Softwr

Software Development · head to head

Amp vs Cline

A

Amp

Software Development

Amp is the frontier agent

From
$20/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Cline logo

Cline

Software Development

The Open Coding Agent

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Cline has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Amp minimum $20/month subscription cost with limited orb hours (750); Cline no seat licenses or subscription fees for open source tier creates unclear Enterprise pricing model
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amp and Cline actually diverge.

Attributes where Amp and Cline differ
AttributeAmpCline
Starting price$20/monthlyFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionusage-based
Free tierNoYes

Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Software Development).

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amp

  • Building and running parallel AI agents for automationnot Cline
  • Accessing multiple AI models via single subscriptionnot Cline
  • Developing AI applications with flexible compute modelsnot Cline
  • Running high-capacity agent workloads in ultra modenot Cline

Cline

  • AI-assisted code generation and refactoringnot Amp
  • VS Code extension for developersnot Amp
  • Enterprise multi-user team collaborationnot Amp

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amp

  • Minimum $20/month subscription cost with limited orb hours (750)
  • High-tier Gigawatt plan at $200/month required for ultra mode agents
  • Usage limits apply after included quotas are consumed each month
  • Each user limited to maximum of 2 simultaneous subscriptions

Cline

  • no seat licenses or subscription fees for open source tier creates unclear Enterprise pricing model
  • JetBrains IDE support only in Enterprise tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Amp

$20/monthly
  • Megawatt$20/monthly
    • All product features
    • 750 hours of orbs
    • Use your ChatGPT subscription
  • Gigawatt$200/monthly
    • Everything in Megawatt plus: 1
    • 000 hours of xxlarge orbs
    • $200 included agent usage
  • Education Discount$10/monthly
    • For students and teachers: full access at $10/month (50% off Megawatt)
  • Unconstrained$undefined/usage
    • Pay for what you use at standard rates
    • all agent modes
    • API pricing for model tokens and orbs

Cline

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Cline review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Amp if

Nothing in the data separates Amp from Cline on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

Amp review

Choose Cline if

  • You want to start without paying.
Cline review

Questions people ask

Is Amp or Cline better?
Neither clearly leads. Amp starts at $20/monthly and Cline at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amp or Cline?
Cline has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $20/monthly for Amp and Free for Cline.
Does Amp or Cline run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Cline for free?
Yes. Cline has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Amp starts at $20/monthly.
What is Amp best used for?
Amp is most often used for building and running parallel ai agents for automation, accessing multiple ai models via single subscription, developing ai applications with flexible compute models, running high-capacity agent workloads in ultra mode. Of those, building and running parallel ai agents for automation and accessing multiple ai models via single subscription are not what Cline is typically brought in for.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amp: How much does Amp cost per month?

Amp offers two main monthly plans: Megawatt at $20/month (750 hours of orbs) and Gigawatt at $200/month (1,000 hours of xxlarge orbs). Students and teachers get a 50% education discount ($10/month). Source: https://ampcode.com/pricing

Source
Cline: Is Cline free?

Yes, Cline open source is free and Apache 2.0 licensed; you pay only for AI model inference when you use it, with no subscriptions or seat licenses.

Source
Amp: What usage is included in Amp subscriptions?

At minimum, Amp subscriptions include agent usage equal to the subscription cost per month. Depending on usage patterns, you may receive additional usage beyond the base guarantee. Megawatt includes 750 orb hours and Gigawatt includes 1,000 hours of xxlarge orbs.

Source
Cline: Does Cline have team collaboration features?

Team collaboration is available in the Enterprise tier only, which includes SSO/OIDC, role-based access control, team management dashboard, and audit logs.

Source
Amp: Can I use my own ChatGPT subscription with Amp?

Yes, Amp subscribers who link a ChatGPT subscription pay no per-token fees and can use as many tokens as their third-party subscription allows, making it ideal for users who already have ChatGPT access.

Source
Cline: Can I use my own AI API keys with Cline?

Yes, you can bring your own API keys from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and other providers, giving you full control over inference costs.

Source
Cline: What's included in Cline Enterprise?

Cline Enterprise adds JetBrains IDE support, SSO/OIDC authentication, SLA, dedicated support, centralized billing, role-based access control, and audit logging to the open source features.

Source
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