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Kiro
AWS's spec-driven agentic IDE (VS Code-based), now one agent harness across IDE, CLI, web (PR-opening background agent), mobile and 'Crew'; credit-based subscriptions over a Kiro-curated model list.
kiro.dev/Active
Kiro changelog: CLI 2.34.0 on 2026-10-23, IDE 1.4.26 on 2026-10-22; kirodotdev/Kiro (issues repo) pushed 2026-10-18. (checked 2026-10-25)
In Coding agents
Where it stands apart
- How is it mainly sustained? big company side project (10% of 21 others)
- Where do you primarily use it? its own editor or desktop app (24% of 21 others)
- Whose models can you use? Pick the first that applies. several vendors' models, only as served by the tool (19% of 21 others)
What it shares with most of the community
- Is it actively maintained? active (71% of 21 others)
- Who is it for? developers (95% of 21 others)
- Where do the commands it runs execute by default? on your machine with your user's permissions (86% of 21 others)
- Can users add their own tools through MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers? yes (95% of 21 others)
- Does it read project instructions from AGENTS.md? yes, alongside its own file (52% of 21 others)
Nearest neighbors
- Cursor 76% of 17 shared answers match
- GitHub Copilot 76% of 17 shared answers match
- Claude Code 71% of 17 shared answers match
Every answer
| Question | Answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Is it actively maintained? | active | source 2026-10-25 |
| How is the main thing licensed? | proprietary or closed source GitHub repo is for issues/feedback, no license. | source 2026-10-25 |
| How is it mainly sustained? | stands apart big company side project AWS product (AWS Builder ID, IAM Identity Center) sold on paid plans; could also be 'company, proprietary product'. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Can it run entirely on your own device or infrastructure, without the maker's servers? | partly (some features need the maker's servers) IDE/CLI run locally but inference is Kiro-hosted only. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Do you need an account to use it? | account required Prerequisite: signed in with a Kiro account. | source 2026-10-26 |
| Who is it for? | developers | source 2026-10-25 |
| Which shared standard or format does it mainly build on? | MCP (Model Context Protocol) MCP, AGENTS.md and ACP all supported; its own spec/steering format is most central. Low confidence. | source 2026-10-26 |
| Where do you primarily use it? | stands apart its own editor or desktop app IDE is the flagship; CLI, Web, Mobile, Crew share the same harness. | source 2026-10-25 |
| How does finished work usually come back to you? | both are first-class Web agent 'plans, implements, and opens PRs'; IDE/CLI edit locally. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Whose models can you use? Pick the first that applies. | stands apart several vendors' models, only as served by the tool Anthropic, OpenAI and open-weight models served by Kiro; no BYOK documented. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Is pointing it at a model running on your own machine (e.g. Ollama, LM Studio) a documented setup? | no | source 2026-10-25 |
| Out of the box, does it ask you before editing files or running shell commands? | asks before edits and before commands Default policy allows only reads and read-only commands; 'Everything else prompts for approval.' The IDE also has Autopilot vs Supervised modes, default not stated. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Where do the commands it runs execute by default? | on your machine with your user's permissions A local command sandbox exists (docs/sandbox) but isn't stated as default; Web runs in an isolated cloud sandbox. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Can users add their own tools through MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers? | yes | source 2026-10-25 |
| Does it read project instructions from AGENTS.md? | yes, alongside its own file 'Kiro supports providing steering directives via the AGENTS.md standard'; own files in .kiro/steering/. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Does it use the Agent Client Protocol (ACP) for agent-editor connections? | yes, as an agent that editors can drive JetBrains and Zed connect to Kiro via ACP. | source 2026-10-25 |
| When you first set it up, how do you pay for the models it uses by default? | a subscription plan from the tool's maker Free 50 credits; Pro $20 to Power $200/mo; add-on credits $0.04. | source 2026-10-25 |
In Spec-driven development
Where it stands apart
- How is the main thing licensed? proprietary or closed source (11% of 19 others)
- Can it run entirely on your own device or infrastructure, without the maker's servers? partly (some features need the maker's servers) (16% of 19 others)
- Do you need an account to use it? account required (11% of 19 others)
- Which shared standard or format does it mainly build on? the Kiro spec layout (requirements in EARS, design, tasks files) (11% of 19 others)
