---
title: Codex CLI
slug: codex-cli
url: "https://toolweight.com/tools/codex-cli"
homepage: "https://developers.openai.com/codex/cli"
categories: coding-agents
last_verified: 2026-11-07
dataset_version: 0738be72
license: CC-BY-4.0
---

# Codex CLI

> OpenAI's open-source Rust agent, with the strongest local sandboxing on this page.

- Apache-2.0 Rust binary running agentic coding locally.
- OS-level sandboxing via Seatbelt on macOS and Landlock on Linux, the most serious containment here.
- Pairs with Codex cloud tasks that run in OpenAI's containers and open pull requests.
- Tuned for GPT-5 Codex but accepts arbitrary OpenAI-compatible providers, so local models work.

## Identity

|  |  |
| --- | --- |
| Name | Codex CLI |
| Company | OpenAI |
| One-liner | OpenAI's open-source Rust agent, with the strongest local sandboxing on this page. |
| Site | https://developers.openai.com/codex/cli |
| Docs | https://developers.openai.com/codex |
| Repo | https://github.com/openai/codex |
| Founded | 2025 |
| Open source | Yes |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 |
| Compared in | 1 |

## Where it is compared

### [Coding agents](https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents)
Ranked **#4 of 17** on default weights.
| Field | Value | Confidence | Verified | Source | Note | Permalink |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Surface | CLI, IDE extension, web, cloud delegate | Vendor-claimed | 2026-01-15 | https://developers.openai.com/codex | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--surface |
| Default model | Latest GPT-5 Codex model | Inferred | - | - | Point release rotates; the Codex-tuned family is the constant. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--default_model |
| Model breadth | one vendor + custom endpoint | Vendor-claimed | 2026-01-15 | https://github.com/openai/codex/blob/main/docs/config.md | First-class for OpenAI; arbitrary OpenAI-compatible providers configurable, including local servers. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--model_breadth |
| Repo indexing | agentic grep | Community-reported | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--repo_indexing |
| Plan mode | ◐ | Inferred | - | - | Plans internally and surfaces the plan, but there is no read-only approval gate before edits. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--plan_mode |
| Checkpoint & undo | ◐ | Community-reported | - | - | Sessions resume, but there is no working-tree rollback beyond git. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--checkpointing |
| Headless / CI | ● | Vendor-claimed | 2026-11-06 | https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/codex/cli | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--headless_ci |
| Local models | ● | Community-reported | - | - | Via the OpenAI-compatible provider config; tool-use reliability depends entirely on the local model. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--local_models |
| Where it stops | 4 | Inferred | - | - | The local CLI stops at rung 3; Codex cloud tasks push branches and open PRs. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--stops_at |
| MCP | ● | Vendor-claimed | 2026-11-06 | https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/codex/cli | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--mcp_support |
| Subagents | ○ | Community-reported | - | - | No first-class child-agent primitive at our last pass. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--subagents |
| Hooks | ◐ | Community-reported | - | - | Notification hooks exist; they cannot veto a tool call. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--hooks |
| Skills / commands | ◐ | Community-reported | - | - | Custom prompt files plus AGENTS.md, short of a full skills system. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--skills_commands |
| Background agents | ● | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--background_agents |
| Opens PRs | ● | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--pr_authoring |
| Permissions | allowlist + OS sandbox | Vendor-claimed | 2026-01-15 | https://github.com/openai/codex | Seatbelt on macOS, Landlock on Linux, with approval modes layered on top. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--permission_model |
| BYOK | ● | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--byok |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | Vendor-claimed | 2026-11-06 | https://github.com/openai/codex | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--licence |
| Pricing model | subscription + token overage | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | Included with ChatGPT paid plans, or metered against an API key. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--pricing_model |
| Entry price | $20/seat/mo | Vendor-claimed | 2026-01-15 | https://openai.com/chatgpt/pricing/ | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--entry_price |
| Token markup | ○ | Inferred | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--gateway_markup |
| GitHub stars | 42,000 | Community-reported | - | - | Rounded; stars move weekly. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--github_stars |
| Terminal-Bench | 62.9% | Community-reported | 2026-11-07 | https://www.tbench.ai/?version=2.0 | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--terminal_bench |
| Bench model | GPT-5.2 | Community-reported | 2026-11-07 | https://www.tbench.ai/?version=2.0 | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--terminal_bench_model |
| Positioning | A coding agent that runs locally, in your terminal. | Vendor-claimed | 2026-11-06 | https://github.com/openai/codex | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--positioning |
| First release | 2025-04-16 | Community-reported | - | - | Original TypeScript release; rewritten in Rust later that year. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#codex-cli--first_release |

**Verdict.** The best local containment story here, but weaker than Claude Code on orchestration primitives.

## Alternatives

- [Aider](https://toolweight.com/tools/aider), Minimal terminal pair-programmer with a tree-sitter repo map and automatic git commits.
- [Amp](https://toolweight.com/tools/amp), Sourcegraph's opinionated agent with no model picker and an ad-supported free tier.
- [Claude Code](https://toolweight.com/tools/claude-code), Anthropic's terminal-first agent, with IDE, web and GitHub Action surfaces.
- [Cline](https://toolweight.com/tools/cline), Open-source VS Code and JetBrains agent built around an explicit plan/act split.
- [Cursor](https://toolweight.com/tools/cursor), VS Code fork with a real codebase index, background cloud agents and a CLI.
- [Devin](https://toolweight.com/tools/devin), Fully delegated cloud engineer: file a task in Slack or the web app, get a PR back.
- [DIY harness](https://toolweight.com/tools/diy-harness), Your own loop over a model API with an agent SDK, the build-it-yourself reference point.
- [Gemini CLI](https://toolweight.com/tools/gemini-cli), Apache-2.0 terminal agent from Google with an unusually generous free tier.
- [GitHub Copilot (Agent HQ)](https://toolweight.com/tools/github-copilot), Copilot's coding agent plus a control plane for running third-party agents on your repos.
- [Goose](https://toolweight.com/tools/goose), Block's Apache-2.0 agent, MCP-native from the start, as both a CLI and a desktop app.
- [Grok Build](https://toolweight.com/tools/grok-build), xAI's coding harness, launched July 2026, on this page but not yet verified.
- [Kilo Code](https://toolweight.com/tools/kilo-code), Open-source VS Code agent in the Cline/Roo lineage, with an orchestrator mode and a CLI.

## Licence and attribution

Data from Toolweight (https://toolweight.com), licensed CC-BY-4.0.

- Licence: [CC-BY-4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
- Canonical HTML: https://toolweight.com/tools/codex-cli
- Machine-readable: https://toolweight.com/tools/codex-cli.md · https://toolweight.com/api/v1 · https://toolweight.com/mcp
- Toolweight takes no affiliate revenue and sells no placements.