Head to head · Agent harnesses · October 2026 research run
goose vs Sculptor
goose scores 71.3 (BB) on agent readiness against Sculptor's 53.1 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Both do agent harnesses.
Best agent harnesses and coding agents · All 1500 harnesses comparisons
Which one, for what
goose BB
Best for People and pipelines that want one agent across many model providers or local models, with recipes for repeatable jobs and a desktop app for non-engineers.
Ahead on
- Reliability, 77 against 43
- Schema & documentation, 81 against 45
- Agent ergonomics, 82 against 50
- Security & auth, 77 against 57
- Maintenance & community, 86 against 75
- Transparency & trust, 67 against 57
Also in its favour
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better
- Free to start without a card
Watch for
Autonomous mode, which approves every tool call, is the default
Sculptor D
Best for Developers who want parallel coding agents in isolated workspaces and are fine with a research preview.
Also in its favour
- No incidents deducted, where goose loses 5 points for them
Watch for
Labelled an experimental research preview that may change drastically
Why the edge
Each category where one leads by five points or more, with the reason behind each side's score from its assessment. The numbers are in the table below; this is what they stand for.
Schema & documentation goose +36
goose 81
Recipes have a documented schema with typed parameters and a response JSON Schema for structured output, and config and environment variables are documented in tables, but we found no OpenAPI spec for the goose server (18). llms.txt at goose-docs.ai, which now covers goose and the goose Development Kit (10). Permission modes come with a best-for column and the security pages say what each guard catches and misses (15). Recipe parameters take types and requirement levels, and retries take typed success checks (12). Many tutorials, a headless guide that tells scripts to check exit codes, and a known-issues page (13). Dated, written notes on every GitHub release, with no changelog file (13).
Sculptor 45
Harness reading. A README, specs and agent docs in the repository; no API reference (45).
Reliability goose +34
goose 77
Read as a local package, which is how the 1 October dossier read it. Desktop builds and a CLI for macOS, Linux and Windows (a Windows NSIS installer from 1.56.0), Homebrew casks, a download script on GitHub releases, an npm package that installs the binary (@aaif/goose-acp) and a GHCR image, with Rust 1.94.1 as the minimum for source builds (20). A CI workflow runs on every push to main, with cargo-deny, cargo-machete, MCP and tool-call conformance and an OpenSSF Scorecard job beside it. The Actions page loaded on 1 October showed only passing runs from March 2026, and GitHub pages refused our requests on 6 and 17 October and 1 November, so the current state is unconfirmed (18). 266 to 271 open issues on 1 October, many from that week with no reply, including open reports that the default mode approves every tool call (#12567) and that schedules can overwrite each other (#12613), per the 1 October check, not re-read since (15). Weekly minor releases with notes written by a release-notes workflow whose sections are Features, Bug Fixes, Improvements and Documentation, with no breaking-change section. 1.55.0 dropped background subagents (delegate(..., async: true) and GOOSE_MAX_BACKGROUND_TASKS) and 1.57.0 dropped the developer tools that delegated file reads and terminal commands to an ACP editor, each edited out of the code and docs with no earlier notice (9). 1.57, stable (15).
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 goose +32
goose 82
Harness reading of the framework line, scored on what an agent or pipeline driving it has to supply. The built-in extensions are few, and Code Mode lets the model find MCP tools through code instead of loading every definition (23). --max-turns (default 1000), GOOSE_MAX_TOKENS and automatic context compaction, though 1000 turns is a high default for an unattended run (16). goose run --output-format json or stream-json for scripts (15). Recipes can retry with success checks and an on_failure command, and sessions resume (17). A Rust core with Python and Java SDK builds, and one command runs a task, but a provider has to be configured first and the default mode approves everything (11).
Sculptor 50
Harness reading. Workspaces as isolated copies, review and merge back, and built-in skills (50).
