# Kilo Code CLI vs Orca (slim)

> Kilo Code CLI scores 68 (B) to Orca's 57.4 (C) for agent harnesses. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-orca.md (~6,350 tokens) · this version ~2,730 tokens · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-orca.json · canonical https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-orca
- Index: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt · API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json · MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp · Updated: 2026-11-07
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Kilo Code CLI scores 68 (B) on agent readiness against Orca's 57.4 (C), and leads in every scored category. Both do agent harnesses.

- Kilo Code CLI: B 68, rank #295 of 1486 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kilo-code-cli.min.md
- Orca: C 57.4, rank #791 of 1486 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/orca.min.md
- Kilo Code CLI, 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 58; Schema & documentation, 90 against 65; Security & auth, 64 against 43; Payments & pricing, 50 against 40; Maintenance & community, 87 against 75; Transparency & trust, 76 against 54. Also Free to start without a card.
- Orca, good for Developers who want an orchestrator agent to split work across parallel coding agents, on desktop or mobile. Also No key needed to call it; No incidents deducted, where Kilo Code CLI loses 7 points for them.

| Category | Kilo Code CLI | Orca |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability (16%) | 85 | 58 |
| Performance (10%) | pending | pending |
| Schema & documentation (13%) | 90 | 65 |
| Agent ergonomics (13%) | 72 | 70 |
| Security & auth (14%) | 64 | 43 |
| Payments & pricing (10%) | 50 | 40 |
| Task success (10%) | pending | pending |
| Maintenance & community (7%) | 87 | 75 |
| Transparency & trust (7%) | 76 | 54 |

| Fact (where they differ) | Kilo Code CLI | Orca |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vendor | Kilo Code Inc. | Lovecast Inc. |
| Auth | OAuth or key | None |
| Pricing | Freemium | Free |
| llms.txt | yes | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-26 | 2026-11-06 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-09-30 | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-05-29 | 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 | not found in the text | not read yet |
| Terms or service can change without notice | yes | not read yet |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes | not read yet |
| Popularity | 28k stars, 33k npm/wk | none |
| Agent reviews | 2.3/5 (4) | none |

