Short answer: Continue is the AI coding assistant to pick if you want the in-editor autocomplete and chat experience of a tool like Copilot, but open source and running on whatever model you choose. It installs as an extension in VS Code or JetBrains, gives you tab autocomplete plus an in-editor chat and agent, and lets you point it at any model — a top cloud API or a fully local one. Continue is free and open source; there is no subscription for the extension itself, and your only cost is whatever your chosen model provider charges per token (or nothing at all if you run a local model). Choose it if you value control, transparency and staying inside your existing IDE; look elsewhere if you want a single vendor to manage the model, billing and support for you.
This review is expert analysis drawn from Continue’s open-source documentation, its published feature set and aggregated developer feedback through mid-2026 — not a private benchmark or a claim of hands-on lab testing.
Continue at a glance
Pros:
- Free and open source — inspect it, extend it, self-host the whole setup
- Lives inside VS Code and JetBrains, so no new app to learn
- Bring your own model — leading cloud APIs or fully local models
- Autocomplete, chat, edit and agent modes in one extension
- Pay only for tokens you use; no subscription markup
- Highly configurable, with custom context providers and slash commands
Cons:
- You configure models and API keys yourself — more setup than install-and-go
- Quality depends heavily on the model you plug in
- No single vendor to call for support; you lean on docs and community
- Local models need capable hardware to feel fast
What Continue is
Continue is an open-source AI code assistant that runs as an extension inside your existing editor — Visual Studio Code or the JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ, PyCharm, WebStorm and the rest). Rather than being a standalone app or a locked-in service, it adds the familiar AI coding surfaces directly to the editor you already use: inline tab autocomplete as you type, an in-editor chat panel for asking questions about your code, an edit mode for rewriting selected code in place, and an agent mode for multi-step tasks.
The defining idea is that Continue is model-agnostic and open. You are not tied to one company’s model or pricing. You configure which model powers autocomplete, which powers chat, and which powers the agent — mixing a fast, cheap model for completions with a stronger model for reasoning, for example. That configurability, and the fact that the whole thing is open source, is what sets Continue apart from managed assistants. It sits in our Best AI Coding Assistants 2026: Top Picks Compared & Ranked guide as the pick for developers who want Copilot-style ergonomics without the closed model and the subscription.
The in-editor experience
What makes Continue immediately approachable is that it does not ask you to leave your editor. If you already work in VS Code or a JetBrains IDE, Continue simply appears as autocomplete suggestions and a side panel. Type, and it offers a completion you accept with Tab; highlight a function and ask the chat to explain or refactor it; open agent mode and describe a larger change. The surfaces are the ones you would expect from any modern AI assistant — the difference is what sits behind them.
Continue’s chat is context-aware in a way that rewards configuration. You can pull in specific files, your whole codebase, documentation, terminal output or the current diff as context using its context providers, and you can define custom slash commands for repeated tasks. This is where power users get a lot of value: a well-configured Continue setup can feel tailored to your project in a way a one-size-fits-all assistant does not. The trade is that you get out what you put in — the defaults are sensible, but the best experience comes from tuning it.
Bring your own model — and real costs
Because Continue is model-agnostic, the quality and cost of your experience depend on what you plug in. Point it at a top-tier cloud model and its chat, edits and agent work are excellent, capable of multi-file reasoning. Point it at a smaller or fully local model and you trade some capability for privacy and, in the local case, zero per-token cost.
The cost story is refreshingly transparent and worth understanding clearly. There is no Continue subscription — the extension is free and open source. If you use a cloud model, you bring your own API key and pay that provider for the tokens you use, so your spend is entirely usage-based: pennies a day for light use, more for heavy all-day agentic work on a premium model. If you run a local model, the marginal cost is effectively nothing beyond your own hardware and electricity — an approach that overlaps directly with the tools in our Best Local AI Tools 2026: Run AI on Your Own PC guide and is ideal for sensitive codebases or offline work. The economics are the same control-versus-predictability trade you see across the autonomous tools in our Best AI Agents 2026: Autonomous AI That Works guide: you meter yourself and see exactly what you spend, rather than paying one fixed price.
Autocomplete, chat, edit and agent
Continue splits its capabilities into modes that map neatly to how developers actually work. Autocomplete is the fast, low-friction layer — a lightweight model finishing your lines and blocks as you type. Chat is for questions and exploration without changing code. Edit rewrites a selection in place, so you can refactor a function or fix a bug and review the result as a diff. Agent mode takes on multi-step tasks, planning and applying changes across files.
The smart move Continue enables is assigning different models to different modes. A fast, cheap model handles the constant stream of autocomplete requests, while a stronger, pricier model is reserved for chat and agent work where reasoning matters. This keeps costs sensible without dumbing down the hard tasks — a level of control managed assistants generally do not expose. For developers who like to optimise their tooling, it is one of Continue’s most satisfying features.
