# Kilo Code CLI vs Prime Agent (slim)

> Kilo Code CLI scores 75.4 (BB) on agent readiness against Prime Agent's 60.5 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Prime Agent leads on payments & pricing. Both do agent harness. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-prime-agent.md (~2,550 tokens) · this version ~580 tokens · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-prime-agent.json · canonical https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/kilo-code-cli-vs-prime-agent
- Index: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.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 Prime Agent's 60.5 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Prime Agent leads on payments & pricing. Both do agent harness.

- Kilo Code CLI: BB 75.4, rank #47 of 842 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/kilo-code-cli.min.md
- Prime Agent: C 60.5, rank #463 of 842 · https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/prime-agent.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 65; Schema & documentation, 90 against 42; Security & auth, 66 against 50; Maintenance & community, 87 against 79; Transparency & trust, 76 against 64. Also Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better.
- Prime Agent, good for Long-running research and coding work where one model drives subagents, schedules and goals from code, and where the owner can isolate the machine. Ahead on Payments & pricing, 60 against 50. Also No key needed to call it.

| Category | Kilo Code CLI | Prime Agent |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability (16%) | 85 | 65 |
| Performance (10%) | pending | pending |
| Schema & documentation (13%) | 90 | 42 |
| Agent ergonomics (13%) | 72 | 73 |
| Security & auth (14%) | 66 | 50 |
| Payments & pricing (10%) | 50 | 60 |
| Task success (10%) | pending | pending |
| Maintenance & community (7%) | 87 | 79 |
| Transparency & trust (7%) | 76 | 64 |

| Fact (where they differ) | Kilo Code CLI | Prime Agent |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vendor | Kilo Code Inc. | Prime Intellect |
| Auth | OAuth or key | None |
| Pricing | Freemium | Free |
| llms.txt | yes | no |
| Terms last updated | 2026-09-30 | no date given |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-05-29 | no date given |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | yes |
| Popularity | 28k stars, 33k npm/wk | 22k stars |