- What format are specs written in? markdown with a required requirement syntax (e.g. EARS, SHALL/WHEN scenarios) (17% of 18 others)
- Which coding agents does it work with? only its own built-in agent (0% of 18 others)
- What form does it mainly ship in? a standalone app, IDE, or hosted platform (21% of 19 others)
What it shares with most of the community
- Is it actively maintained? active (74% of 19 others)
- How is it mainly sustained? company with a paid product, tier, or ads (50% of 18 others)
- Who is it for? developers (100% of 19 others)
- Where do specs live? plain files in the project repository (89% of 19 others)
- How is the path from idea to code structured? a fixed sequence of phases (e.g. requirements, design, tasks) (53% of 19 others)
- Does a human approve the spec or plan before code is written? yes, the workflow waits for approval (50% of 18 others)
Nearest neighbors
- Tessl 69% of 16 shared answers match
- *codeplain 67% of 15 shared answers match
- Intent (Augment) 56% of 16 shared answers match
Every answer
| Question | Answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Is it actively maintained? | active | source 2026-10-25 |
| How is the main thing licensed? | stands apart proprietary or closed source Licensed as AWS Content under the AWS Customer Agreement. | source 2026-10-25 |
| How is it mainly sustained? | company with a paid product, tier, or ads Amazon product with paid credit tiers ($20-$200/month) and enterprise. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Can it run entirely on your own device or infrastructure, without the maker's servers? | stands apart partly (some features need the maker's servers) IDE/CLI run locally but models are hosted and require a Kiro/AWS login. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Do you need an account to use it? | stands apart account required First launch requires signing in (Google, GitHub, AWS Builder ID or org identity). | source 2026-10-26 |
| Who is it for? | developers | source 2026-10-25 |
| Which shared standard or format does it mainly build on? | stands apart the Kiro spec layout (requirements in EARS, design, tasks files) Originator of the layout. | source 2026-10-26 |
| Once code exists, what is the spec? | a living document kept current alongside the code Feature specs 'designed for continuous refinement' so specs 'remain synchronized with changing requirements'. | source 2026-10-25 |
| After implementation, what built-in step keeps specs and code aligned? (if several, the first that applies) | a step checks code against the spec (tests, review, or verifier) 'Check that the code matches the spec' via property-based testing; Sync Files also updates tasks from spec edits. | source 2026-10-25 |
| What format are specs written in? | stands apart markdown with a required requirement syntax (e.g. EARS, SHALL/WHEN scenarios) requirements.md uses EARS: WHEN [condition] THE SYSTEM SHALL [behavior]. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Where do specs live? | plain files in the project repository Spec files in the project (.kiro/specs). | source 2026-10-25 |
| Which coding agents does it work with? | stands apart only its own built-in agent One Kiro agent harness across surfaces; choice of models, not agents. | source 2026-10-25 |
| What form does it mainly ship in? | stands apart a standalone app, IDE, or hosted platform IDE first; also CLI, web, mobile. | source 2026-10-25 |
| How is the path from idea to code structured? | a fixed sequence of phases (e.g. requirements, design, tasks) Requirements (or bug analysis) -> design -> tasks; Quick Spec generates all three in one pass. | source 2026-10-25 |
| Does a human approve the spec or plan before code is written? | yes, the workflow waits for approval Approval gates between phases; Quick Spec skips them. | source 2026-10-25 |
| By default, once a plan is approved, how is implementation run? | agents run the whole plan with automated review or verification loops Run-all-tasks builds a dependency graph and runs independent tasks concurrently in waves; cloud sessions in preview. | source 2026-10-25 |
| What does it offer teams beyond sharing files in git? (if both, pick the paid product) | team features in a paid hosted product Enterprise tier with SSO, governance, centralized billing. | source 2026-10-25 |
Sources
This page was derived from:
- GitHub · github.com/gotalab/cc-sdd · read 2026-10-25
- GitHub · github.com/kirodotdev/Kiro · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/changelog/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/acp/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/models/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/permissions/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/specs/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/specs/best-practices/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/specs/feature-specs/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/docs/steering/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/license/ · read 2026-10-25
- Web page · kiro.dev/pricing/ · read 2026-10-25
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