OpenCode vs Goose (2026): 172k-Star Terminal Agent vs Linux Foundation's Rust Platform

Summary

Stars, License, and Governance

OpenCode is the most-starred open-source coding agent on GitHub at 172,198 stars, ahead of gemini-cli (105,104) and openai/codex (89,991). The repo moved to anomalyco/opencode (the old sst/opencode URL redirects), and it ships under the MIT license. OpenCode Zen is the team's curated list of models tested and verified for agentic coding.

Goose has 48,542 stars under Apache-2.0. The notable 2026 change is governance: Goose moved from block/goose to the Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF) at the Linux Foundation, now at aaif-goose/goose, with a public GOVERNANCE.md and support for custom distributions. If neutral, foundation-backed governance matters for your stack, Goose has it; OpenCode is driven by anomalyco.

Install Commands

OpenCode ships through more package managers (npm, Bun, pnpm, Yarn, pacman/paru, Chocolatey/Scoop/Mise, Docker). Goose distributes the CLI via a release script and a native desktop app for macOS, Linux, and Windows.

Model Providers

OpenCode supports 75+ LLM providers through the AI SDK and the Models.dev catalog, plus local models via Ollama, LM Studio, and llama.cpp. Custom OpenAI-compatible providers are configured in JSON:

{"provider":{"myprovider":{
  "npm":"@ai-sdk/openai-compatible",
  "options":{"baseURL":"https://api.myprovider.com/v1"},
  "models":{ ... }
}}}

Goose works with 15+ providers (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Ollama, OpenRouter, Azure, Bedrock, and more) and connects to 70+ extensions over MCP. OpenCode has the wider model menu; Goose has the broader extension ecosystem and a general-purpose scope: research, writing, automation, and data analysis, not code alone.

Subscription Reuse

A common question is whether you can point either tool at a Claude Pro or Max plan instead of paying per token. You cannot. OpenCode's docs state Anthropic explicitly prohibits using Claude Pro/Max subscriptions with third-party tools like OpenCode. Both tools accept a paid Anthropic API key.

Goose reuses existing Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini subscriptions through ACP. OpenCode reuses ChatGPT Plus, GitHub Copilot, and GitLab Duo subscriptions as model backends. If you live on a Claude subscription and want a third-party agent, Goose's ACP path is the documented route; OpenCode points you to a paid Anthropic API key.

Where OpenCode Wins

Where Goose Wins

Which Model to Run Inside Each

Both agents are BYO-model, so the model you connect sets your quality and cost. The frontier coding models lead the benchmarks: Claude Opus 4.8 scores 88.6% on SWE-bench Verified (self-reported, llm-stats), Codex CLI with GPT-5.5 tops Terminal-Bench 2.1 at 83.4%, and Claude Code with Opus 4.8 follows at 78.9%. Those run at frontier API prices: Opus 4.8 is $5/M input and $25/M output, GPT-5.5 is $5/M input and $30/M output.

For open-source models, where you serve them changes both quality and cost. Most serverless providers quantize activations to fp8 to cut cost, which degrades output. Morph serves DeepSeek with 16-bit (bf16) activations and no fp8/int8 quantization, so responses match the reference weights. That makes it the best place to run DeepSeek when output fidelity matters. For coding specifically, Morph runs codegen-tuned speculative decoding (draft/ngram tuned on code) plus custom low-level inference kernels, which makes it the fastest and highest-quality option for coding agents rather than a general-purpose menu.

morph-dsv4flash runs at $0.139 per 1M input tokens and $0.278 per 1M output tokens, served at full 16-bit precision. See Morph Open Source Models and pricing.

Decision Framework

Frequently Asked Questions

Is OpenCode or Goose better?

OpenCode for a terminal-first coding agent with the largest community (172,198 stars) and the broadest model menu (75+ providers). Goose for a desktop GUI option, Linux Foundation governance, and general-purpose tasks beyond code.

What is Goose?

An open-source AI agent originally from Block, now governed by the Linux Foundation's Agentic AI Foundation at aaif-goose/goose. Written in Rust, ships as desktop app, CLI, and API, works with 15+ providers, and connects to 70+ MCP extensions. General-purpose, not code-only.

How many GitHub stars does OpenCode have?

172,198 stars (MIT), the most-starred open-source coding agent, ahead of Gemini CLI (105k) and Codex (90k).

Are they free?

Yes. OpenCode is MIT, Goose is Apache-2.0. You pay only for the model API you connect.

Can I use my Claude subscription?

Not a Claude Pro/Max subscription with OpenCode: Anthropic prohibits it for third-party tools, so OpenCode needs a paid Anthropic API key. Goose can reuse Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini subscriptions through ACP.