Qwen Code

Alibaba's official open-source terminal agent for Qwen coder models.

Open Source Coding & Development
Visit Website ↗ by Alibaba (Qwen)

What is Qwen Code?

Qwen Code is the Alibaba Qwen team's own CLI coding agent, built for their Qwen coder models. It lives in the terminal and handles reading, editing, and running code through natural-language instructions. With 28k stars, it ranks among the fastest-growing open coding agents.

Key features

  • Official agent from the Qwen team
  • Terminal-native coding workflow
  • Optimized for Qwen coder models
  • Apache 2.0 licensed

Watch: Qwen Code tutorial

Qwen-3 Coder CLI Forgets Everything. I Gave It a Perfect Memory. Qwen-3 Coder CLI Forgets Everything. I Gave It a Perfect Memory. — Eric Tech

Video by Eric Tech on YouTube — plays here without leaving this page.

Pros

  • First-party tuning for Qwen models
  • Free and open source
  • Very active development

Cons

  • Best experience is tied to Qwen models
  • Terminal-only interface
  • Newer project — ecosystem still growing

Qwen Code at a glance

PricingOpen Source
CategoryCoding & Development
Platformswindows, macos, linux
CompanyAlibaba (Qwen)
Official websitegithub.com
coding-agentterminalqwenalibabacli

How to choose the right Coding & Development tool

The right coding tool depends on where you write code and how much of your codebase it can understand. IDE integration is the first filter — a tool that lives in your editor, sees your project files and respects your stack will help far more than a general chatbot you paste snippets into. Look for accurate completions, clear explanations of suggested changes, and strong refactoring and debugging support for your main languages. Privacy deserves real attention: check whether your code is used for training, and whether a self-hosted or enterprise option exists for sensitive projects. Price against the hours it actually saves — most developers feel the difference within the first week of real use.

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Qwen Code FAQs

What is Qwen Code?

Qwen Code is the Alibaba Qwen team's own CLI coding agent, built for their Qwen coder models. It lives in the terminal and handles reading, editing, and running code through natural-language instructions. With 28k stars, it ranks among the fastest-growing open coding agents.

What are the main features of Qwen Code?

Qwen Code offers Official agent from the Qwen team, Terminal-native coding workflow, Optimized for Qwen coder models and Apache 2.0 licensed.

How much does Qwen Code cost?

Qwen Code is open source, so the software itself is free to download, use and self-host. Your only costs are the infrastructure you run it on and any paid services you connect to it.

What are the pros and cons of Qwen Code?

Strengths of Qwen Code include First-party tuning for Qwen models; Free and open source; Very active development. On the downside, Best experience is tied to Qwen models; Terminal-only interface; Newer project — ecosystem still growing.