Inventory what each engineer configured, pick the target by the job Continue did for you, carry over rules and MCP servers, and pilot before you remove it. The final release keeps running, so the pilot can set the date of the move.
When you need this
- Your security policy requires maintained software, and Continue no longer receives fixes.
- Engineers report Continue breaking on new models or IDE versions.
- You need admin controls such as SSO, central model policy, or audit logs, which the final release does not offer.
- Teams built tooling on Continue's configuration or data files.
Evaluation criteria
Inventory the setup
What did each engineer configure?
Look for~/.continue/config.yaml (models and roles, context providers, docs, data destinations), .continue/rules, .continue/mcpServers, saved prompts, and any legacy .continuerc.json or config.ts. Note which models run locally and which use a cloud key.
Match the target to the job
Was Continue your autocomplete, your chat, or your agent?
Look forFor local-model autocomplete, check which completion models the target accepts. Cursor's own API keys cover chat models only, and Tab stays on Cursor's models. For a maintained open-source agent on your own keys, Cline is free under Apache 2.0. For GitHub-native seats, Copilot supports local bring-your-own-key models in VS Code, JetBrains, Xcode, and the CLI.
Carry over rules
Will the target read your conventions?
Look forMove .continue/rules into the target's format. Cline reads .clinerules/ and AGENTS.md, Cursor reads .cursor/rules and AGENTS.md, and Copilot reads .github/copilot-instructions.md and AGENTS.md, so one AGENTS.md file serves all three.
Carry over MCP servers
Which tools must the new assistant reach?
Look forContinue accepts JSON MCP configs from Claude, Cursor, and Cline, so most servers move as files. Cline supports local and remote servers, and Cursor documents MCP in the editor. On Copilot Business and Enterprise, the MCP policy stays off until an admin turns it on.
Settle data and keys
What leaves with Continue?
Look forContinue's export window has closed and its hosted data is deleted. Local development data stays in .continue/dev_data on each machine. Rotate any API keys stored in config.yaml or .env files, and retire tooling that reads Continue's data files, which one team asked about after the acquisition.
Pilot, then retire
Does the new tool do the work Continue did?
Look forRun two to four weeks on real tasks, with the same models where possible, and measure accepted changes and reviewer time. Remove Continue once the pilot holds, and keep a pinned VSIX for any machine you cannot move yet.
Questions to ask vendors
- Which Continue features do engineers use daily, by name, and which did nobody use?
- Does the target let us keep model traffic on the endpoints we approved for Continue?
- Which admin controls do we need now that we did not have with Continue?
- Who signs off that the pilot met the bar before Continue is removed?
Red flags
- Picking a target before inventorying what engineers configured.
- Moving to a tool whose autocomplete cannot use the model your policy requires.
- Leaving API keys from Continue's config files active after the move.
- Removing Continue before the pilot covers the work it did.
Worth evaluating
Listed in no particular order.
Products in this piece
Sources
- Official documentation
- 17
- Public source
- 4
- Continue (acquired by Cursor)
- Continue on GitHub (continuedev/continue)
- Continue docs: config.yaml reference
- Continue docs: How to configure Continue
- Continue docs: Rules
- Continue docs: MCP
- Continue docs: Development data
- Cline pricing
- Cline on GitHub (cline/cline)
- Cline docs: Rules
- Cline docs: MCP
- Cursor docs: Bring your own API key
- Cursor docs: Model Context Protocol (MCP)
- Cursor docs: Rules
- GitHub docs: Bring your own key for GitHub Copilot
- GitHub docs: MCP and GitHub Copilot
- GitHub Copilot docs: Repository custom instructions
- GitHub issue #12876: impact of the Cursor acquisition on traceability built on Continue's data files (Jun 22, 2026)
- Hacker News, roscas: Continue is no longer updated; alternatives? (Aug 22, 2026)
- Hacker News, calenti: Continue chat choking on Ollama responses after the acquisition (Jun 17, 2026)
- Christian Siebmanns, viadee blog: a local AI coding assistant with Continue (Aug 20, 2025)