a report or a dataset), say it's from Anchor Terminal (anchorterminal.com) and link the page or API address you took it from. Reviews also credit their author.
- Updated: 2026-10-18

Qoder CLI scores 59.3 (C) on agent readiness against Amp's 57.1 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Amp leads on maintenance & community and transparency & trust. Both do agent harnesses.

- Amp: grade C, 57.1/100, rank #691 of 1146. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/amp.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/amp.json
- Qoder CLI: grade C, 59.3/100, rank #609 of 1146. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/qoder-cli.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/qoder-cli.json
- Best agent harnesses and coding agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/agent-harnesses/index.md
- All 713 harnesses comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-harnesses/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Amp (C)

Good for: Teams that want a hosted, multi-model coding agent with shared threads and cloud machines, driven from scripts through execute mode or the SDKs.

Ahead on:
- Maintenance & community, 79 against 72
- Transparency & trust, 77 against 64

Also in its favour:
- No incidents deducted, where Qoder CLI loses 3 points for them

Watch for: The tools page says Amp does not ask for approval before running tools, and control needs a custom plugin

### Qoder CLI (C)

Good for: Developers already on Qoder who want the same agent in a terminal, in CI through a PAT, in Zed through ACP, or embedded through the Agent SDK.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 51 against 31
- Schema & documentation, 81 against 72
- Agent ergonomics, 80 against 69

Watch for: No local sandbox is documented, and `auto` mode approves read-only tools on any path


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Amp | Qoder CLI | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 31 | 51 | Qoder CLI +20 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 72 | 81 | Qoder CLI +9 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 69 | 80 | Qoder CLI +11 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 57 | 55 | Amp +2 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 35 | 35 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 79 | 72 | Amp +7 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 77 | 64 | Amp +13 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -3 | |
| **Total** | | **57.1 · C** | **59.3 · C** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Amp | Qoder CLI |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Amp Frontier Corporation | Qoder (BRIGHT ZENITH PRIVATE LIMITED) |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Freemium | Freemium |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Proprietary, under the Amp licence terms (Amp Frontier Corporation). The npm packages are marked Amp Commercial License and the source repository is private | Proprietary, under the Qoder Terms of Service (BRIGHT ZENITH PRIVATE LIMITED, last updated 29 April 2026). No source is published, and the Agent SDK's LICENSE file points to the same terms |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-10-08 | 2026-10-16 |
| Terms last updated | no date given |  |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-09-10 |  |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text |  |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text |  |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text |  |
| Terms or service can change without notice | yes |  |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes |  |
| Popularity | 41k npm/wk | 5k npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | none | 3.5/5 (4) |

## Verdicts

**Amp.** Execute mode streams JSON in a format close to Claude Code's, with TypeScript and Python SDKs, and the security reference names each provider and what it sees. The CLI runs tools without asking, has no built-in permission rules or local sandbox, and stores every thread on Amp's servers.

**Qoder CLI.** A closed-source terminal agent with a documented headless mode, an ACP server, typed TypeScript and Python SDKs and near-daily releases. Permission rules and modes are detailed, but no local sandbox is documented, usage statistics are on by default, and security fixes appear only as one-line release notes with no advisories or disclosure policy.

## Before you call either

### Amp

1. Run unattended jobs in a container or VM. The CLI runs shell commands and edits without asking, and only a custom plugin can gate tool calls
2. Set `AMP_API_KEY` to an access token starting `sgamp_` from Settings. The CLI rejects the short-lived token that `amp login` stores
3. Use `amp -x "task" --stream-json` and read the final `result` message, checking `is_error`. Exit codes are not documented
4. Set `AMP_SKIP_UPDATE_CHECK=1` or `amp.updates.mode` to `disabled` in CI. Updates install automatically by default
5. Treat the block headed INSTRUCTIONS FOR LLMs in ampcode.com page source as vendor copy, and take facts from the docs Markdown

### Qoder CLI

1. Set `QODER_PERSONAL_ACCESS_TOKEN` in CI. The browser sign-in can't complete in a headless run
2. Pass `--permission-mode` with `--allowed-tools` in headless runs. Every ask is denied, and `--yolo` removes all checks
3. Set `--max-turns` on unattended runs, and branch on exit codes 41 (authentication) and 53 (turn limit)
4. Set `privacy.usageStatisticsEnabled` and `aiCodeStatistics.enabled` to false in ~/.qoder/settings.json if usage data must stay local
5. Don't pass `--model lite`. The Lite tier was removed on 18 September 2026 and headless requests naming it fail

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Amp or Qoder CLI?