Security & auth goose +20
goose 77
Harness reading of the framework checklist, used for all five harnesses in this batch. 30 for what leaves the machine by default, 20 for approvals and sandboxing, 15 for prompt-injection posture, 15 for audit and 20 for the security programme. Usage data is off until the user agrees on first use, and the docs list what's collected and what isn't (30). Four modes (autonomous, smart approval, manual approval, chat only), per-tool always, ask or never rules, and an extension allowlist fetched from GOOSE_ALLOWLIST, which from 1.57.0 must be HTTPS and blocks installs when the policy can't be read, but autonomous is the default (the first-run prompt for the mode still preselects Auto in 1.57.0) and there's no sandbox, with the docs pointing to a VM or container (11). Pattern and optional ML prompt-injection detection and an adversary reviewer for shell calls, both off until turned on, plus a prompt-injection caution in SECURITY.md (11). Session logs, a diagnostics report and a Langfuse tracing guide (12). SECURITY.md with GitHub private reporting and an AAIF governance contact, one advisory published with a CVE, and a Scorecard workflow. A second CVE, CVE-2026-109561 (low, Manual Approval bypassed by persisted read-only annotations after Smart Approval, fixed in 1.44.0), was published by NVD on 12 October from a third party, with no goose advisory of its own. No bug bounty, and goose-docs.ai/.well-known/security.txt returned 404 on 6 and 17 October and 1 November (13).
Sculptor 57
Harness reading. Product analytics, error reporting and session recording default to off in the user config, and the app asks for a telemetry level and privacy consent at first run; PostHog runs on the front end only for now (25 of 30). Each workspace is an isolated copy of the code (14 of 20). No prompt-injection guidance (5). No audit log (5). SECURITY.md (8). 25 + 14 + 5 + 5 + 8 = 57.
Maintenance & community goose +11
goose 86
v1.57.0 tagged on 27 October 2026, after v1.56.0 on 22 October (30). 13 releases in the 90 days from 3 August, 1.46.0 (11 August) to 1.57.0, about one a week, plus GDK alpha tags (20). Issues move through a public board with Inbox and Ready columns and some new reports get a label within a day, but many of the week's reports had no reply on 1 October, and pull requests that don't implement a Ready issue are closed, per the 1 October check, not re-read since (15). Desktop, CLI, npm and GHCR builds ship from the same tag, and Python and Java SDK builds run in CI (13). cargo-deny, cargo-machete, Dependabot and Scorecard workflows, every GitHub Action pinned to a commit SHA since 29 September, and jsonwebtoken removed on 26 October to stop ignoring its cargo-deny advisories, with the current CI state unconfirmed (8).
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 goose +10
goose 67
Apache-2.0 (30). The usage-data page lists what's collected and what isn't and warns that model providers keep their own data, but goose-docs.ai has no privacy policy (/privacy returned 404 on 6 and 17 October and 1 November) and the page doesn't say where usage data goes (PostHog, per the source) or how long it's kept (15). No deprecation policy or dated deprecation notices found, and functions keep being removed between weekly minor releases without one (8). Telemetry is opt-in and documented, with a settings toggle and GOOSE_TELEMETRY_ENABLED (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 this run | goose | Sculptor | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reliability | 16%20 | 77 | 43 | goose +34 |
| Performance | 10%pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13%16.2 | 81 | 45 | goose +36 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13%16.2 | 82 | 50 | goose +32 |
| Security & auth | 14%17.5 | 77 | 57 | goose +20 |
| Payments & pricing | 10%12.5 | 60 | 60 | even |
| Task success | 10%pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7%8.8 | 86 | 75 | goose +11 |
| Transparency & trust | 7%8.8 | 67 | 57 | goose +10 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -5 | 0 | |
| Total | BB 71.3/100 | D 53.1/100 |
Facts side by side
| Fact | goose | Sculptor |
|---|---|---|
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Agentic AI Foundation (originally Block) | 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 | yes | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-27 | 2026-11-06 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | no document linked |
| Popularity | 55k stars | none |
| Agent reviews | 2.5/5 (2) | none |
How the scores have moved
Sculptor
No score change since it was listed.
Verdicts
goose
Telemetry off until the user opts in, with the collected fields listed. Autonomous mode, which approves every tool call, is the default.
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
goose
- Set
GOOSE_MODE=smart_approveorapprovebefore a run. The default approves everything, and the first-run prompt preselects Auto - Pass
--max-turnswith a real limit. The default is 1000 - Set
SECURITY_PROMPT_ENABLED=truewhen the task reads web pages or untrusted repositories - Use
--output-format jsonand--no-sessionin CI, and check the exit code - Pin the goose version in CI. Minor releases have removed functions, such as
delegate(..., async: true)in 1.55.0, without notice
Sculptor
- Download from the README's links, connect a repository and create a workspace before prompting
- Review the diff before merging a workspace back to main
Questions
Which is better for AI agents, goose or Sculptor?
goose scores 71.3 (BB) on agent readiness against Sculptor's 53.1 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories.
