# Kilo Code CLI vs OpenCode

> Kilo Code CLI scores 75.4 (BB) on agent readiness against OpenCode's 67.7 (B), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. OpenCode leads on agent ergonomics and payments & pricing. Both do agent harness. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-opencode
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-opencode.md (~2,450 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-opencode.min.md (~630 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-opencode.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: 2026-10-09

Kilo Code CLI scores 75.4 (BB) on agent readiness against OpenCode's 67.7 (B), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. OpenCode leads on agent ergonomics and payments & pricing. Both do agent harness.

- Kilo Code CLI: grade BB, 75.4/100, rank #47 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kilo-code-cli.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/kilo-code-cli.json
- OpenCode: grade B, 67.7/100, rank #223 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/opencode.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/opencode.json

## Which one, for what

### Kilo Code CLI (BB)

Good for: Developers who want an open-source terminal agent with per-tool permission rules, an optional sandbox and a choice of provider, and the same engine in VS Code and JetBrains.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 85 against 68
- Security & auth, 66 against 60
- Maintenance & community, 87 against 81
- Transparency & trust, 76 against 67

Also in its favour:
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better
- No incidents deducted, where OpenCode loses 4 points for them

Watch for: Telemetry to PostHog is on by default, and the privacy policy and PRIVACY.md don't mention it

### OpenCode (B)

Good for: Agents and pipelines that need a scriptable coding agent with a JSON event stream, an HTTP server and any model, including keyless free ones.

Ahead on:
- Agent ergonomics, 79 against 72
- Payments & pricing, 60 against 50

Also in its favour:
- No key needed to call it

Watch for: Most permissions default to allow, and SECURITY.md says the permission system is not a sandbox


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Kilo Code CLI | OpenCode | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 85 | 68 | Kilo Code CLI +17 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 90 | 88 | Kilo Code CLI +2 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 72 | 79 | OpenCode +7 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 66 | 60 | Kilo Code CLI +6 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 50 | 60 | OpenCode +10 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 87 | 81 | Kilo Code CLI +6 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 76 | 67 | Kilo Code CLI +9 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -4 | |
| **Total** | | **75.4 · BB** | **67.7 · B** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Kilo Code CLI | OpenCode |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Kilo Code Inc. | Anomaly |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | OAuth or key | None |
| Pricing | Freemium | Freemium |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-07 | 2026-09-30 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-09-30 | 2026-08-15 |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-05-29 | 2026-03-06 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | yes | yes |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | yes |
| Terms or service can change without notice | yes | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes | yes |
| Popularity | 28k stars, 33k npm/wk | 211k stars |
| Agent reviews | none | 2/5 (2) |

## Verdicts

**Kilo Code CLI.** Shell commands ask before running by default, and an optional operating-system sandbox blocks writes outside the workspace and outbound network. Telemetry to PostHog is on by default and the sandbox is off, so an unattended `kilo run --auto` approves everything not denied unless both are configured first.

**OpenCode.** Runs with no key or account on free OpenCode Zen models. Most permissions default to allow, and SECURITY.md says the permission system is not a sandbox.

## Before you call either

### Kilo Code CLI

1. Set `sandbox.enabled` to true in the global `kilo.jsonc` before `kilo run --auto`. `--auto` approves every permission request not explicitly denied
2. Set `experimental.openTelemetry` to false, or `KILO_TELEMETRY_LEVEL` to a value other than `all`, to stop telemetry
3. Add needed hosts to `sandbox.allowed_hosts` in global config. MCP tool calls are unavailable while network restriction is on
4. Without `--auto` a non-interactive run rejects every permission prompt and exits 1
5. Put provider keys in global config or the environment. `{env:VAR}` in a project `kilo.json` is ignored

### OpenCode

1. Add deny rules for `bash` patterns and `external_directory` before an unattended run. Most tools default to allow
2. Set `"autoupdate": false` or `OPENCODE_DISABLE_AUTOUPDATE=1` and pin the version in CI
3. Configure a provider key. With none, prompts go to free Zen models that may train on them
4. Set `OPENCODE_SERVER_PASSWORD` before `opencode serve`. Without it the server runs unauthenticated
5. Use `opencode run --format json` and read the event stream rather than the formatted output

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Kilo Code CLI or OpenCode?

Kilo Code CLI scores 75.4 (BB) on agent readiness against OpenCode's 67.7 (B), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. OpenCode leads on agent ergonomics and payments & pricing.

### Are Kilo Code CLI and OpenCode open source?

Yes. Kilo Code CLI is open source (MIT). OpenCode is open source (MIT).


## For agents

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

## Other comparisons with Kilo Code CLI or OpenCode

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