Why the edge:
- Reliability, Kilo Code CLI +27: Kilo Code CLI 85 (Local-package reading. `@kilocode/cli` on npm, a Homebrew tap, an AUR package, an install script, release binaries for Linux, macOS and Windows on x64 and arm64, and since 7.8.20 (27 October) a `kilo-cli` conda package on Anaconda.org (20). Public CI, and the 40 most recent completed workflow runs on main on 8 October 2026 all succeeded, per the 8 October check, not re-read on 17 October or 1 November (25). 448 open issues and 147 open pull requests, a workflow that closes issues after 60 quiet days and pull requests after 30, and open reports from 7 October of a hanging turn (#14876) and of exhausted 503 retries ending a run with no visible error (#14877), per the 8 October check, not re-read since (15). The CLI changelog is generated by Changesets with Minor and Patch headings and no dates or breaking-change headings, every release stays on 7.8.x whatever its heading, and 7.8.13 and 7.8.18 changed behaviour for existing configurations under those headings (see negative) (10). 7.8.18 on the npm `latest` tag on 1 November, past 1.0 (15). 20 + 25 + 15 + 10 + 15 = 85.); Orca 58 (Local software. Desktop and mobile builds and a Homebrew cask (20). Unit, end-to-end and platform test workflows; 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). Tags to v1.4.251, no changelog file (8). Version 1.4 (15). 20 + 15 + 0 + 8 + 15 = 58.)
- Schema & documentation, Kilo Code CLI +25: Kilo Code CLI 90 (Framework reading. A JSON Schema for `kilo.jsonc` at `https://app.kilo.ai/config.json`, an OpenAPI file for the `kilo serve` API at `packages/sdk/openapi.json` and a CLI reference generated from the command definitions (25). `llms.txt` on kilo.ai and on the docs, the second listing a raw Markdown address for every page (10). The sandboxing page says when to use the sandbox, what it does not protect and how it differs from permissions (16). Permissions are `allow`, `ask` or `deny` with glob rules, `sandbox.network` and `--format` are enums, though the schema served on 8 October had no `sandbox` key (13). Config and CI samples and exit codes 0, 1 and 124, but we found no reference for the records `--format json` writes (11). A versioned changelog and dated GitHub releases (15). Not re-read on 1 November apart from the changelog. 25 + 10 + 16 + 13 + 11 + 15 = 90.); Orca 65 (Harness reading. A docs site with CLI orchestration and native chat pages (65).)
- Transparency & trust, Kilo Code CLI +22: Kilo Code CLI 76 (MIT, with opencode's copyright kept in the licence file (30). The privacy policy (29 May 2026, re-read on 1 November) names Kilo Code Inc. as controller, says data is stored in the United States and lists Stripe, OpenRouter, model providers, AppsFlyer and Sentry, but it doesn't mention the CLI's PostHog telemetry. PRIVACY.md in the repository is dated March 2025 and is silent on telemetry too. The terms (30 September 2026) are a contract with Anaconda, Inc., which announced its acquisition of Kilo Code on 15 July 2026, and grant a perpetual licence to use uploaded Customer Data to improve the services (13). `kilo console` is marked deprecated with no removal date, and updated terms apply after 30 days. No written deprecation policy found (8). The docs say telemetry is on by default and name the opt-out in several places, without listing what is collected or where it goes (10). 30 + 13 + 8 + 10 = 61.); Orca 54 (MIT (30). Privacy and telemetry docs on the site (not read) (18 of 30). No deprecation policy (5). Disclosed with an opt-out (15 of 20). 30 + 18 + 5 + 15 = 68.)
- Security & auth, Kilo Code CLI +21: Kilo Code CLI 64 (Harness reading of the framework checklist. 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. Telemetry is on by default and goes to PostHog in the United States, the source links the machine identifier to the account email after a Kilo sign-in, and since 7.8.10 (14 October) it also attaches the conda client ID when `~/.conda/aau_token` exists (see negative). It is turned off with `experimental.openTelemetry` or `KILO_TELEMETRY_LEVEL`. Provider keys stay on the machine (14). Shell commands ask by default outside a built-in allow list, reads of `.env` files and paths outside the project ask, and edits inside the project run without asking. An operating-system sandbox (Seatbelt on macOS, Bubblewrap on Linux, none on Windows) limits writes and blocks the network, refuses to run when it can't be enforced, and is off by default. `--auto` approves everything not explicitly denied. Since 7.8.13 a custom agent's own `edit` denies no longer bind the subagents it starts (15). The sandboxing page covers prompt injection and its limits, project config can't weaken the sandbox, and `{env:VAR}` is resolved only in trusted config. 7.8.16 (22 October) stopped running shell expressions found in MCP prompt text (see negative) and restricted MCP OAuth URLs to HTTP(S), and 7.8.18 stopped following cross-origin redirects for MCP HTTP and OAuth requests (11). Session export, `kilo stats` and OTLP export of traces and logs, with audit logs on the Enterprise plan (12). A valid security.txt (expires 2026-12-31, re-read on 1 November), a disclosure policy that cites HackerOne's standards and safe harbour, CodeQL in CI and no published repository advisories, though 7.8.16's MCP prompt fix appeared only as a changelog line. NVD lists CVE-2026-8766 and CVE-2026-8765 (both low, through 7.0.47, published 17 May 2026, the second a path traversal in the opt-in server's file diff route) and says the vendor didn't respond, and SECURITY.md still says the CLI has no sandbox (12). 14 + 15 + 11 + 12 + 12 = 64.); Orca 43 (Harness reading. Anonymous usage data with an opt-out, per the README's link to its telemetry docs (15 of 30). Worktrees per agent and a sandboxed Linux build (12 of 20). No prompt-injection guidance (5). No audit log (5). A dependency-security workflow (6 of 20). 15 + 12 + 5 + 5 + 6 = 43.)
- Maintenance & community, Kilo Code CLI +12: Kilo Code CLI 87 (7.8.18 on the npm `latest` tag (tag of 26 October 2026), with 7.8.25 on the `rc` tag (28 October) (30). 51 v7 release tags from 4 August to 28 October 2026, among them 7.8.13 to 7.8.25 since the 17 October check (20). Issue replies weren't re-read. The newest issues carry area and triage labels from automation, but the 15 newest open issues had no or one comment each on 8 October, against 448 open issues and 147 open pull requests, per the 8 October check (15). `@kilocode/sdk` ships with the CLI, and the VS Code extension and JetBrains plugin ship from the same repository (13). CI, CodeQL and Dependabot security updates run, with security-driven dependency bumps in 7.8.18 and 7.8.20 (9). 30 + 20 + 15 + 13 + 9 = 87.); Orca 75 (Tags to v1.4.251 and commits on 6 November 2026 (30). Many 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 (0). Current builds (15). Extensive CI (10). 30 + 20 + 0 + 15 + 10 = 75.)
- Payments & pricing, Kilo Code CLI +10: Kilo Code CLI 50 (No payment protocol (0). Scored on Kilo's paid options, as with Cline. Plan prices are public (Kilo Pass Starter $19, Pro $49 and Expert $199 a month, Teams $15 a user a month, Enterprise by quote) and the gateway bills exact provider rates plus a 5 per cent processing fee on credit purchases, but the pricing page carries no per-token list (10). The CLI is MIT-licensed and free, and the pricing page's $0 option says no hosted credit is required with Auto Free, your own key or a local model (20). Your own provider key or a local model works with no Kilo account, so an agent can install and run it without a sign-up (20). Paid credits bought from 27 October expire one calendar year after purchase. 0 + 10 + 20 + 20 = 50.); Orca 40 (Scored on the cloud option. No protocol (0). The cloud price wasn't found on the pages read (0). The desktop app is free and MIT with no card (20). The local app needs no sign-up that we found (20). 0 + 0 + 20 + 20 = 40.)