--- title: Qwen Code slug: qwen-code url: "https://toolweight.com/tools/qwen-code" homepage: "https://qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/" categories: coding-agents last_verified: 2026-11-07 dataset_version: 0738be72 license: CC-BY-4.0 --- # Qwen Code > Apache-2.0 Gemini CLI fork tuned for Qwen3-Coder, with a large free daily quota. - A fork of Gemini CLI re-targeted at the Qwen3-Coder models. - Inherits a mature harness (MCP, custom commands, checkpointing) without building one. - A Qwen sign-in grants a substantial free daily request quota. - Speaks OpenAI-compatible endpoints, so it works against any compatible provider or a local server. ## Identity | | | | --- | --- | | Name | Qwen Code | | Company | Alibaba | | One-liner | Apache-2.0 Gemini CLI fork tuned for Qwen3-Coder, with a large free daily quota. | | Site | https://qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/ | | Repo | https://github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code | | 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 **#10 of 17** on default weights. | Field | Value | Confidence | Verified | Source | Note | Permalink | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Surface | CLI | Vendor-claimed | 2026-01-15 | https://github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--surface | | Default model | Latest Qwen3-Coder model | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--default_model | | Model breadth | one vendor + custom endpoint | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | Tuned for Qwen but speaks OpenAI-compatible endpoints, so routers and local servers work. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--model_breadth | | Repo indexing | agentic grep | Inferred | - | - | Inherited from Gemini CLI. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--repo_indexing | | Plan mode | ◐ | Inferred | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--plan_mode | | Checkpoint & undo | ● | Inferred | - | - | Inherits Gemini CLI's restore mechanism. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--checkpointing | | Headless / CI | ● | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--headless_ci | | Local models | ● | Community-reported | - | - | Open-weight Qwen models, plus any OpenAI-compatible local server. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--local_models | | Where it stops | 3 | Inferred | - | - | Edits files and runs commands locally; no PR path. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--stops_at | | MCP | ● | Inferred | - | - | Inherited from the upstream fork. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--mcp_support | | Subagents | ● | Vendor-claimed | 2026-11-07 | https://raw.githubusercontent.com/QwenLM/qwen-code/main/docs/users/features/sub-agents.md | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--subagents | | Hooks | ● | Vendor-claimed | 2026-11-07 | https://qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/features/hooks/ | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--hooks | | Skills / commands | ● | Inferred | - | - | TOML custom commands, as upstream. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--skills_commands | | Background agents | ○ | Inferred | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--background_agents | | Opens PRs | ○ | Inferred | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--pr_authoring | | Permissions | granular allowlist | Inferred | - | - | Approval modes inherited from Gemini CLI. The upstream sandbox may well have come across with the fork, which would put this a tier higher alongside Gemini CLI and Goose, but we could not confirm it in the fork's own documentation and we grade the control we can confirm. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--permission_model | | BYOK | ● | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--byok | | Licence | Apache-2.0 | Vendor-claimed | 2026-01-15 | https://github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--licence | | Pricing model | BYOK tokens only | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | The free daily quota is a vendor-provided allowance on a Qwen account rather than your key, the same shape as Gemini CLI's. It stays encoded as BYOK because there is no paid seat behind it that we can name; above the quota you bring a key. Gemini CLI is encoded a tier lower precisely because it does sell a seat. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--pricing_model | | Entry price | $0/seat/mo | Inferred | 2026-01-15 | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--entry_price | | Token markup | ○ | Inferred | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--gateway_markup | | GitHub stars | 13,000 | Community-reported | - | - | Rounded, moderate confidence. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--github_stars | | Terminal-Bench | - | Unknown | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--terminal_bench | | Bench model | - | Unknown | - | - | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--terminal_bench_model | | Positioning | A command-line coding agent tuned for the Qwen3-Coder models. | Vendor-claimed | - | https://qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/ | - | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--positioning | | First release | 2025-07-01 | Community-reported | - | - | Approximate. | https://toolweight.com/compare/coding-agents#qwen-code--first_release | **Verdict.** The clearest route to strong open-weight models in a mature loop, with a viable free quota. ## 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. - [Codex CLI](https://toolweight.com/tools/codex-cli), OpenAI's open-source Rust agent, with the strongest local sandboxing on this page. - [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. ## Logo & brand colours SVG files: https://toolweight.com/teams/qwen/logo.svg and https://toolweight.com/teams/qwen/mono.svg. JSON: https://toolweight.com/api/v1/brands/qwen. | Hex | oklch | | --- | --- | | #000000 | oklch(0.0% 0.000 0.0) | ## 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/qwen-code - Machine-readable: https://toolweight.com/tools/qwen-code.md · https://toolweight.com/api/v1 · https://toolweight.com/mcp - Toolweight takes no affiliate revenue and sells no placements.