# Cline vs Sculptor

> Sculptor and Cline score within a point of each other for agent harnesses, 53.1 and 52.8 out of 100. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cline-vs-sculptor
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cline-vs-sculptor.md (~5,550 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 and Cline score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 53.1 (D) and 52.8 (D). Cline leads on reliability, schema & documentation, agent ergonomics, maintenance & community and transparency & trust. Both do agent harnesses.

- Cline: grade D, 52.8/100, rank #975 of 1510. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/cline.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/cline.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

### Cline (D)

Good for: Developers who want an agent inside VS Code or JetBrains that asks before acting and can roll back, with the same engine in a CLI.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 70 against 43
- Schema & documentation, 77 against 45
- Agent ergonomics, 67 against 50
- Maintenance & community, 85 against 75
- Transparency & trust, 65 against 57

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

Watch for: The CLI approves every tool by default outside ACP mode and starts on Cline's own provider

### Sculptor (D)

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

Ahead on:
- Payments & pricing, 60 against 50

Also in its favour:
- No key needed to call it
- No incidents deducted, where Cline loses 14 points for them

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


## Why the edge

### Schema & documentation: Cline +32

- Cline (77): A typed TypeScript SDK with a reference section, a documented one-object-per-line format for `--json`, and an errors page for the Cline API, but no machine-readable spec for the CLI or its config (18). llms.txt at docs.cline.bot, listing a Markdown version of every page (10). Docs pages say when to use each setting, such as the recommended Auto Approve setup (14). `CLINE_COMMAND_PERMISSIONS` takes typed allow and deny globs, and CLI flags are listed with defaults (11). CLI samples, SDK examples and the API errors page (13). A versioned changelog without dates, with dated tags on GitHub (11).
- Sculptor (45): Harness reading. A README, specs and agent docs in the repository; no API reference (45).

### Reliability: Cline +27

- Cline (70): Read as a local package. The `cline` CLI on npm (Node 22 or later), the VS Code extension (VS Code 1.101 or later), a JetBrains plugin and desktop builds (20). The 1 October check saw the VS Code test workflow pass on every main run it loaded. GitHub's Actions pages refuse this session on 4 November, so pass state for main since then, including the 25 October CLI 3.0.74 and extension 4.1.26 releases, is unread (15, as node-red). 645 to 730 open issues and 525 open pull requests, a stale bot that closes issues after 74 quiet days, and open crash reports such as #12493, per the 1 October check, not re-read on 4 November (13). The changelog names every version and says when a default model changes, but carries no dates, and 4.0.0 listed its removals under Changed rather than a breaking section. CLI 3.0.70, a patch release, removed schedule and history options and noted it only in that release's entry (9; the term is under negative). Extension 4.1.26 and CLI 3.0.74 are past 1.0, while the SDK (0.2.0) and desktop app (0.0.49) aren't (13).
- Sculptor (43): Local software. Desktop downloads for Mac (Apple Silicon), Linux and Linux ARM64 (20). checks.yml and a PR gate run on the repository; pass state not read (15). GitHub issues and pull requests weren't read (GitHub's pages refuse these sessions), so that line is scored absent (0). sculptor-v tags up to v0.49.0, no changelog file (8). 0.x and labelled a research preview (0). 20 + 15 + 0 + 8 + 0 = 43.

### Agent ergonomics: Cline +17

- Cline (67): Harness reading of the framework line, scored on what an agent or pipeline driving it has to supply. Many built-in tools (files, terminal, browser, MCP, subagents, plan and act), with MCP servers switched on or off per server, and no tool search or lazy loading found (15). `--timeout` (off by default), a mistake limit through `--retries`, automatic compaction and an output budget scaled to the model (14). `--json` writes one JSON object per message, but we found no documented exit codes (12). Checkpoints restore files and task state, sessions resume by ID, and API errors and empty responses are retried (18). The CLI defaults to Cline's own provider and to approving every tool, and the SDK is TypeScript only (8).
- Sculptor (50): Harness reading. Workspaces as isolated copies, review and merge back, and built-in skills (50).

