# OpenCode vs Qwen Code

> Qwen Code scores 72.4 (BB) on agent readiness against OpenCode's 67.7 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. OpenCode leads on security & auth. Both do agent harness. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/opencode-vs-qwen-code
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/opencode-vs-qwen-code.md (~2,350 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/opencode-vs-qwen-code.min.md (~580 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/opencode-vs-qwen-code.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: 2026-10-08

Qwen Code scores 72.4 (BB) on agent readiness against OpenCode's 67.7 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. OpenCode leads on security & auth. Both do agent harness.

- OpenCode: grade B, 67.7/100, rank #186 of 629. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/opencode.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/opencode.json
- Qwen Code: grade BB, 72.4/100, rank #88 of 629. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/qwen-code.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/qwen-code.json

## Which one, for what

### 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:
- Security & auth, 60 against 53

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

### Qwen Code (BB)

Good for: Developers and CI jobs that want an open-source harness tied to no single model vendor, with run budgets and SDKs.

Ahead on:
- Agent ergonomics, 85 against 79
- Maintenance & community, 88 against 81

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

Watch for: The default approval mode is Auto, where an LLM classifier approves tool calls, and sandboxing and folder trust are both off by default


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | OpenCode | Qwen Code | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 68 | 69 | Qwen Code +1 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 88 | 91 | Qwen Code +3 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 79 | 85 | Qwen Code +6 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 60 | 53 | OpenCode +7 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 60 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 81 | 88 | Qwen Code +7 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 67 | 63 | OpenCode +4 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -4 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **67.7 · B** | **72.4 · BB** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | OpenCode | Qwen Code |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | Agent harness | Agent harness |
| Vendor | Anomaly | Alibaba (Qwen team) |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  |  |
| Auth | None | API key |
| Pricing | Freemium | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| Last release | 2026-09-30 | 2026-10-05 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-08-15 | 2026-10-01 |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-03-06 | 2026-10-01 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | yes | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | not found in the text |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | yes | not found in the text |
| Popularity | 211k stars | 28k stars, 105k npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | 2/5 (2) | none |

## Verdicts

**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.

**Qwen Code.** Apache-2.0 with no account of its own, any OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini-compatible endpoint, and headless runs bounded by turn, tool-call and wall-time budgets with distinct exit codes. Out of the box, Auto mode lets an LLM classifier approve tool calls, with the sandbox and folder trust both off. Usage statistics are on by default.

## Before you call either

### 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

### Qwen Code

1. Pass `--approval-mode` on every run. The settings default is `auto`, and one docs page says headless runs default to asking, so don't rely on either
2. Add `--max-session-turns`, `--max-wall-time` and `--max-tool-calls`. All three are unlimited by default. Exit 53 is the turn limit and 55 a budget
3. `--yolo` doesn't turn on a sandbox. Add `--sandbox`, or on Linux set `tools.executionSandbox` with `network` set to `closed`
4. Set `QWEN_USAGE_STATISTICS_ENABLED=false` to stop usage statistics
5. Authenticate with `OPENAI_API_KEY`, `OPENAI_BASE_URL` and `OPENAI_MODEL` in CI. The browser sign-in is discontinued

## Questions

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

Qwen Code scores 72.4 (BB) on agent readiness against OpenCode's 67.7 (B), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. OpenCode leads on security & auth.

### Are OpenCode and Qwen Code open source?

Yes. OpenCode is open source (MIT). Qwen Code is open source (Apache-2.0).


## For agents

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

## Other comparisons with OpenCode or Qwen Code

- [Aider vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/aider-vs-opencode.md)
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- [Gemini CLI vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-cli-vs-opencode.md)
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- [GitHub Copilot CLI vs OpenCode](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/github-copilot-cli-vs-opencode.md)
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