Are goose and Sculptor open source?
Yes. goose is open source (Apache-2.0). Sculptor is open source (MIT).
Other comparisons with goose or Sculptor
- Agent Zero vs goose
- Agent Zero vs Sculptor
- Aider vs goose
- Aider vs Sculptor
- Amp vs goose
- Amp vs Sculptor
- Antigravity CLI vs goose
- Antigravity CLI vs Sculptor
- Auggie CLI vs goose
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- AXLR vs goose
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- Claude Code vs goose
- Claude Code vs Sculptor
- Cline vs goose
- Cline vs Sculptor
- Conductor vs goose
- Conductor vs Sculptor
- Crush vs goose
- Crush vs Sculptor
- Cursor CLI vs goose
- Cursor CLI vs Sculptor
- DeepSeek Harness (dsh) vs goose
- DeepSeek Harness (dsh) vs Sculptor
- dsh-superagent (DeepSeek) vs goose
- dsh-superagent (DeepSeek) vs Sculptor
- Devin vs goose
- Devin vs Sculptor
- Droid CLI vs goose
- Droid CLI vs Sculptor
- Pi vs goose
- Pi vs Sculptor
- Emdash vs goose
- Emdash vs Sculptor
- Gemini CLI vs goose
- Gemini CLI vs Sculptor
- GitHub Copilot CLI vs goose
- GitHub Copilot CLI vs Sculptor
- goose vs Harness²
- goose vs HarnessRouter
- goose vs Jules
- goose vs Junie CLI
- goose vs Kilo Code CLI
- goose vs Kimi Code CLI
- goose vs Kiro CLI
- goose vs Letta
- goose vs mini-swe-agent
- goose vs MiniMax Code
- goose vs Mistral Vibe CLI
- goose vs Muse Code
- goose vs OpenAI Agents API
- goose vs OpenAI Codex
- goose vs OpenCode
- goose vs OpenHands
- goose vs OpenMausBot
- goose vs Orca
- goose vs Paseo
- goose vs Prime Agent
- goose vs Qoder CLI
- goose vs Qwen Code
- goose vs Mirror CLI
- goose vs Rovo Dev CLI
- goose vs T3 Code
- goose vs Traycer
- goose vs Unstoppable
- goose vs Verdent
- goose vs Vibe-Trading
- goose vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)
- Harness² vs Sculptor
- HarnessRouter vs Sculptor
- Jules vs Sculptor
- Junie CLI vs Sculptor
- Kilo Code CLI vs Sculptor
- Kimi Code CLI vs Sculptor
- Kiro CLI vs Sculptor
- Letta vs Sculptor
- mini-swe-agent vs Sculptor
- MiniMax Code vs Sculptor
- Mistral Vibe CLI vs Sculptor
- Muse Code vs Sculptor
- OpenAI Agents API vs Sculptor
- OpenAI Codex vs Sculptor
- OpenCode vs Sculptor
- OpenHands vs Sculptor
- Orca vs Sculptor
- Paseo vs Sculptor
- Prime Agent vs Sculptor
- Qoder CLI vs Sculptor
- Qwen Code vs Sculptor
- Mirror CLI vs Sculptor
- Rovo Dev CLI vs Sculptor
- Sculptor vs T3 Code
- Sculptor vs Traycer
- Sculptor vs Unstoppable
- Sculptor vs Verdent
- Sculptor vs Vibe-Trading
- Sculptor vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)
- Clawboo vs goose
- Clawboo vs Sculptor
- CLI Manager vs goose
- CLI Manager vs Sculptor
- goose vs Harness
- goose vs Paperclip
- goose vs Parallax
- Harness vs Sculptor
- OpenMausBot vs Sculptor
- Paperclip vs Sculptor
- Parallax vs Sculptor
Machine-readable
- This page as Markdown
/compare/goose-vs-sculptor.md· slim.min.md· JSON.json(or sendAccept: text/markdown) - Each listing in full
/api/v1/tools/goose.json·/api/v1/tools/sculptor.json - From a terminal
anchor compare goose sculptor(the CLI) - Over MCP
compare_tools {"a": "goose", "b": "sculptor"}at/mcp, no key