Aider vs Continue
Auto-updated comparison · last refreshed September 3, 2026
TL;DR
| Aider | Continue | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | cli | vscode-extension |
| Vendor | open source | open source |
| Pricing | Free tier (you pay LLM API costs directly) | Free tier (OSS extension, BYO API keys) |
| Autocomplete | No | Yes |
| Agent mode | Yes | Yes |
| MCP support | No | Yes |
| Local models | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Codebase indexing | No | Yes |
| Team features | No | Yes |
Where Aider wins
- open source
- any model via API
- excellent diff format
Where Continue wins
- fully OSS
- config-file driven
- local model support
Weaknesses
Aider: no GUI; you pay API costs directly; steeper learning curve
Continue: config-heavy; slower to add new features than Cursor
Best for
Pick Aider if you are OSS purists, or power users, or local LLM enthusiasts.
Pick Continue if you are teams that need OSS auditable AI tooling, or local LLM users.
FAQ
Is Aider more expensive than Continue?
Free tier (you pay LLM API costs directly) vs Free tier (OSS extension, BYO API keys). Compare the Pro tiers first if you're a solo dev; Business/Enterprise only matters for teams.
Do Aider and Continue use the same AI models?
Aider supports: any via API. Continue supports: any via API. Most modern tools default to Claude Sonnet 4.6 in 2026.
Can I use both?
Yes. They don't conflict at the file level. Some devs use one for autocomplete and one for agent work.
Related comparisons
Best Aider and Continue pairings by language
- Python: Aider for Python · Continue for Python
- TypeScript: Aider for TypeScript · Continue for TypeScript
- Rust: Aider for Rust · Continue for Rust
- Go: Aider for Go · Continue for Go