Is Continue worth it?

Continue is worth it if developers who want a fully open-source, self-hosted ai assistant with control over which models and data leave their machine. It's not the right pick if developers who prefer a fully managed, no-configuration coding assistant out of the box. A free tier lets you test it at no cost first.

Does Continue have a free tier?

Yes, Continue offers a free tier or free plan.

What are the best Continue alternatives?

Top alternatives include Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Claude Code. See the full comparison on our Continue alternatives page.

Continue

Open-source AI coding assistant for VS Code and JetBrains

AI Coding

Free tier

open-source

self-hosted

vscode

jetbrains

Continue is Open-source AI coding assistant for VS Code and JetBrains. Best for developers who want a fully open-source, self-hosted ai assistant with control over which models and data leave their machine. Pricing: Free and open-source (self-hosted with your own API keys); hosted plans reportedly from ~$10/mo — check continue.dev. A free tier is available.

See Continue pricing, plans & free tier →

Overview

Continue is an open-source IDE extension that brings customizable AI chat, inline autocomplete, and agentic edits to VS Code and JetBrains. It supports any LLM provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, local Ollama, etc.) and keeps code on your machine. Its open-source repository remains active on GitHub.

Best for

Developers who want a fully open-source, self-hosted AI assistant with control over which models and data leave their machine.

Not for

Developers who prefer a fully managed, no-configuration coding assistant out of the box.

What people use it for

Bring-your-own-model AI chat

Inline autocomplete with local LLMs

Codebase-aware Q&A

Custom AI workflows

Alternatives to Continue

Compare all alternatives →

Other AI Coding tools worth comparing.

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Cursor

The AI-first code editor built for working at the speed of thought

Free tier

Multi-file refactoring

Codebase-wide chat

Free Hobby tier; Pro ~$20/user/mo; Business ~$40/user/moVisit

Continue vs Cursor

GitHub Copilot

AI pair programmer that autocompletes code and chats inside your editor

Free tier

Inline code completion

Code explanation and chat

Free tier with limited completions; Pro from ~$10/user/mo; Business ~$19/user/mo; Enterprise ~$39/user/moVisit

Continue vs GitHub Copilot

Claude Code

Anthropic's agentic coding tool that lives in your terminal

Terminal-based agentic coding

Large multi-file changes

Included in Claude Pro/Max consumer plans (from ~$20/mo); API usage-based billing for pay-as-you-goVisit

Continue vs Claude Code

Windsurf

Agentic IDE with Cascade flows that keep you and the AI in sync

Free tier

Agentic multi-step edits

Codebase-aware autocomplete

Free tier; Pro from ~$15/user/mo; Teams/Enterprise tiers aboveVisit

Continue vs Windsurf

Frequently asked questions

Is Continue worth it?: Continue is worth it if developers who want a fully open-source, self-hosted ai assistant with control over which models and data leave their machine. It's not the right pick if developers who prefer a fully managed, no-configuration coding assistant out of the box. A free tier lets you test it at no cost first.
What is Continue?: Continue is Open-source AI coding assistant for VS Code and JetBrains. It's best for developers who want a fully open-source, self-hosted ai assistant with control over which models and data leave their machine.
How much does Continue cost?: Free and open-source (self-hosted with your own API keys); hosted plans reportedly from ~$10/mo — check continue.dev
Does Continue have a free tier?: Yes, Continue offers a free tier or free plan.
What are the best Continue alternatives?: Top alternatives include Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Claude Code. See the full comparison on our Continue alternatives page.