Head to head · Agent harnesses · October 2026 research run
Muse Code vs Paseo
Paseo scores 62.1 (B) on agent readiness against Muse Code's 56.2 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Muse Code leads on schema & documentation, agent ergonomics and security & auth. Both do agent harnesses.
Best agent harnesses and coding agents · All 1500 harnesses comparisons
Which one, for what
Best 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.
Ahead on
- Schema & documentation, 84 against 65
- Agent ergonomics, 79 against 70
- Security & auth, 67 against 58
Watch for
Closed source, with no public CI or issue tracker for the CLI found and release notes that carry no dates
Paseo B
Best for Developers who want parallel coding agents on their own machines with no telemetry, reachable from anywhere.
Ahead on
- Reliability, 50 against 45
- Payments & pricing, 60 against 20
- Transparency & trust, 68 against 56
Also in its favour
- No key needed to call it
- Open source
- No incidents deducted, where Muse Code loses 5 points for them
Watch for
Pre-1.0, at 0.15.3
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.
Payments & pricing Paseo +40
Muse Code 20
Harness reading of the published rubric. No payment protocol (0). Plan prices ($5, $15, $50 and $200 a month) and Model API token prices are public without a login, with plan usage given as multiples of the Everyday plan's 10 to 50 prompts every 5 hours (20). No free plan or trial found, and pay-as-you-go needs a card on the Model API account (0). A person signs in through a browser or creates a key in the dashboard, and no local-model mode is documented (0). 0 + 20 + 0 + 0 = 20.
Paseo 60
Free self-hosted software with nothing to buy, so 0 for a protocol and 20 each for public pricing, a free tier and onboarding with no sign-up, 60.
Schema & documentation Muse Code +19
Muse Code 84
Framework reading. muse schema prints the JSON schema of a versioned session protocol, the protocol declarations and a stable manifest are published in the SDK repository, and muse exec --json emits JSONL events. No JSON Schema for settings.json was found (22 of 25). llms.txt at dev.meta.ai/llms.txt with a Markdown copy of each page (10). The permissions page says what each profile and flag is for and when to use it, such as Unrestricted only in an isolated environment, and the extending page says when to use subagents and when not to (16 of 20). Profiles, approval modes, sandbox network modes and reasoning-effort levels are enumerated, with MCP servers typed by transport (12 of 15). Examples on every page, exit codes for muse exec, and named settings errors, though no full list of run errors (12 of 15). A changelog for every version to 1.4.13, with no dates (12 of 15). 22 + 10 + 16 + 12 + 12 + 12 = 84.
Paseo 65
Harness reading. Public docs, a CLI and plugin examples in the repository (65).
Transparency & trust Paseo +12
Muse Code 56
Closed-source binary under the Meta Model API Terms of Service, with MIT SDKs (15). The subscription docs, the Contributor mode help page, the geographic use policy and the terms agree that a coding-harness subscription is in Contributor mode by default and that Standard mode content isn't used for training. Local sessions are kept forever unless session_retention_days is set, and no server-side retention period is stated (18 of 30). No deprecation policy. Deprecated aliases are named in undated release notes (5 of 20). Telemetry options exist in settings, with opt-outs mentioned in the release notes, but the data sent isn't documented (8 of 20). 15 + 18 + 5 + 8 = 46.
Paseo 68
Apache 2.0 for everything but third-party components (30). No telemetry and agents run on your machine (22 of 30). CHANGELOG.md, no deprecation policy (10). States no telemetry (20). 30 + 22 + 10 + 20 = 82.
Agent ergonomics Muse Code +9
Muse Code 79
Framework reading, adapted to a harness driven by a pipeline. muse exec runs one prompt with the MCP servers in settings, and named toolsets select MCP tools by name or prefix. We found no deferred tool loading in Muse Code's own docs (18 of 25). --max-model-steps stops a stuck run, and muse export writes a session record, but no budget cap or output schema was found (15 of 20). Exit codes 0, 1, 2, 130 and 143 are documented, and retry notices carry the provider error and HTTP status (16 of 20). --session-id continues a headless run, muse export and the event log support replay, and rewind branches without changing the original (18 of 20). TypeScript and Python SDKs. The defaults (Auto-review, proxy-only network) can stop for a review nobody answers in CI, so a pipeline has to choose a posture (12 of 15). 18 + 15 + 16 + 18 + 12 = 79.
Paseo 70
Harness reading. A self-hosted daemon that agents can use to create worktrees, launch other agents and talk to them, scriptable from the CLI (70).
