GILD verdict
Choose Cline if your team wants to stay open source on its own models with software that still gets fixes.
Keep Continue only during the pilot, mainly where engineers depend on its tab autocomplete on a local model, and confirm Cline covers that work before you switch.
Cline wins for teams that want an open-source agent on their own models, because Cline still ships releases and sells SSO and provider controls in Enterprise. Continue's frozen final release still covers chat, inline edits, tab autocomplete and Agent mode, with no admin layer.
Choosing between Continue and Cline
Choose Continue if
- Engineers rely on Continue's tab autocomplete on a local or self-hosted model, and you need time before moving.
- Your configuration, rules, and internal tooling are built on config.yaml and Continue's local data files.
- Machines are air-gapped and already run the final release from a VSIX.
Choose Cline if
- You want an open-source agent on your own keys that still ships fixes and support for new models.
- Security requires SSO, role-based access, audit logs, or approved-provider control, which Cline sells in Enterprise.
- Engineers want to choose, one category at a time, which actions run without a prompt.
Side by side
| Dimension | Continue | Cline |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | Read-only repository; final VS Code release 2.0.0, plus a 2.1.0 pre-release, on Jun 19, 2026 | Active; new CLI and SDK releases on Oct 8, 2026 |
| PriceList prices in US dollars. Neither price includes model usage on your own key. | Free under Apache 2.0; paid plans ended; model usage paid to your provider | Free for individuals; model usage paid to your provider, as Cline credits, or ClinePass at US$9.99 per month; Enterprise is custom |
| Where it runs | VS Code extension, JetBrains plugin (last updated Mar 27, 2026), and the cn CLI | An IDE extension, a CLI, or an SDK; the pricing page lists the JetBrains extension under Enterprise |
| Models | Any provider in config.yaml for each role, including Bedrock, Azure, Ollama, LM Studio, and llama.cpp | Your own key with cloud providers or local runtimes such as Ollama and LM Studio, Cline credits, or ClinePass |
| Approvals | Agent mode asks before each tool call unless its policy is Automatic; the CLI defaults edits, writes, and Bash to ask | Auto Approve decides which actions run without a prompt, from reading files to running commands; YOLO mode approves everything |
| Admin controls | None; the hosted Continue Hub and team plans closed in June 2026 | Enterprise: SSO, OIDC, SCIM, role-based access, audit logs, and remote provider configuration from an admin console |
| Project rules | Markdown rules in .continue/rules | .clinerules/ and AGENTS.md, and it also reads .cursorrules and .windsurfrules |
What practitioners report, side by side
Each product's figures come from its own practitioners, for the group you pick.
Overall signal
All practitioners rate Cline +39, 48 points above Continue at −9. Most of the gap is in praise, with 43 of Cline's 73 sources positive against 18 of Continue's 69. Cline has 13 negative and Continue 23.
The score counts the authors from all practitioners that take a side, one vote each with their latest view, and is how far positive votes lead negative ones, per 100 votes, so Continue's −9 rests on votes split 17 positive, 26 mixed and 23 negative and Cline's +39 on 40, 17 and 13.
A lead of a fifth of the votes reads positive and a lead of half strong positive, with the same lines below zero. The dots show each source, positive, mixed, negative. Use a task pilot to measure accepted work and review time.
Footprint on the Agentic Software Development stack
They differ on two of 12 layers. On Work planning, Continue touches it and Cline supports it. On Tool execution, Continue supports it and Cline is core. Coverage is each product's placement on this stack, as its product page shows it. Core is a job the product owns; Supports and Touches are jobs it helps with. Coverage says nothing about how well a product does them.
| Layer | Continue | Cline |
|---|---|---|
| Plan | ||
| Work planning | Touches | Supports |
| Build | ||
| Tool execution | Supports | Core |
The 10 layers where they match
| Layer | Continue | Cline |
|---|---|---|
| Build | ||
| Codebase context | Supports | Supports |
| Coding | Core | Core |
| Agent runtime | Core | Core |
| Validate | ||
| Debugging | Supports | Supports |
| Testing | Supports | Supports |
| Code review | Touches | Touches |
| Application security | Touches | Touches |
| Ship | ||
| Source control | Touches | Touches |
| CI/CD | Touches | Touches |
| Operate | ||
| Observability | Touches | Touches |
What practitioners praise
Among all practitioners, Continue alone has four praise themes that reach 5 sources from 3 authors. Local and Self-Hosted Models and Open Source and Configurable lead, at 28 of 31 and 5 of 5. Both carry Model and Provider Choice. It is praised in all 8 Continue sources that discuss it, against 20 of 20 for Cline. Cline alone has three praise themes that reach 5 sources from 3 authors. Multi-Step Execution and Visibility and Control lead, at 15 of 15 and 10 of 10.
| Praised for | Continue | Cline |
|---|---|---|
| Model and Provider Choice | 8 of 8 | 20 of 20 |
| Local and Self-Hosted Models | 28 of 31 | Not a theme in its sources |
| Open Source and Configurable | 5 of 5 | Not a theme in its sources |
| Codebase and Docs Context | 4 of 6 | Not a theme in its sources |
| Tab Autocomplete | 4 of 15 | Not a theme in its sources |
| Multi-Step Execution | Not a theme in its sources | 15 of 15 |
| Visibility and Control | Not a theme in its sources | 10 of 10 |
| Plan and Act | Not a theme in its sources | 9 of 10 |
Each count is the sources that praise a theme, or raise it as a concern, out of those that discuss it. A row pairs the two products when both carry a theme under the same or an equivalent name.
A count ending in "so far" has under 5 sources from 3 authors among all practitioners. "Not a theme in its sources" means GILD found no theme of that name in that product's sources.
What practitioners raise as concerns
Among all practitioners, Continue alone has three concern themes that reach 5 sources from 3 authors. End of Maintenance and Setup and Configuration Effort lead, at 11 of 11 and 10 of 11. Of the two themes both carry, Reliability and Update Regressions differs most. It is raised in all 18 Continue sources that discuss it, against 12 of 15 for Cline. Cline alone has three concern themes that reach 5 sources from 3 authors. Token Spend on Your Own Key and Approvals and Safety lead, at 17 of 29 and 9 of 9.
| Raised as a concern | Continue | Cline |
|---|---|---|
| Reliability and Update Regressions | 18 of 18 | 12 of 15 |
| Results Depend on the Model | 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 |
| End of Maintenance | 11 of 11 | Not a theme in its sources |
| Setup and Configuration Effort | 10 of 11 | Not a theme in its sources |
| JetBrains Plugin Stability | 7 of 9 | Not a theme in its sources |
| Token Spend on Your Own Key | Not a theme in its sources | 17 of 29 |
| Approvals and Safety | Not a theme in its sources | 9 of 9 |
| Context Management | Not a theme in its sources | 6 of 8 |
17 sources
- Continue (acquired by Cursor)
- Continue on GitHub (continuedev/continue)
- Continue releases on GitHub
- Continue on JetBrains Marketplace
- Continue docs: Model providers overview
- Continue docs: How Agent mode works
- Continue docs: CLI tool permissions
- Continue docs: Rules
- Continue docs: Autocomplete setup
- Cline pricing
- ClinePass
- Cline docs: Authorization and bring your own key
- Cline docs: Auto Approve & YOLO mode
- Cline docs: Enterprise provider configuration
- Cline docs: Rules
- Cline on GitHub (cline/cline)
- Cline releases on GitHub