# AutoIt

> AutoIt v3 is a freeware BASIC-like scripting language for automating the Windows GUI with simulated keystrokes, mouse movement and window and control manipulation. Agents run scripts through AutoIt3.exe, and AutoItX exposes the same functions through a DLL and COM control.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit.md (~4,950 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit.min.md (~1,180 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit.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: 2026-10-14

## Overview

**Grade D · 46.3/100 · rank #913 of 1076 · #6 in Desktop & mobile app control · not agent-ready · confidence medium**


## Assessment

An agent can run AutoIt scripts or single lines from the command line, or call AutoItX from C# or PowerShell, with each function's return values and `@error` codes documented. The source is closed, the last release was 7 September 2025, and scripts act with the full rights of the Windows user.

## Facts

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Vendor | AutoIt Consulting (https://www.autoitscript.com/site/autoit/) |
| Kind | SDK + MCP |
| Category | Desktop & mobile app control (https://www.anchorterminal.com/categories/desktop-automation) |
| Auth | None · No account, key or credential. Scripts and AutoItX calls run with the rights of the Windows user who starts them. |
| Pricing | Free (Free) · Freeware with nothing to buy. The licence allows unlimited installation, redistribution and commercial use, and forbids reverse engineering (checked 2026-10-14). |
| x402 | No · No x402, MPP or L402 on the AutoIt overview, downloads or documentation pages (checked 2026-10-14). |
| Licence | Freeware under the AutoIt end-user licence agreement, source not published |
| Docs | https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/ |
| llms.txt | not found |
| Last release | 2025-09-07 |
| Surface | The `AutoIt3.exe` interpreter with `/ErrorStdOut`, `/AutoIt3ExecuteScript` and `/AutoIt3ExecuteLine`, Aut2Exe for standalone executables, and AutoItX as a DLL and COM control with a C# assembly and PowerShell cmdlets. No MCP server or HTTP API |
| What scripts control | Simulated keystrokes and mouse movement, windows, controls and processes, GUI creation, COM, regular expressions, DLL and Windows API calls, and RunAs |
| Platforms | Windows 7, 8, 10 and 11 and Windows Server 2008 to 2022 for 3.3.18.0. 3.3.16.1 was the last version for Windows XP |
| Releases | 3.3.16.0 on 6 March 2022, 3.3.16.1 on 19 September 2022 and 3.3.18.0 on 7 September 2025. Beta builds sit under a path robots.txt disallows, so were not read |
| Licence | Freeware end-user licence agreement from Jonathan Bennett and the AutoIt Team. Unlimited installation and redistribution, commercial use allowed, reverse engineering forbidden. Compiled scripts are not part of the licensed product |
| Support | Forum, wiki and a Trac bug tracker with 114 active tickets on 14 October 2026 |
| Capabilities | desktop.control, desktop.scripting |
| Tags | local, windows, cli, scripting, free, no-auth, closed-source, com |
| JSON | https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/autoit.json |

## Score breakdown (methodology v0.4, October 2026 research run)

Assessed 2026-10-14 from public evidence against the published checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist). Confidence: medium. Performance and Task success pending (no score, not in the total); the total is Σ(score × weight) ÷ 80 over the 7 assessed categories. "This run" is each category's share of the 100 points.

| Category | Weight | This run | Score (0–100) | Points |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% | 20 | 59 | 11.8 |
| Performance | 10% | pending | pending | n/a |
| Schema & documentation | 13% | 16.2 | 52 | 8.4 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% | 16.2 | 51 | 8.3 |
| Security & auth | 14% | 17.5 | 20 | 3.5 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% | 12.5 | 60 | 7.5 |
| Task success | 10% | pending | pending | n/a |
| Maintenance & community | 7% | 8.8 | 20 | 1.8 |
| Transparency & trust (editorial 45, provenance 69) | 7% | 8.8 | 57 | 5.0 |
| Negative events | up to −15 | up to −15 | none recorded | 0 |
| **Total** | | | | **46.3 → D** |

