The best AI coding agents in 2026

A coding agent takes a task, not a line: it reads the code, plans the change, edits files, runs the tests and tells you what it verified. There are now several worth knowing. This guide sets out what to look for in one, why we put DCode 2.5 first, and the other agents worth a look, each described from its maker's pages. We build DCode, so read our pick as our view.

What should you look for in an AI coding agent?

• The whole task. One prompt carried from reading the repository to a tested change.
• Parallel work. Independent parts of a large job handed to several agents that run at the same time.
• A say in what runs. Safe steps that go ahead on their own, and risky ones that wait for you.
• The git loop. A branch of its own, a pull request, and help when the checks fail.
• Reach beyond the editor. A browser for web apps, the screen for desktop software, MCP for your own tools.
• Scripts and CI. A one-shot mode with output a script can read, and a way to sign in on a build machine.
• A model with published results. Tests of autonomous work, with the places another model leads stated plainly.
• A clear way to pay. A free start, then a plan or pay-as-you-go credits.

Why do we put DCode first?

Because DCode 2.5 answers each of those points on one account, in a desktop app for Windows and macOS and a CLI for Windows, macOS and Linux. Before it changes anything, DCode indexes the repository tree, type definitions and dependency graph. Then it plans the change, edits files across the project, runs your compilers, linters and tests in your local terminal, repairs what it broke and reports what was verified. DCode 2.5, released on November 10, made that loop faster and gave it a pull request at the end.

How does a crew work in DCode 2.5?

When a task has parts that do not depend on each other, DCode hands them to a crew of up to 24 agents, and since 2.5 a crew starts all of its parts together when your computer has the memory for it. In Settings, General, Agents at once sets the most a crew runs at the same time: Auto lets DCode decide from your free memory, or you choose a number. When memory is low or the computer is busy, DCode runs fewer at once, queues the rest and says why in the Crew dock. A crew is counted in tokens only, with no separate charge for agents working in parallel; our story on crews explains how the work is split.

How much does DCode do on its own?

As much as the permission mode you pick allows. Auto, new in 2.5, starts from Ask before changes and checks each step that mode would ask about against your latest request. A step runs on its own only when it clearly helps with your request, only reads or only changes files inside the project, is easy to undo and sends nothing off your computer. Pushes, deploys, opening a pull request, and anything that touches credentials or keys always come to you, and Auto never refuses a step by itself: the most it does is ask. The mode once called Autonomous mode is now Fewer questions, which stops only before a dangerous command. In the desktop app, Ctrl+Shift+M moves through the modes; in the CLI, Shift+Tab does.

How do pull requests work from the desktop app?

A task can run in its own worktree, a separate copy of the project on a new branch, so it never clashes with your own edits or with other tasks. When the work is committed, Create pull request reads your commits and fills in the title and description; if the branch is not on GitHub yet, Push and create pushes it first. The pull request's row shows its checks, and when one fails, Fix failing checks opens a new task whose prompt lists the failing checks and the end of their logs. Pull requests need a GitHub remote and the GitHub CLI, gh, signed in. The Agents view puts every task and helper running now in one place, with a Stop button for each.

What can DCode reach beyond your code?

• Browser Use. DCode opens pages in its own built-in browser, reads them, clicks and types, to look things up and to test your work. Sites you sign in to can stay signed in for 30 days, and its password manager keeps passwords on your computer and fills them in itself; they are never sent to the AI model. Posting, sending, buying and deleting on a website ask you first.
• Computer Use. When a task leaves the terminal, DCode sees your screen and works the apps on it, on Windows and macOS: it clicks, types and reads what is really there. It suits testing an app by using it, and tools with no API or command line.
• MCP. DCode speaks the Model Context Protocol natively, so it can query a database, fetch GitHub issues, read live API documentation or call an internal tool. In the CLI, dcode mcp adds, lists and removes MCP servers.
• Plugins. A plugin bundles skills, commands, hooks and MCP servers. Our official catalog is a public repository on GitHub, and DCode checks every file it downloads from it against the size and file hash the catalog lists, as our story on the catalog describes.

Can DCode run in scripts and CI?

Yes. dcode -p runs one prompt without the workspace and exits, printing text, JSON or stream-json. DCode 2.5 gave it the options a CI job needs: --allowed-tools to allow the tools a job uses up front, --json-schema for an answer that must match a schema, and --max-turns to bound a run. DCODE_API_KEY signs in a CI machine with a key from your dashboard, kept in your CI's secrets:

export DCODE_API_KEY="<your key, from your CI secrets>"
dcode -p "Review the changes on this branch and list the risks" --mode plan --output-format json > review.json

dcode schedule runs a prompt on a timetable, in Auto unless you choose another mode. Our story on scripting and CI walks through each option with working examples.

Which model runs DCode?

DCode runs on the Raven models, Raven Flash for fast agentic work and Raven Max for deep architectural refactors, at the thinking level you set: Off, Low, Standard or High. In our published results, which are company-reported and evaluated with maximum reasoning effort, Raven Max placed first among the models compared on three of the eight tests. On Agent's Last Exam, long-horizon reasoning over many dependent steps, it scored 39.5, 7.9 points ahead of Fable 5.

On Terminal Bench 4.0, autonomous software engineering in a live terminal, Raven Max placed first at 42.8, a narrow 0.4 ahead of Fable 5, and Raven Flash placed first among the fast models it is compared with, at 34.1. Where another model leads, we say so: on DeepSWE v1.1, GPT-5.6 Sol placed first at 70.2 and Raven Max fourth at 68.7. The full tables are in our report on Raven Max.

What does DCode cost?

DCode is a free download, and you sign in with Google, Apple or your email address. Your Raven plan works in it from the start, Raven Free included, and the DCode Coding Plan, at $29 a month, is our highest-capacity plan, built for continuous, heavy coding. You can also pay per token from prepaid API credits, in packs from $5; the switch between plan and credits is in Settings, and our story on plan or credits walks through both.

Which other coding agents are worth a look?

Each is described here only as its maker describes it, on the page linked.

• Claude Code, from Anthropic, is in its own words an agentic coding tool that reads your codebase, edits files, runs commands and integrates with your development tools, available in your terminal, IDE, desktop app and browser. Since November 12 it can also run Raven Max, as our setup guide shows.
• OpenAI Codex, from OpenAI, is used across ChatGPT, your editor and the terminal, all connected by a ChatGPT account, and its repository describes the Codex CLI as a coding agent that runs locally on your computer.
• Cursor, from Anysphere, offers its desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux on its download page, and since August 7, 2025, Cursor Agent has also run from the CLI, or headless in any environment.
• GitHub Copilot, from GitHub, is available in IDEs including Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio and JetBrains IDEs, and in the terminal and on the web, and its page lists a Free plan, for getting started.

For a closer look at one of them, see our guides to alternatives to Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor and GitHub Copilot.

How do I switch?

1. Download DCode for Windows or macOS from the download page, or install the CLI with one line or from npm.
2. Sign in with Google, Apple or your email address; your Raven plan works in DCode from the start.
3. Choose Auto as the permission mode, and Raven Flash or Raven Max for the job.
4. Hand DCode a task with a clear end state, such as a failing test to fix, and open the pull request from the desktop app when it is done.

Everything DCode does is on the DCode page, and plans are on the pricing page. The permission modes guide, the git and pull requests guide and the scripting and CI guide go further.

Product names are trademarks of their owners and are used here only to identify the products.