Roo Code — Cursor alternative

Roo Code puts a team of agentic AI assistants directly in your editor, with the power to plan, write, and fix code across multiple files. It reads your entire codebase, preserving valid code through diff-based edits for seamless multi-file refactors. Solo developers benefit from multiple specialized modes, open-source flexibility, and model-agnostic architecture that works with any AI provider. This Cursor alternatives approach eliminates vendor lock-in while providing autonomous coding assistance.

Strengths

Deep project-wide context that reads entire codebases for accurate multi-file operations
Multiple specialized modes for coding, debugging, architecture, and testing scenarios
Open-source and model-agnostic with support for local AI models
Guarded command execution with approve/deny workflow for automation oversight
Automated browser actions for web app testing directly from VS Code
No subscription fee – pay only for the API tokens you use with your chosen model

Weaknesses

Can end up being costly in the long run due to token-based pricing
No direct cost control when using third-party model providers
Excessive token usage when multiple MCPs are enabled, increasing API costs
Requires technical setup of API keys and model configuration
Limited to VS Code ecosystem only

Best for

Developers who want open-source flexibility, multi-model support, and deep codebase understanding without vendor lock-in.

Pricing plans

Free Extension — $0/month — Pay only for API tokens used with your chosen model
Roo Code Cloud — Free during promotional period — Access to grok-code-fast-1 and code-supernova models

Tech details

Type: VS Code extension with autonomous AI agents
IDEs: Visual Studio Code
Key features: Multi-agent system, specialized modes, diff-based editing, browser automation, custom workflows
Privacy / hosting: Bring your own model or use local AI—no vendor lock-in. Self-hosted options available through local models.
Models / context window: Supports multiple providers including xAI Grok-2 with 32K context window, OpenAI, Anthropic, and local models

When to choose this over Cursor

You prefer open-source tools with full customization control
You need model flexibility and want to avoid vendor lock-in
You already use VS Code and want to enhance it rather than switch editors

When Cursor may be a better fit

You want a complete IDE solution rather than an extension
You prefer fixed subscription pricing over token-based costs
You need integrated chat and editing features in a single interface

Conclusion

Roo Code delivers an AI-powered dev team experience with deep project-wide context and multi-step agentic coding directly within VS Code. Its open-source nature and model-agnostic approach make it appealing for developers seeking flexibility. However, token-based pricing can become expensive, and setup requires more technical configuration than standalone editors.