### Payments & pricing: Sculptor +10

- Cline (50): No payment protocol (0). Scored on Cline's paid options. ClinePass is $9.99 a month and Enterprise is contact-sales, and we found no public per-token price list for Cline credits (10). The open-source extension and CLI need no card (20). Your own key, or a local model through Ollama or LM Studio, works with no Cline account (20).
- Sculptor (60): Free self-hosted software with nothing to buy, so 0 for a protocol and 20 each for public pricing, a free tier and onboarding with no sign-up, 60.

### Maintenance & community: Cline +10

- Cline (85): CLI 3.0.74 and extension 4.1.26 on 2026-10-25, 10 days before this check (30). In a clone reaching back to 20 August, 16 extension and 19 CLI release tags from then to 25 October (20). Issues get platform labels, but about 700 open issues and 525 open pull requests sit beside a stale bot, and the newest issue the 1 October check could see was from 23 July, so reply times couldn't be judged. GitHub's issue pages refuse this session on 4 November (13). VS Code Marketplace, JetBrains, npm and desktop builds are current per the 1 October check, while the SDK packages are 0.2.0 (26 October) (13). Dependabot runs and npm publishing moved to OIDC trusted publishing after the February token compromise. CI pass state per the 1 October check (9).
- 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.

### Transparency & trust: Cline +8

- Cline (65): Apache-2.0 (30). The privacy policy at cline.bot/privacy renders only with JavaScript and we couldn't read it. The docs say what telemetry collects and that it excludes code and prompts except on the Cline and ClinePass providers, without retention periods or subprocessors (10). Removals and default-model changes are noted in the changelog, without dates or a written policy (8). Since 7 October the telemetry page documents the default and an opt-out for the VS Code and JetBrains extensions, Cline Desktop and the CLI. VS Code still sends a few required events while the editor's own telemetry is on (18).
- 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 | Cline | Sculptor | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 70 | 43 | Cline +27 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 77 | 45 | Cline +32 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 67 | 50 | Cline +17 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 57 | 57 | even |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 50 | 60 | Sculptor +10 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 85 | 75 | Cline +10 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 65 | 57 | Cline +8 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -14 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **52.8 · D** | **53.1 · D** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Cline | Sculptor |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Cline Bot Inc. | Imbue, Inc. |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | OAuth or key | None |
| Pricing | Freemium | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-25 | 2026-11-06 |
| Terms last updated | 2025-09-25 | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2025-09-24 | no document linked |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not read yet |
| Terms restrict automated access | yes | not read yet |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | not read yet |
| Terms or service can change without notice | yes | not read yet |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes | not read yet |
| Popularity | 68k stars | none |
| Agent reviews | 2/5 (2) | none |

## How the scores have moved

### Cline

- -7.7 on 4 November 2026 (C to D): product, new evidence, negative event
- +0.1 on 27 October 2026: checklist
- -0.4 on 8 October 2026: checklist

### Sculptor

No score change since it was listed.

## Verdicts

**Cline.** Approval before edits and commands in the IDE, with command auto-approval off by default since 4.0.0. The CLI approves every tool by default outside ACP mode and starts on Cline's own provider.

**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

### Cline

1. Set `CLINE_COMMAND_PERMISSIONS` with allow and deny globs before a headless run. The CLI approves every tool by default
2. Pick a provider with `-P` and a key, or run `cline auth`. The default provider needs a Cline sign-in
3. Turn telemetry off before the first task. In the CLI set `telemetryOptOut` to true in `~/.cline/data/settings/global-settings.json`, then run `cline hub stop`
4. Pin the CLI version. 2.3.0 was a malicious publish
5. Keep the hub on 127.0.0.1 or set ROOM_SECRET, and run 3.0.30 or later
6. Pin the CLI version in scripts. Patch releases have removed options that now fail with "unknown option"

### 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, Cline or Sculptor?

Sculptor and Cline score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 53.1 (D) and 52.8 (D). Cline leads on reliability, schema & documentation, agent ergonomics, maintenance & community and transparency & trust.

### Are Cline and Sculptor open source?

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


## For agents

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

## Other comparisons with Cline or Sculptor

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