### Why each score

- Reliability 59: Read with the local-software lines, since the owner runs the interpreter or AutoItX. An official installer and a portable zip, with supported Windows versions stated (20). No public CI or test suite could be found for closed source. The developers' history page mentions an internal regression suite that is not published (0 of 25). The Trac bug tracker lists 114 active tickets, some open for years such as #3003, while tickets were updated or closed on 4, 9 and 13 October 2026 (12 of 25). A history page per release and a separate script-breaking changes page. Version numbers follow a four-part scheme, not semantic versioning (12 of 15). 3.3.18.0 is a release build on a line in use for years (15).
- Performance: Pending. Latency is measured per call by our probes, which haven't run yet, so this run doesn't score it. Its weight is shared across the assessed categories until the first probe window closes.
- Schema & documentation 52: Graded as a scripting language driven from the command line. No machine-readable contract (0 of 25). No llms.txt found, and the documentation is HTML (0 of 10). Function pages state purpose, parameters, return values and remarks (16 of 20). Parameters are documented with types and allowed flag values, in a dynamically typed language (8 of 15). Each function page has an example and documents failure through `@error` values (13 of 15). Dated history for every release and a script-breaking changes page (15).
- Agent ergonomics 51: The command line adds no tool definitions to context, and output is whatever the script writes with `ConsoleWrite` (15 of 25). Output size and filtering are up to the script, and window functions take title, class and handle criteria (8 of 20). `/ErrorStdOut` sends fatal errors to stdout and each function sets `@error` codes. Errors do not raise, so an unchecked failure passes silently (13 of 20). Keystrokes and clicks cannot be safely retried, with no dry run (4 of 20). `/AutoIt3ExecuteLine` runs one line without a file, and AutoItX adds a C# assembly, PowerShell cmdlets and a COM control (11 of 15).
- Security & auth 20: No credential model. Scripts and AutoItX calls run with every right of the starting user, the closest case to one all-powerful key (10 of 30). No read-only mode or confirmation step. Compiled scripts refuse `/AutoIt3ExecuteScript` and `/AutoIt3ExecuteLine` unless built with `AutoItExecuteAllowed` (3 of 20). Scripts read window text and controls, which can carry untrusted content, and no prompt-injection guidance was found (3 of 15). No audit log (2 of 15). No security.txt (404), no disclosure policy and no advisories were found on the pages read (2 of 20).
- Payments & pricing 60: Read with the self-hosted rule. Freeware with nothing to buy, so 20 + 20 + 20. No x402, MPP or L402 (0 of 40).
- Task success: Pending. Task success needs the category task suites run through each tool, which haven't run yet, so this run doesn't score it. Its weight is shared across the assessed categories until then. A data provider's data-quality score is published on its listing now and becomes half of this category when it's scored.
- Maintenance & community 20: Last release 3.3.18.0 on 7 September 2025, more than 180 days ago (0). No release in the last 90 days. Betas sit under a path robots.txt disallows, so were not counted (0). The Trac timeline shows tickets closed with source revisions 13550 and 13552 on 4 and 9 October 2026 and a forum (12 of 25). AutoItX ships in the official package. The NuGet copies are third-party and AutoItX.Dotnet stopped at 3.3.14.5 in 2019 (5 of 15). No public CI or dependency information (3 of 10).
- Transparency & trust 57: The editorial half. Closed source under a clear freeware end-user licence agreement that allows commercial use and forbids reverse engineering (15 of 30). The privacy policy covers the websites and names Google advertising and analytics, and nothing states what the software does with data (10 of 30). The script-breaking changes page and notes on the last versions for older Windows give dated notice of changes, with no deprecation policy (12 of 20). No telemetry statement for the software, and closed source cannot be searched (8 of 20). The provenance half is computed from the provenance block.

Fix list for a coding agent, everything this grade says the listing lacks, the biggest gain first (14 items): https://www.anchorterminal.com/fixes/autoit.md (JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/fixes/autoit.json)

### What we couldn't check

- unchecked: beta builds and their dates, which sit under /autoit3/files/beta/, a path robots.txt disallows
- unchecked: AutoItX's own documentation, which was not found at a public URL
- Whether the interpreter sends any data over the network could not be checked, because the source is closed

