Aider

Overview

Aider is a free and open source AI pair programming tool that runs in your terminal. It connects to a wide range of large language models — including Claude, GPT-4o, Gemini, and local models like Llama — and edits code directly in your local git repositories. Aider understands your project’s file structure, git history, and codebase context to provide intelligent, multi-file edits through natural language.

Key Features

• Multi-model support — Works with Claude, GPT-4o, Gemini, DeepSeek, Llama, Qwen, and other LLMs
• Git-aware — Automatically commits changes with meaningful commit messages
• Multi-file editing — Coordinates edits across multiple files in a single request
• Repository map — Builds a map of your entire codebase for context-aware assistance
• Voice coding — Supports voice-to-code interactions for hands-free coding
• Image support — Share screenshots and diagrams for UI/design feedback
• Local models — Works with Ollama, LM Studio, and other local LLM runtimes
• Web chat mode — Interactive chat interface for asking questions and refining changes

Use Cases

• Pair programming — Get real-time AI assistance while coding in your terminal
• Code reviews — Ask Aider to review changes and suggest improvements
• Refactoring — Automate large-scale code transformations across your project
• Test generation — Generate unit tests and integration tests from existing code
• Documentation — Create and update READMEs, docstrings, and comments
• Learning — Explore unfamiliar codebases by asking questions about architecture

Who It’s For

Aider is for developers who want AI coding assistance without vendor lock-in. It is ideal for those who prefer terminal-based workflows, need the flexibility to choose their own LLM provider, or want to keep their code and API calls under their control. Works with git repositories in Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Rust, Go, Java, and dozens of other languages.