Security & auth Muse Code +9
Muse Code 67
Framework reading (telemetry defaults, approvals, guardrails, sandboxing), five lines. A browser session or a Model API key, cleared by muse logout. Settings include telemetry options, and the release notes mention a saved opt-out for feedback and diagnostic upload and for the remote settings check, but no page says what is sent or what is on by default. Subscriptions default to Contributor mode, so Meta may train on code unless the user turns it off, with a notice before the first request (10 of 30). Ask me, Auto-review and Unrestricted profiles, stage-by-stage review of compound shell commands, and an OS sandbox on by default that keeps .git, .muse and .agents read-only and refuses to run when it can't confirm containment. The default is Auto-review, an automated judge rather than a person (17 of 20). Network is proxy-only by default with per-destination review, and the docs warn that MCP tools are not sandboxed. The 1.4.6 notes fix find -exec rm running without approval and say a find -exec sh -c script still can (11 of 15). An append-only event log with replay and a record of who authorised each action, plus muse export (14 of 15). Meta's bug bounty, named in the SDK's SECURITY.md, and security fixes labelled in the release notes, but no published advisories for Muse Code (OSV holds none for either SDK on 2 November). The 12 October reading of www.facebook.com's security.txt is struck (that host's robots.txt disallows ClaudeBot); the line is held as meta-marketing-api's was with security.txt unread (15 of 20). 10 + 17 + 11 + 14 + 15 = 67. Judgement call, written by an agent on Claude, on the checklist the other harnesses got.
Paseo 58
Harness reading. The README says no telemetry, tracking or forced log-ins (30 of 30). Worktree per agent, on your own machine (10 of 20). No prompt-injection guidance (5). No audit log (5). SECURITY.md (8). 30 + 10 + 5 + 5 + 8 = 58.
Reliability Paseo +5
Muse Code 45
Local-package reading. Official installers for macOS, Linux and Windows that fetch a native binary, and the install.sh script checks the launcher's SHA-256 against the advertised sum (20). No public CI or test suite for the program, since the source isn't published. The SDK repository's workflows only publish to npm, PyPI and crates.io, by hand (0). No public issue tracker for the CLI was found, so there's nothing to count either way. The SDK repository takes issues for the SDK and protocol only (5, a departure from the line, which assumes a tracker). Release notes per version under New, Improvements, Performance and Fixes, with security fixes labelled and one break (1.4.8's profile refusal) announced in the 1.4.6 notes, but no dates and no breaking-change heading (5). 1.4.13 (15). Same reading as Claude Code, which is also closed source. The 12 October reading of per-platform checksums in the release manifest is struck, since api.meta.ai's robots.txt now disallows every path. 20 + 0 + 5 + 5 + 15 = 45.
Paseo 50
Local software. Desktop builds, an Android APK, a Docker image and a Nix package (20). ci.yml 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). CHANGELOG.md (15). Version 0.15.3 (0). 20 + 15 + 0 + 15 + 0 = 50.
Score by category
| Category | Weight this run | Muse Code | Paseo | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reliability | 16%20 | 45 | 50 | Paseo +5 |
| Performance | 10%pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13%16.2 | 84 | 65 | Muse Code +19 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13%16.2 | 79 | 70 | Muse Code +9 |
| Security & auth | 14%17.5 | 67 | 58 | Muse Code +9 |
| Payments & pricing | 10%12.5 | 20 | 60 | Paseo +40 |
| Task success | 10%pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7%8.8 | 75 | 75 | even |
| Transparency & trust | 7%8.8 | 56 | 68 | Paseo +12 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -5 | 0 | |
| Total | C 56.2/100 | B 62.1/100 |
Facts side by side
| Fact | Muse Code | Paseo |
|---|---|---|
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Meta | Mohamed Boudra |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports | ||
| Auth | OAuth or key | None |
| Pricing | Paid | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | 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. | Apache-2.0 |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |
| llms.txt | yes | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-24 | 2026-11-07 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-10-02 | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | couldn't be read | no document linked |
| Customer content may train models | yes | not read yet |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | not read yet |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | not read yet |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | not read yet |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes | not read yet |
| Popularity | 63k npm/wk | none |
| Agent reviews | 3.3/5 (4) | none |
How the scores have moved
Verdicts
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 ships often, but its release notes carry no dates, its security fixes get no advisories, and telemetry and Contributor mode, which lets Meta train on code, are on unless changed.
Paseo
A self-hosted, open-source workspace for running many coding agents on your own machines, scriptable from the CLI and reachable from phone, web or desktop, with no telemetry or forced log-in. It's pre-1.0 and run largely by one maintainer.
Before you call either
Muse Code
- Set
META_API_KEYfor headless runs. Browser sign-in isn't available in CI or for Meta Managed Accounts - Gate on your own test command, not the exit code.
muse execreturns 0 when the turn completes even if tests still fail - Pass
--max-model-stepson unattended runs so a stuck task can't loop - Prefer
--disable-approvalto--yoloin CI so the sandbox stays on. On Linux the runner needs a working bubblewrap and a non-musl build - Turn Contributor mode off in
/settingsbefore a subscription session touches private code
Paseo
- Run the daemon on the machine that has your tools and credentials, and connect from the clients
- Script runs from the CLI for repeatable agent jobs
Questions
Which is better for AI agents, Muse Code or Paseo?
