Last updated: May 2026
Yes. The Cline extension itself is completely free and open source (Apache 2.0 license). You pay nothing to install or use Cline. The cost comes from the AI model API calls — you connect your own API key from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, or any OpenAI-compatible provider, and pay them directly at their published rates. Cline takes no markup.
It depends entirely on which model you use and how heavily you code with it.
| Usage level | Typical monthly cost |
|---|---|
| Light (few sessions/week) | $5–15 |
| Moderate (daily use, mixed tasks) | $25–70 |
| Heavy (all-day agentic coding) | $100–200+ |
The most common setup — Claude Sonnet 4.6 for complex tasks, a cheaper model for routine work — runs most developers $20–50/month. Once you exceed $20–30/month in API costs, fixed-price tools like Cursor Pro ($20) or Copilot Pro ($10) can become more cost-effective for straightforward tasks.
No. Cline is an agentic coding assistant, not an autocomplete tool. It reads files, writes code, runs terminal commands, and handles multi-file tasks — but it does not provide inline tab completions as you type. If you need autocomplete, run Cline alongside Cursor, Windsurf, or Continue.dev, which all provide fast tab completions.
Cline runs as a VS Code extension — which means it also runs inside Cursor and Windsurf, both of which are VS Code forks. JetBrains support is available on the Teams plan. There is no standalone desktop app; Cline lives inside your existing editor.
Any OpenAI-compatible API endpoint. Out of the box: Anthropic Claude (Sonnet, Opus, Haiku), OpenAI (GPT-4o, o3), Google Gemini, AWS Bedrock, Azure OpenAI, OpenRouter (access to 100+ models through one key), and local models via Ollama. You can switch models per session or configure different models for different task types. See Cline + DeepSeek setup guide for a cost-optimized configuration example.
Before making changes, Cline shows you a plan — which files it intends to edit and what it will do. You approve or modify the plan before Cline acts. This keeps you in control of changes and prevents the agent from making unexpected modifications. Plan/Act mode is enabled by default and is one of Cline's core design principles.
Yes. The Teams plan adds centralized billing, team management, role-based access control, and JetBrains IDE support. It costs $20/user/month, with the first 10 seats permanently free. Teams of under 10 people pay nothing beyond API costs.
Cline is more flexible and potentially cheaper; Cursor is more polished and predictable. Cursor Pro at $20/month includes tab autocomplete, codebase indexing, and a fully integrated agent — at a flat price. Cline requires API key management and variable-cost billing, but gives you full model choice, no lock-in, and open-source transparency. See Cursor vs Cline for a full breakdown.
Create a .clinerules file in your project root with build commands, coding standards, architecture constraints, and a definition of done. Cline reads this at the start of every session. See the Cline Rules guide for a complete reference with templates.
Your code is sent to whichever API provider you configure. If you use Anthropic's Claude API, your code goes to Anthropic's servers. If you use Ollama with a local model, your code never leaves your machine. For teams with strict data residency requirements, the local Ollama setup is the most privacy-complete option.