# Gemini CLI vs Muse Code

> Gemini CLI scores 66.7 (B) to Muse Code's 61.3 (C) for agent harnesses. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-muse-code
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-muse-code.md (~2,700 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-muse-code.min.md (~680 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-muse-code.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
- Updated: 2026-10-12

Gemini CLI scores 66.7 (B) on agent readiness against Muse Code's 61.3 (C), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Both do agent harnesses.

- Gemini CLI: grade B, 66.7/100, rank #286 of 993. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/gemini-cli.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/gemini-cli.json
- Muse Code: grade C, 61.3/100, rank #487 of 993. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/muse-code.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/muse-code.json
- Best agent harnesses and coding agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/agent-harnesses/index.md
- All 226 harnesses comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-harnesses/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Gemini CLI (B)

Good for: Teams with a paid Gemini API key, Vertex AI credentials or existing Code Assist Standard or Enterprise licences that want an open-source harness with documented headless output.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 71 against 45
- Schema & documentation, 93 against 84
- Maintenance & community, 88 against 75
- Transparency & trust, 89 against 57

Also in its favour:
- Open source

Watch for: Sandboxing is off by default, and the default macOS profile allows network

### Muse Code (C)

Good for: Developers who want Meta's Muse models, Muse Wonder Full included, in a terminal or CI agent with the sandbox and approvals on from the first run.

Also in its favour:
- No incidents deducted, where Gemini CLI loses 5 points for them

Watch for: Closed source, with no public CI or issue tracker for the CLI found and release notes that carry no dates


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Gemini CLI | Muse Code | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 71 | 45 | Gemini CLI +26 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 93 | 84 | Gemini CLI +9 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 78 | 79 | Muse Code +1 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 67 | 67 | even |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 20 | 20 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 88 | 75 | Gemini CLI +13 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 89 | 57 | Gemini CLI +32 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -5 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **66.7 · B** | **61.3 · C** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Gemini CLI | Muse Code |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Google | Meta |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Pay per use | Paid |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | Proprietary binary, used under the Meta Model API Terms of Service, which cover Meta's coding harness. Subscriptions are also under the Meta Subscription Terms of Service. The TypeScript and Python SDKs in the linked repository are MIT. |
| Read-only variant documented | no | yes |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-10-06 | 2026-10-11 |
| Terms last updated | couldn't be read |  |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-10-01 | couldn't be read |
| Customer content may train models | yes |  |
| Terms restrict automated access | couldn't be read |  |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | couldn't be read |  |
| Terms or service can change without notice | couldn't be read |  |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | couldn't be read |  |
| Popularity | 107k stars | 63k npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | 3.5/5 (2) | none |

## Verdicts

**Gemini CLI.** Apache-2.0, with 16 stable releases since 3 July and documented headless output. Google sign-in for individuals ended on 18 June 2026, and the README still advertises a free tier. Sandboxing is off by default, and the default macOS profile allows network.

**Muse Code.** Muse Code runs with approvals and an OS sandbox on by default, per-host network approval, an append-only event log and a headless mode with documented exit codes. It is the only route to Muse Wonder Full. It is closed source with undated release notes and no free route, and subscriptions allow training on code unless Contributor mode is turned off.

## Before you call either

### Gemini CLI

1. Set `GEMINI_TRUST_WORKSPACE` to true only for trusted inputs in CI. Since 0.39.1 headless mode doesn't trust a folder on its own
2. Turn on the sandbox with `-s` or `tools.sandbox`, and pick a proxied Seatbelt profile on macOS to cut network
3. Set `privacy.usageStatisticsEnabled` to false to stop usage statistics
4. Since 0.63.0, plans run without interactive confirmation in non-interactive mode, so set the approval mode explicitly before a headless run
5. Authenticate with a paid Gemini API key or Vertex credentials. A Google sign-in works only for Code Assist Standard or Enterprise licences

### Muse Code

1. Set `META_API_KEY` for headless runs. Browser sign-in isn't available in CI or for Meta Managed Accounts
2. Gate on your own test command, not the exit code. `muse exec` returns 0 when the turn completes even if tests still fail
3. Pass `--max-model-steps` on unattended runs so a stuck task can't loop
4. Prefer `--disable-approval` to `--yolo` in CI so the sandbox stays on. On Linux the runner needs a working bubblewrap and a non-musl build
5. Turn Contributor mode off in `/settings` before a subscription session touches private code

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Gemini CLI or Muse Code?

Gemini CLI scores 66.7 (B) on agent readiness against Muse Code's 61.3 (C), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories.

### Are Gemini CLI and Muse Code open source?

Gemini CLI is open source (Apache-2.0). No open-source release is listed for Muse Code.


## For agents

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

## Other comparisons with Gemini CLI or Muse Code

- [Agent Zero vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Agent Zero vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Aider vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Aider vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Amp vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Amp vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amp-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Antigravity CLI vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/antigravity-cli-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Antigravity CLI vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/antigravity-cli-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Claude Code vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/claude-code-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Claude Code vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/claude-code-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Cline vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cline-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Cline vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cline-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Cursor CLI vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cursor-cli-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Cursor CLI vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cursor-cli-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Devin vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/devin-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Devin vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/devin-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Droid CLI vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/droid-cli-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Droid CLI vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/droid-cli-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Pi vs Gemini CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/earendil-pi-vs-gemini-cli.md)
- [Pi vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/earendil-pi-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs GitHub Copilot CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-github-copilot-cli.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs goose](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-goose.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs Kilo Code CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-kilo-code-cli.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs Kiro CLI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-kiro-cli.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs OpenAI Codex](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-openai-codex.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-opencode.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs OpenHands](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-openhands.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs Prime Agent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-prime-agent.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs Qwen Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-qwen-code.md)
- [GitHub Copilot CLI vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/github-copilot-cli-vs-muse-code.md)
- [goose vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/goose-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Kilo Code CLI vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Kiro CLI vs Muse Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kiro-cli-vs-muse-code.md)
- [Muse Code vs OpenAI Codex](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-openai-codex.md)
- [Muse Code vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-opencode.md)
- [Muse Code vs OpenHands](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-openhands.md)
- [Muse Code vs Prime Agent](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-prime-agent.md)
- [Muse Code vs Qwen Code](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-qwen-code.md)
- [Gemini CLI vs Paperclip](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-paperclip.md)
- [Muse Code vs Paperclip](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/muse-code-vs-paperclip.md)