### Sources

- downloads page (latest version, supported Windows, AutoItX): <https://www.autoitscript.com/site/autoit/downloads/> (seen 2026-10-14)
- AutoIt overview: <https://www.autoitscript.com/site/autoit/> (seen 2026-10-14)
- running scripts and command-line switches: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/intro/running.htm> (seen 2026-10-14)
- end-user licence agreement: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/license.htm> (seen 2026-10-14)
- release history: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/history.htm> (seen 2026-10-14)
- script-breaking changes: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/script_breaking_changes.htm> (seen 2026-10-14)
- Trac active tickets (114): <https://www.autoitscript.com/trac/autoit/report/1> (seen 2026-10-14)
- Trac timeline: <https://www.autoitscript.com/trac/autoit/timeline> (seen 2026-10-14)
- privacy policy: <https://www.autoitscript.com/site/about/privacy-policy/> (seen 2026-10-14)
- terms and conditions: <https://www.autoitscript.com/site/about/terms-and-conditions/> (seen 2026-10-14)
- robots.txt: <https://www.autoitscript.com/robots.txt> (seen 2026-10-14)
- NuGet search for AutoItX packages and owners: <https://azuresearch-usnc.nuget.org/query?q=autoitx> (seen 2026-10-14)
- RDAP record for autoitscript.com: <https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/domain/autoitscript.com> (seen 2026-10-14)

## Who's behind it (provenance 69/100, checked 2026-10-14)

| Check | Finding | Points |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Legal entity named | AutoIt Consulting Ltd | 20/20 |
| Domain age | autoitscript.com, registered 2004-05-05 (22 years) | 15/15 |
| Endpoint on the vendor's domain | no hosted endpoint | n/a |
| Terms of service | read, states 3 of the 7 things a reader expects | 6.6/10 |
| Privacy policy | read, states 4 of the 8 things a reader expects | 7/10 |
| Status page | not found | 0/10 |
| Changelog | published | 10/10 |
| security.txt | not found | 0/10 |

The site footer reads Copyright 2026 AutoIt Consulting Ltd, and the privacy policy says AutoIt Consulting is owned and operated by AutoIt Consulting Ltd. RDAP for autoitscript.com gives a registration date of 2004-05-05.

The terms and the privacy policy cover the websites autoitscript.com and autoitconsulting.com. The software is governed by its end-user licence agreement at https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/license.htm.

The privacy policy names Google and DoubleClick advertising and analytics on the website. It does not address the software.

www.autoitscript.com/.well-known/security.txt returned 404 on 14 October 2026.

robots.txt disallows /autoit3/files/, which holds downloads and betas. One request to that path was made by mistake during this check, its response was discarded unread, and no fact here comes from it.

### Terms and privacy, as read

A reading by a fixed set of rules, each answered with the vendor's own sentence. Not legal advice.

**Terms of service** (https://www.autoitscript.com/site/about/terms-and-conditions/), read 2026-10-14, gives no date, states 3 of the 7 things a reader expects.

- Not found in the text. Gives the date it was last updated.
- Names the governing law or courts. The law of the United Kingdom.
- Not found in the text. Says how the agreement or account can be ended.
- Says how changes to the terms are announced. Says it gives notice of a change.
- Not found in the text. Lists what users may not do.
- Not found in the text. Refers to a service level or uptime commitment.

**Privacy policy** (https://www.autoitscript.com/site/about/privacy-policy/), read 2026-10-14, gives no date, states 4 of the 8 things a reader expects.

- Not found in the text. Gives the date it was last updated.
- Says how long data is kept. For as long as needed, with no period named.
- Not found in the text. Says whether personal data is sold or shared for advertising.
- Not found in the text. Gives a privacy contact.
- Not found in the text. Says where data is transferred or stored.
- Also in the text (2026-10-14). AutoIt Consulting reserves the right to publish emails and letters sent to it, withholding the sender's identity on request. "We reserve the right to publish emails and letters sent to AutoIt Consulting. If you ask not to have your identity revealed, that information won’t be published."

## Probe metrics

Not measured yet. Our benchmark probes haven't run, so there's no availability, latency or error rate from a run and Performance is pending. Live uptime, where we poll the endpoint, is under Live and doesn't change the score.

## Strengths

- `/AutoIt3ExecuteLine` runs one line of code without a script file
- AutoItX exposes the functions through a DLL and COM control with a C# assembly and PowerShell cmdlets
- Each function page documents return values and `@error` codes, with an example
- A script-breaking changes page lists what each release breaks
- Free for unlimited and commercial use with no account

## Weaknesses

- Closed source under a licence that forbids reverse engineering
- Last release 3.3.18.0 on 7 September 2025, three years after 3.3.16.1
- Windows only, and scripts act with every right of the user who runs them
- No security policy or security.txt was found, and no public CI or tests
- 114 active tickets on the bug tracker, some open for years

## Before you call it (notes for agents)

1. Pass `/ErrorStdOut` so a fatal error reaches stdout instead of a dialog
2. Use `ConsoleWrite` for output an agent can capture, since `MsgBox` blocks an unattended run
3. Check `@error` after each call. Functions report failure there, not by raising
4. Install the official package from autoitscript.com. NuGet copies of AutoItX are third-party repackages

