What it does
Qwen Code is an AI coding agent from the team behind the Qwen models. You describe a task in plain language, and it reads your project, writes and edits code, runs tests and explains things. You can use it in the terminal, a desktop app, a web interface or code-editor plug-ins.
It works with Qwen models and also with OpenAI, Anthropic and Google models, other providers, and local models through Ollama or vLLM. Its makers compare it feature by feature with Claude Code. Extras include chatting with it through Telegram, DingTalk, WeChat or Feishu, and an "arena" that pits several models against each other on the same task.
It began as a copy of Google's Gemini CLI and has been developed separately since.
Who it's for
Programmers who want an open-source coding agent they can use with the model of their choice.
Can I use it without coding?
With some setup. Installed with one command and used in the terminal; there's also a desktop app. You need an AI provider account or a local model. New to this? Start here.
Can I run it?
- Cost
- Free, but needs an AI accountThe software is free, but it uses an online AI service (like OpenAI or Anthropic), which usually charges for use.
- Runs on
- Mac, Windows, Linux, Web browser
- Privacy
- Your choice: run it on your device or use an online service
- API key
- Not needed
Try it
- Download Qwen Code Desktop for Mac, Windows or Linux, or install the terminal version.
- Set up your AI provider and API key, or connect a local model.
- Open your project and ask it to explain the code.
Using Claude Code, Cursor or another AI coding assistant? Paste the prompt and it will walk you through the setup.New to this?
Before you install
- Only download from the official GitHub page or the official download page above. Copies with similar names exist for many popular projects.
- License (Apache-2.0): Permissive: free to use, change and share, including for business.
- More on staying safe