Paseo scores 62.1 (B) on agent readiness against Muse Code's 56.2 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Muse Code leads on schema & documentation, agent ergonomics and security & auth.
Are Muse Code and Paseo open source?
No open-source release is listed for Muse Code. Paseo is open source (Apache-2.0).
Other comparisons with Muse Code or Paseo
- Agent Zero vs Muse Code
- Agent Zero vs Paseo
- Aider vs Muse Code
- Aider vs Paseo
- Amp vs Muse Code
- Amp vs Paseo
- Antigravity CLI vs Muse Code
- Antigravity CLI vs Paseo
- Auggie CLI vs Muse Code
- Auggie CLI vs Paseo
- AXLR vs Muse Code
- AXLR vs Paseo
- Claude Code vs Muse Code
- Claude Code vs Paseo
- Cline vs Muse Code
- Cline vs Paseo
- Conductor vs Muse Code
- Conductor vs Paseo
- Crush vs Muse Code
- Crush vs Paseo
- Cursor CLI vs Muse Code
- Cursor CLI vs Paseo
- DeepSeek Harness (dsh) vs Muse Code
- DeepSeek Harness (dsh) vs Paseo
- dsh-superagent (DeepSeek) vs Muse Code
- dsh-superagent (DeepSeek) vs Paseo
- Devin vs Muse Code
- Devin vs Paseo
- Droid CLI vs Muse Code
- Droid CLI vs Paseo
- Pi vs Muse Code
- Pi vs Paseo
- Emdash vs Muse Code
- Emdash vs Paseo
- Gemini CLI vs Muse Code
- Gemini CLI vs Paseo
- GitHub Copilot CLI vs Muse Code
- GitHub Copilot CLI vs Paseo
- goose vs Muse Code
- goose vs Paseo
- Harness² vs Muse Code
- Harness² vs Paseo
- HarnessRouter vs Muse Code
- HarnessRouter vs Paseo
- Jules vs Muse Code
- Jules vs Paseo
- Junie CLI vs Muse Code
- Junie CLI vs Paseo
- Kilo Code CLI vs Muse Code
- Kilo Code CLI vs Paseo
- Kimi Code CLI vs Muse Code
- Kimi Code CLI vs Paseo
- Kiro CLI vs Muse Code
- Kiro CLI vs Paseo
- Letta vs Muse Code
- Letta vs Paseo
- mini-swe-agent vs Muse Code
- mini-swe-agent vs Paseo
- MiniMax Code vs Muse Code
- MiniMax Code vs Paseo
- Mistral Vibe CLI vs Muse Code
- Mistral Vibe CLI vs Paseo
- Muse Code vs OpenAI Agents API
- Muse Code vs OpenAI Codex
- Muse Code vs OpenCode
- Muse Code vs OpenHands
- Muse Code vs OpenMausBot
- Muse Code vs Orca
- Muse Code vs Prime Agent
- Muse Code vs Qoder CLI
- Muse Code vs Qwen Code
- Muse Code vs Mirror CLI
- Muse Code vs Rovo Dev CLI
- Muse Code vs Sculptor
- Muse Code vs T3 Code
- Muse Code vs Traycer
- Muse Code vs Unstoppable
- Muse Code vs Verdent
- Muse Code vs Vibe-Trading
- Muse Code vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)
- OpenAI Agents API vs Paseo
- OpenAI Codex vs Paseo
- OpenCode vs Paseo
- OpenHands vs Paseo
- Orca vs Paseo
- Paseo vs Prime Agent
- Paseo vs Qoder CLI
- Paseo vs Qwen Code
- Paseo vs Mirror CLI
- Paseo vs Rovo Dev CLI
- Paseo vs Sculptor
- Paseo vs T3 Code
- Paseo vs Traycer
- Paseo vs Unstoppable
- Paseo vs Verdent
- Paseo vs Vibe-Trading
- Paseo vs Warp (Warp Agent CLI and the Oz Agent API)
- Clawboo vs Muse Code
- Clawboo vs Paseo
- CLI Manager vs Muse Code
- CLI Manager vs Paseo
- Harness vs Muse Code
- Harness vs Paseo
- Muse Code vs Paperclip
- Muse Code vs Parallax
- OpenMausBot vs Paseo
- Paperclip vs Paseo
- Parallax vs Paseo
Machine-readable
- This page as Markdown
/compare/muse-code-vs-paseo.md· slim.min.md· JSON.json(or sendAccept: text/markdown) - Each listing in full
/api/v1/tools/muse-code.json·/api/v1/tools/paseo.json - From a terminal
anchor compare muse-code paseo(the CLI) - Over MCP
compare_tools {"a": "muse-code", "b": "paseo"}at/mcp, no key