## Similar tools

Ranked by shared capabilities, then score. Same-category tools with no shared capability key are listed last.

| Tool | Grade | Score | Rank | Shared capabilities | x402 | Markdown |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Robocorp | B | 65.5 | 337 | desktop.control, desktop.scripting | no | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/robocorp.md |
| AutoHotkey | D | 52.8 | 771 | desktop.control, desktop.scripting | no | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autohotkey.md |
| Robot Framework | BB | 76.4 | 35 | desktop.scripting | no | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/robot-framework.md |
| UiPath | B | 68.2 | 237 | desktop.control | no | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/uipath.md |
| Automation Anywhere | D | 50.9 | 815 | desktop.control | no | https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/automation-anywhere.md |

## Panel reviews (0)

Reviewed by the Anchor panel (https://www.anchorterminal.com/reviewers/index.md): .

Desk reviews, written from public documentation, pricing, terms, source and status history on 1 October 2026. No calls made. For a desk review, the outcome says whether the reviewer's questions could be answered from public material: success, partial or failure. How reviews work: https://www.anchorterminal.com/reviews/how-it-works.md

## Notable

- `AutoIt3.exe [/ErrorStdOut] [/AutoIt3ExecuteScript] filename [params ...]` runs a script, and `/AutoIt3ExecuteLine "command"` runs one line of code (source: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/intro/running.htm>)
- Latest version 3.3.18.0, released on 7 September 2025, for Windows 7 to 11 and Server 2008 to 2022 (source: <https://www.autoitscript.com/site/autoit/downloads/>)
- The package includes AutoItX, a DLL and COM control with a C# assembly and PowerShell cmdlets (source: <https://www.autoitscript.com/site/autoit/downloads/>)
- The end-user licence agreement grants unlimited use, redistribution and commercial use, and forbids reverse engineering. No source code is published (source: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/license.htm>)
- The bug tracker lists 114 active tickets, and tickets were closed with source revisions on 4 and 9 October 2026 (source: <https://www.autoitscript.com/trac/autoit/timeline>)
- Releases before 3.3.18.0 were 3.3.16.1 on 19 September 2022 and 3.3.16.0 on 6 March 2022 (source: <https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/history.htm>)
- NuGet packages of AutoItX, such as AutoItX.Dotnet, are published by individuals, not the AutoIt team's own account

- #6 of 6 in Best desktop and mobile app automation for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/desktop-automation/index.md
- All 15 desktop comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/desktop-automation/index.md

## Compare

- [AutoHotkey vs AutoIt](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-autoit.md): D 52.8 vs D 46.3
- [AutoIt vs Automation Anywhere](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-automation-anywhere.md): D 46.3 vs D 50.9
- [AutoIt vs Robocorp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-robocorp.md): D 46.3 vs B 65.5
- [AutoIt vs UiPath](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-uipath.md): D 46.3 vs B 68.2
- [AutoIt vs Robot Framework](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-robot-framework.md): D 46.3 vs BB 76.4

## Verify this listing

For the vendor. The badge or a plain link to this page verifies the listing, from a page on autoitscript.com or one of its subdomains. It shows the listing is the vendor's and that the vendor knows it's here, and it never changes a grade, rank or review. The vendor sends the page's address to `POST https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/verify` as `{"slug": "autoit", "url": "…"}`, or calls the `verify_listing` tool at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp. We fetch the page once, then again every week; two failed checks in a row and the verification lapses, and a later pass restores it. What we check: https://www.anchorterminal.com/builders/index.md#verify

HTML badge:

```html
<a href="https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit"><img src="https://www.anchorterminal.com/badges/autoit.svg" alt="AutoIt on Anchor Terminal" height="20"></a>
```

Markdown badge, for a README:

```markdown
[![AutoIt on Anchor Terminal](https://www.anchorterminal.com/badges/autoit.svg)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit)
```

Plain link:

```html
<a href="https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autoit">AutoIt on Anchor Terminal</a>
```

## Share this listing

For the vendor. Sharing assets for social media, two PNGs of 1200 × 630 that say AutoIt is listed on Anchor Terminal, with the vendor's logo and this page's address and no grade or score.

- Dark: https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/share/autoit-dark.png
- Light: https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/share/autoit-light.png
- Create a video and download its frames: https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/listing-video/index.html?listing=autoit