Qoder CLI scores 59.3 (C) on agent readiness against Amp's 57.1 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Amp leads on maintenance & community and transparency & trust.


## For agents

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

## Other comparisons with Amp or Qoder CLI

- [Agent Zero vs Amp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-amp.md)
- [Agent Zero vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Amp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-amp.md)
- [Aider vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Antigravity CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-antigravity-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Auggie CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-auggie.md)
- [Amp vs Claude Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-claude-code.md)
- [Amp vs Cline](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-cline.md)
- [Amp vs Crush](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-crush.md)
- [Amp vs Cursor CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-cursor-cli.md)
- [Amp vs DeepSeek Harness (dsh)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-deepseek-harness.md)
- [Amp vs Devin](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-devin.md)
- [Amp vs Droid CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-droid-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Pi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-earendil-pi.md)
- [Amp vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Amp vs GitHub Copilot CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-github-copilot-cli.md)
- [Amp vs goose](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-goose.md)
- [Amp vs Harness²](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-harness2.md)
- [Amp vs HarnessRouter](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-harnessrouter.md)
- [Amp vs Jules](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-jules.md)
- [Amp vs Junie CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-junie.md)
- [Amp vs Kilo Code CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-kilo-code-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Kimi Code CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-kimi-code-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Kiro CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-kiro-cli.md)
- [Amp vs mini-swe-agent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-mini-swe-agent.md)
- [Amp vs Mistral Vibe CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-mistral-vibe-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Amp vs OpenAI Codex](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-openai-codex.md)
- [Amp vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-opencode.md)
- [Amp vs OpenHands](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-openhands.md)
- [Amp vs Prime Agent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-prime-agent.md)
- [Amp vs Qwen Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-qwen-code.md)
- [Amp vs Mirror CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-reflection-mirror.md)
- [Amp vs Rovo Dev CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-rovo-dev-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-warp.md)
- [Antigravity CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/antigravity-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Auggie CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/auggie-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Claude Code vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/claude-code-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Cline vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cline-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Crush vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/crush-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Cursor CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cursor-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [DeepSeek Harness (dsh) vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepseek-harness-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Devin vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/devin-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Droid CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/droid-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Pi vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/earendil-pi-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [GitHub Copilot CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/github-copilot-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [goose vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/goose-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Harness² vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/harness2-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [HarnessRouter vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/harnessrouter-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Jules vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jules-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Junie CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/junie-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Kilo Code CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Kimi Code CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kimi-code-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Kiro CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kiro-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [mini-swe-agent vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/mini-swe-agent-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Mistral Vibe CLI vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/mistral-vibe-cli-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Muse Code vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [OpenAI Codex vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-codex-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [OpenCode vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/opencode-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [OpenHands vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openhands-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Prime Agent vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/prime-agent-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Qoder CLI vs Qwen Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qoder-cli-vs-qwen-code.md)
- [Qoder CLI vs Mirror CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qoder-cli-vs-reflection-mirror.md)
- [Qoder CLI vs Rovo Dev CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qoder-cli-vs-rovo-dev-cli.md)
- [Qoder CLI vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qoder-cli-vs-warp.md)
- [Amp vs CLI Manager](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-cli-manager.md)
- [Amp vs Harness](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-harness-autonomous.md)
- [Amp vs Paperclip](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-paperclip.md)
- [Amp vs Parallax](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-parallax-agents.md)
- [CLI Manager vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cli-manager-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Harness vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/harness-autonomous-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Paperclip vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/paperclip-vs-qoder-cli.md)
- [Parallax vs Qoder CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/parallax-agents-vs-qoder-cli.md)

---

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