Aider

aid: aider
name: Aider
description: >-
  Aider is an open-source, terminal-based AI pair programmer that edits code directly inside a developer's local Git
  repository. Written in Python and distributed via PyPI under the Apache 2.0 license, Aider is a BYO-LLM tool: the user
  supplies API keys for hosted models (Anthropic Claude, OpenAI, DeepSeek, Google Gemini, OpenRouter, Mistral, xAI,
  GROQ, Cohere, GitHub Copilot, Azure OpenAI, Amazon Bedrock, Vertex AI) or points it at local models running through
  Ollama, LM Studio, or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint. Distinguishing capabilities include a repository-wide codebase
  map that lets the model reason about files it has not been shown, multi-file architectural edits with diff-based
  patching, automatic Git commits with conventional commit messages, a lint/test/repair loop, image and URL context,
  voice-to-code, and an IDE bridge via `--watch-files` that picks up `AI!` / `AI?` comments written from any editor.
  Aider supports 100+ programming languages via tree-sitter, publishes a public LLM coding leaderboard (the polyglot
  benchmark across C++, Go, Java, JavaScript, Python, Rust), and has accumulated 45K+ GitHub stars with 4.5K+ forks. The
  product surface is a rich CLI (40+ in-chat slash commands across four chat modes: code, architect, ask, help) plus a
  Python module entrypoint (`python -m aider`); there is no hosted SaaS, no Aider-operated REST API, and no app-level
  rate-limiting or billing — all model inference is delegated to the user's chosen provider, and any pricing, rate
  limits, and FinOps surface live with that provider.
type: Index
position: Provider
access: Open Source
image: https://kinlane-images.s3.amazonaws.com/shared/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
x-type: opensource
tags:
  - AI
  - AI Pair Programming
  - Developer Tools
  - CLI
  - Command Line
  - Coding Assistant
  - Code Generation
  - Open Source
  - Python
  - Apache 2.0
  - LLM
  - Git
  - BYO LLM
  - Terminal
  - Polyglot
  - Tree Sitter
  - Repository Map
  - Pair Programming
url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/aider/refs/heads/main/apis.yml
created: '2026-05-08'
modified: '2026-05-30'
specificationVersion: '0.20'
apis:
  - aid: aider:cli
    name: Aider CLI
    description: >-
      Open-source terminal AI pair programmer distributed as the `aider-chat` PyPI package (entrypoint `aider`).
      Federates to user-supplied LLM providers (Anthropic, OpenAI, DeepSeek, Google Gemini, OpenRouter, Mistral, xAI,
      GROQ, Cohere, GitHub Copilot, Azure, Bedrock, Vertex, or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint including local models via
      Ollama and LM Studio). Provides four chat modes (code, architect, ask, help), 40+ in-chat slash commands, a
      repository-wide codebase map built with tree-sitter, multi-file diff-based edits in several edit formats (diff,
      whole, udiff, editor-diff), Git auto-commit with conventional commit messages, lint/test/repair loop, image and
      URL context, voice-to-code via the `/voice` command, and an IDE bridge via `--watch-files` that picks up `AI!` /
      `AI?` comments written from any editor. Configuration via command-line flags, environment variables (`AIDER_*`),
      `.env`, or `.aider.conf.yml`.
    image: https://kinlane-images.s3.amazonaws.com/shared/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
    humanURL: https://aider.chat/
    baseURL: https://aider.chat
    version: 0.86.1
    tags:
      - CLI
      - Open Source
      - AI Pair Programming
      - BYO LLM
      - Python
      - Tree Sitter
      - Repository Map
    properties:
      - type: Documentation
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/
      - type: GitHub
        url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider
      - type: PyPI
        url: https://pypi.org/project/aider-chat/
      - type: Installation
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/install.html
      - type: UsageGuide
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage.html
      - type: Commands
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage/commands.html
      - type: ChatModes
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage/modes.html
      - type: Configuration
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/config.html
      - type: ConfigOptions
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/config/options.html
      - type: ConfigYAML
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/config/aider_conf.html
      - type: ConfigEnv
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/config/dotenv.html
      - type: APIKeys
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/config/api-keys.html
      - type: SupportedModels
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/llms.html
      - type: ModelWarnings
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/llms/warnings.html
      - type: EditFormats
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/more/edit-formats.html
      - type: Leaderboard
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/leaderboards/
      - type: ChangeLog
        url: https://aider.chat/HISTORY.html
      - type: License
        url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/blob/main/LICENSE.txt
      - type: SourceCode
        url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider
      - type: IssueTracker
        url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/issues
      - type: Tutorials
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage/tutorials.html
      - type: WatchFilesGuide
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage/watch.html
      - type: VoiceGuide
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage/voice.html
      - type: ConventionsGuide
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage/conventions.html
      - type: OpenAPI
        url: openapi/aider-cli-openapi.yml
  - aid: aider:python-module
    name: Aider Python Module
    description: >-
      Aider exposes a Python module entrypoint (`python -m aider`) and an importable package (`aider.main.main`) so
      Aider can be embedded in Python scripts, CI workflows, and other agents. The same flags and configuration that
      drive the CLI apply to module invocation. There is no documented stable Python SDK contract beyond `main()` — the
      internal `Coder`, `Model`, `IO`, and `Commands` classes are public but versioned with the CLI and may change
      between releases.