Continue vs Copilot and Cursor
Against GitHub Copilot, covered in our GitHub Copilot Review 2026: Still the Default?, the split is openness and control versus managed simplicity. Copilot is polished, predictable and backed by one vendor with a fixed monthly price; it just works. Continue is open source, lets you choose any model, and is free apart from token costs — but you configure it yourself and lean on community support. Developers who want to own their setup and control which model touches their code prefer Continue; developers who want a single, supported, flat-priced product prefer Copilot.
Against Cursor, an AI-first graphical editor covered in our Cursor Review 2026: The AI Code Editor, Examined, the difference is that Cursor replaces your editor while Continue lives inside the one you already have. Cursor offers a deeply integrated, refined experience at the cost of adopting a new application and a subscription. Continue keeps you in VS Code or JetBrains and stays open and model-agnostic. If you love your current editor and want AI added to it on your terms, Continue is the natural choice; if you want the most integrated AI-editing experience and will switch editors for it, Cursor makes the stronger case. We lay out where each fits in our The AI Directory.
Who should use Continue
Continue is the pick for developers who want in-editor AI assistance but on open, controllable terms: people happy to configure models and API keys, who want to choose which model powers each mode, who value open source, and who would rather pay for tokens (or run local models) than a subscription. It is a particularly strong fit for privacy-sensitive teams that need to keep code on local models, and for tinkerers who enjoy tuning context providers and custom commands to their project.
It is a weaker choice for developers who want zero setup, one vendor handling model, billing and support, and a predictable flat price. If you would rather not think about which model you are using or manage keys, a managed assistant like Copilot will meet you more than halfway.
Verdict
Continue is the open-source AI assistant for developers who want Copilot-style ergonomics without the closed model or the subscription, and in 2026 that clarity of purpose is its strength. It lives inside VS Code and JetBrains, delivers autocomplete, chat, edit and agent modes, and lets you bring whatever model you like — a premium cloud API for maximum capability or a private local model for zero-cost, offline, confidential work. For developers who value control and transparency and want to stay in their existing editor, it is one of the most flexible and trustworthy ways to code with AI.
The trade-offs are equally clear: you configure models and keys yourself, quality tracks the model you choose, and there is no single vendor to call when something breaks. Choose Continue if openness, control and staying in your current IDE are what you value — and look to a managed assistant if you want a hands-off, flat-priced, fully supported product. Because the extension is free, the only cost of trying it is a little setup and some tokens, which makes it easy to see whether the bring-your-own-model approach clicks for you.
FAQ
Is Continue worth using in 2026?
For developers who want in-editor AI on open, controllable terms, very much so. Continue is free and open source, runs inside VS Code and JetBrains, and gives you autocomplete, chat, edit and agent modes powered by whatever model you choose. It suits people comfortable configuring models and API keys who value transparency and want to stay in their existing editor. It is less suited to developers who want zero setup and one vendor to manage everything. Since the extension is free, trying it costs only setup time and tokens.
How much does Continue cost?
The Continue extension itself is free and open source — there is no subscription for the tool. If you use a cloud model, you bring your own API key and pay that provider for the tokens you use, so your spend is entirely usage-based: pennies a day for light use, more for heavy agentic work on a premium model. If you run a local model, the marginal cost is effectively nothing beyond your own hardware. The upside is total transparency and the ability to cut cost by switching models.
How is Continue different from GitHub Copilot?
The core difference is openness and control versus managed simplicity. Copilot is a polished, single-vendor product with a fixed monthly price and built-in support; see our GitHub Copilot Review 2026: Still the Default?. Continue is open source, lets you choose any model for each mode, and is free apart from token costs — but you configure it yourself and rely on documentation and community. Developers who want to own their setup and control which model sees their code prefer Continue; those who want one supported, flat-priced product prefer Copilot.
Can Continue use local AI models?
Yes, and it is one of Continue’s best traits. Because it is model-agnostic, you can point any of its modes at a local model for private, offline, zero-per-token inference instead of a cloud API — ideal for sensitive codebases and teams with strict data rules. You trade some capability for privacy and cost savings, and you need capable hardware for local models to feel fast, but the option is genuinely valuable. If a local-first setup appeals, our Best Local AI Tools 2026: Run AI on Your Own PC guide covers the models that pair well with Continue.
Which editors does Continue support?
Continue runs as an extension in Visual Studio Code and in the JetBrains family of IDEs — IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, WebStorm, GoLand and the rest. That means you add AI assistance directly to the editor you already use rather than switching to a new application, which is a key part of its appeal. If you would prefer an AI-first editor built from the ground up around an agent instead, our Cursor Review 2026: The AI Code Editor, Examined covers that alternative approach.
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