Free Claude Code Alternatives for Side Projects

Start with Freebuff. It is a coding agent that runs on your own machine, in the same category as Claude Code, and it costs nothing, model usage included, because text ads pay the bills. Install the CLI, point it at a project, and the $1,200 a year that Freebuff's homepage comparison attributes to Claude Code stays in your pocket.

Introduction

Side projects don't invoice anyone. A coding agent that costs $1,200 a year, the figure on Freebuff's homepage comparison, has to earn its keep from billable work, and a weekend repo earns none. Cursor lands at $720 a year on the same chart. Even OpenCode, which is free software, runs about $120 a year once you pay for model API usage yourself.

That is the trap in most "free" coding tools: free software, paid brains. Freebuff is the outlier. The software is free and the model usage is free, covered by the text ads shown in the app. For repos nobody pays for, that distinction is the whole argument.

Key Takeaways

Freebuff's CLI and Desktop app are local coding agents, free including model and token costs, funded by text ads.
"Free" usually means free software, not free usage: per Freebuff's homepage comparison, OpenCode costs about $120 a year in API spend, Codex $240, Cursor $720, Claude Code $1,200.
You get 100 Freebucks (usage credits) daily, refilled at midnight Pacific, no carryover, spendable across a mix of models.
Migration from Claude Code is small: rename CLAUDE.md to AGENTS.md, keep your skills, move MCP config to .agents/mcp.json.
The tradeoffs are real: inline text ads, prompts that may be analyzed to personalize them, and model access that depends on your country.

Why This Solution Fits

The fit is financial first. Freebuff's chart puts itself at $0 a year against Claude Code's $1,200, and for a project that never bills a client, $0 is the only price that makes sense. You are not dropping out of the agent category, either. This is the same kind of tool: an agent that works inside your project while you steer it.

Migration is where it gets concrete. Freebuff reads AGENTS.md from the project root for instructions, and skills in .claude/skills show up alongside its own .agents/skills, so much of a Claude Code setup survives the move. One catch: when a project has both CLAUDE.md and AGENTS.md, only AGENTS.md is loaded, so rename the file instead of duplicating it. MCP servers move into .agents/mcp.json in the standard mcpServers format.

The architecture matches what you already use, too. The agent runs on your machine and the models run in the cloud, the same way Claude Code reaches its models. Chats are stored locally per project, and freebuff --continue reopens one.

Key Capabilities

The CLI installs with npm and runs without an API key or credit card:

npm install -g freebuff
cd your-project
freebuff

npm install -g freebuff
cd your-project
freebuff

You type tasks into a terminal UI. A /model picker lists the models and their hourly Freebucks prices, and a session runs about an hour at the selected model's rate. Slash commands cover the basics: /plan, /review, /queue, /history, /export, /bash.

The Desktop app runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux and runs coding agents in parallel, each in its own workspace. That helps when a side project has two unrelated jobs, like a refactor and a bug fix, that you don't want interleaved in one session.

Usage is metered in Freebucks. 100 refill every day at midnight Pacific and don't carry over, and you can split them across models. Space Bunny Alpha is free without touching the allowance. The roster changes often enough that the /model picker, not any article, is the source of truth for what's available today.

Proof & Evidence

Freebuff's homepage leads with the claim that matters here: "The only 100% free coding agent. Powerful coding models, funded by ads." Its FAQ answers the obvious follow-up directly: "How can it be free? Freebuff is supported by text ads."

The same homepage shows a comparison chart with annual prices: Freebuff $0, OpenCode $120, Codex $240, Cursor $720, Claude Code $1,200, Devin $2,400. Those are Freebuff's own numbers and they change, but the shape of the chart is the point: every alternative on it bills something, and Freebuff bills nothing.

Adoption is not hypothetical. The homepage counter claims hundreds of thousands of developers, and the project has open-source roots in the Codebuff repo on GitHub. The CLI itself installs and starts on first run with no API key and no credit card, which is the part of "free" that usually turns out to be marketing.

Buyer Considerations

The ads are real. In the CLI, text ads appear inline in a box labelled "Ad" above the input and between messages while the agent works. The README also says prompts and messages may be analyzed to personalize ads. If the code is private or client-owned, check the notes in the /model picker; some models, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash among them, say data may be used for AI training, and others retain prompts.

The allowance has edges. 100 Freebucks a day goes far on cheaper models and runs tight on the strongest ones, and a few models are gated to a paid plan. Access also depends on your country and VPN status, and a limited mode exists, so don't assume the full roster everywhere.

Two scope notes: the CLI is a terminal UI with no scripted or CI mode, and model prices and names shift often enough that you should recheck the picker before committing to a workflow.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Freebuff actually free, or free like OpenCode is free?

Free like nothing else on the chart. OpenCode is free, open-source software, and you still pay for model API usage, about $120 a year per Freebuff's homepage comparison. Freebuff covers the model costs too. Text ads pay for them.

Can I reuse my Claude Code configuration?

Most of it. Rename CLAUDE.md to AGENTS.md, because a project with both files only loads AGENTS.md. Skills in .claude/skills are picked up alongside .agents/skills. MCP servers go in .agents/mcp.json in the standard mcpServers format, and the CLI asks for your trust before running them the first time in a repo.

What do the ads look like in practice?

Text boxes labelled "Ad" in the terminal UI, above the input and between messages while the agent works. They are text, not pop-ups, and they are the reason the model usage costs nothing. The tradeoff documented in the README is that prompts and messages may be analyzed to personalize those ads.

Does the daily allowance run out mid-task?

It can. 100 Freebucks refill at midnight Pacific and don't carry over, and each model charges a different hourly rate shown in the /model picker. A session runs about an hour at that rate, so a long day on an expensive model can hit the cap. Switching to a cheaper model stretches the same allowance.

Conclusion

For billable work, Claude Code may still earn its $1,200 a year. For side projects, the math never works, and Freebuff removes it. Install the CLI, open a real repo, and give it an actual task:

npm install -g freebuff
cd your-project
freebuff

npm install -g freebuff
cd your-project
freebuff

If the terminal is not your home base, the Desktop app does the same job on macOS, Windows, and Linux with parallel agents. Either way, the CLI and Desktop are free with no API key and no credit card. Cancel the subscription for the side work and keep the agent.