    image: https://kinlane-images.s3.amazonaws.com/shared/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
    humanURL: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/blob/main/aider/main.py
    baseURL: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider
    tags:
      - Python
      - Library
      - Embedding
      - Open Source
    properties:
      - type: SourceCode
        url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/blob/main/aider/main.py
      - type: PyPI
        url: https://pypi.org/project/aider-chat/
      - type: Documentation
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/scripting.html
      - type: Scripting
        url: https://aider.chat/docs/scripting.html
common:
  - type: Website
    url: https://aider.chat/
  - type: Documentation
    url: https://aider.chat/docs/
  - type: GitHub
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider
  - type: GitHubOrg
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI
  - type: Issues
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/issues
  - type: Discussions
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/discussions
  - type: PyPI
    url: https://pypi.org/project/aider-chat/
  - type: Installation
    url: https://aider.chat/docs/install.html
  - type: UsageGuide
    url: https://aider.chat/docs/usage.html
  - type: Configuration
    url: https://aider.chat/docs/config.html
  - type: SupportedModels
    url: https://aider.chat/docs/llms.html
  - type: Leaderboard
    url: https://aider.chat/docs/leaderboards/
  - type: Blog
    url: https://aider.chat/blog/
  - type: ChangeLog
    url: https://aider.chat/HISTORY.html
  - type: License
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider/blob/main/LICENSE.txt
  - type: Discord
    url: https://discord.gg/Tv2uQnR88V
  - type: Twitter
    url: https://twitter.com/paulgauthier
  - type: Conventions
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/conventions
  - type: Benchmarks
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/polyglot-benchmark
  - type: Tools
    title: aider-install Bootstrapper
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider-install
  - type: Tools
    title: grep-ast Repository Map Helper
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/grep-ast
  - type: Tools
    title: Polyglot Benchmark Suite
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/polyglot-benchmark
  - type: Tools
    title: Refactor Benchmark Suite
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/refactor-benchmark
  - type: Tools
    title: SWE-Bench Harness
    url: https://github.com/Aider-AI/aider-swe-bench
  - type: Tools
    title: MCP Server (Community — disler/aider-mcp-server)
    url: https://github.com/disler/aider-mcp-server
  - type: Tools
    title: MCP Server (Community — sengokudaikon/aider-mcp-server)
    url: https://github.com/sengokudaikon/aider-mcp-server
  - type: Tools
    title: MCP Package Manager for Aider (mcpm-aider)
    url: https://github.com/lutzleonhardt/mcpm-aider
  - type: Integrations
    title: NeoVim Plugin (aider.nvim)
    url: https://github.com/joshuavial/aider.nvim
  - type: Rules
    url: rules/aider-rules.yml
  - type: Vocabulary
    url: vocabulary/aider-vocabulary.yml
  - type: RateLimits
    url: rate-limits/aider-rate-limits.yml
  - type: JSONLD
    url: json-ld/aider-cli-context.jsonld
features:
  - name: Repository Map
    description: >-
      Aider builds a tree-sitter-powered map of the entire repository so the LLM can reason about files that haven't
      been explicitly added to the chat. The map is automatically refreshed and can be inspected via `/map` or rebuilt
      via `/map-refresh`.
  - name: Architect / Editor Split
    description: >-
      Architect mode pairs a reasoning-strong model (planning) with a separate editor model (file edits). This separates
      the cost of thinking from the cost of writing diffs and lets weaker editor models execute plans from stronger
      architects.
  - name: Watch Files Mode
    description: >-
      `--watch-files` lets aider sit in a terminal alongside any editor; it reacts to `AI!` and `AI?` comments authored
      from VS Code, Cursor, JetBrains, Vim, or any other editor.
  - name: Voice to Code
    description: >-
      `/voice` records microphone input, transcribes it (Whisper-style), and feeds it into the chat as a prompt.
      Optional PortAudio install required on Mac/Linux.
  - name: Auto Git Commits
    description: >-
      Every AI-applied change is automatically committed with a conventional commit message. `/undo` rolls back the last
      commit; `/diff` shows what changed since the last message.
  - name: Lint and Test Repair Loop
    description: >-
      `--auto-lint` and `--auto-test` re-run linters and tests after every edit; failures are fed back into the LLM so
      it can self-repair until the suite passes.
  - name: Polyglot Benchmark
    description: >-
      Aider publishes a public leaderboard scoring frontier LLMs against 225 Exercism exercises across C++, Go, Java,
      JavaScript, Python, and Rust — separating edit-format accuracy from raw correctness.
  - name: BYO LLM
    description: >-
      No vendor lock-in. The user supplies the API key for any of 15+ supported providers (or points at a local Ollama /
      LM Studio endpoint). Pricing, rate limits, and billing live entirely with the upstream provider.
  - name: Multiple Edit Formats
    description: >-
      Aider supports `diff`, `whole`, `udiff`, and `editor-diff` edit formats so the LLM can apply changes in whatever
      shape it executes most reliably. Edit format is auto-selected per model and can be overridden via `--edit-format`.
useCases:
  - name: Multi-File Refactor
    description: >-
      Use architect mode with a reasoning model to plan a cross-cutting refactor, then have aider apply the edits across
      dozens of files in one pass, with each edit auto-committed.
  - name: Test-Driven Bug Fixing
    description: >-
      `/test` runs the suite, the failure goes back to the model, the model proposes a fix, `/test` re-runs until green.
      The whole loop happens without leaving the terminal.
  - name: Editor-Bridged Pair Programming
    description: >-
      Run `aider --watch-files` in one pane and any editor in another; drop `# AI! make this idempotent` into the source
      file and aider picks it up, edits, and commits.
  - name: Local Model Coding
    description: >-
      Point aider at an OpenAI-compatible Ollama or LM Studio endpoint to get a fully offline coding workflow with no
      data ever leaving the developer's machine.
  - name: Benchmark Authoring
    description: >-
      Use the polyglot, refactor, and SWE-Bench harnesses (in the Aider-AI GitHub org) to benchmark a new model or new
      prompt strategy against a reproducible, published scoreboard.
integrations:
  - name: Anthropic Claude
    description: >-
      First-class support for Claude Sonnet, Opus, and Haiku via Anthropic direct API or Bedrock / Vertex. `--model
      claude-...` or `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` in the environment.
  - name: OpenAI
    description: >-
      Support for GPT-4.1, o3, o4-mini, GPT-5 family, and Responses API models (o1-pro, o3-pro). `--model gpt-...` or
      `OPENAI_API_KEY`.
  - name: Google Gemini
    description: Gemini 2.5 Pro and Flash via direct API or Vertex. Free tier available through `gemini-2.5-pro-exp`.
  - name: DeepSeek
    description: DeepSeek R1 (reasoner) and V3 via the DeepSeek API or third-party providers.
  - name: OpenRouter
    description: Unified gateway to dozens of frontier and open models, with daily free quota.
  - name: xAI Grok
    description: Grok-4 and earlier Grok models via xAI API.
  - name: Mistral
    description: Mistral hosted models via Mistral La Plateforme.
  - name: Ollama
    description: Local model execution for fully offline coding workflows.
  - name: LM Studio
    description: Local OpenAI-compatible endpoint for self-hosted models.
  - name: Azure OpenAI
    description: Enterprise OpenAI deployments via Azure with custom endpoint support.
  - name: Amazon Bedrock
    description: Claude and other Bedrock-hosted models via AWS credentials.
  - name: Vertex AI
    description: Gemini and partner models via Google Cloud Vertex AI.
  - name: GROQ
    description: Fast inference for Llama and Mixtral via GROQ Cloud.
  - name: GitHub Copilot
    description: Aider can route through a GitHub Copilot subscription as the model backend.
  - name: Cohere
    description: Cohere Command-family models for chat and code completion.
  - name: Git
    description: >-
      Aider requires a Git repo by default; every applied edit is committed automatically. Configurable via `--git` /
      `--auto-commits` / `--dirty-commits`.
  - name: NeoVim (aider.nvim)
    description: Community NeoVim plugin pairs aider with an in-editor experience.
  - name: VS Code Terminal
    description: >-
      No official extension; runs natively in VS Code's integrated terminal. `--watch-files` makes the IDE pairing work
      via AI! / AI? comments.
solutions:
  - name: Offline Coding Assistant
    description: >-
      Run aider against a local Ollama or LM Studio server to get AI-assisted refactoring, test repair, and
      architectural edits with no data ever leaving the developer's machine.
  - name: Cross-Model Benchmarking
    description: >-
      Use Aider's polyglot benchmark harness to score any new LLM against a reproducible 225-task suite across six
      languages, with per-language and edit-format-accuracy breakdowns.
  - name: Editor-Native AI Workflow
    description: >-
      Pair `--watch-files` with VS Code, JetBrains, NeoVim, or any editor to drive aider from inline `AI!` / `AI?`
      comments — no extension required.
  - name: MCP-Wrapped Aider
    description: >-
      Community MCP servers (`disler/aider-mcp-server`, `sengokudaikon/aider-mcp-server`) expose aider AS an MCP tool,
      letting Claude Code, Cursor, or any MCP client offload editing work to aider.
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com