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OpenAI Codex vs Zed
OpenAI Codex scores higher overall (8.7 vs 7.5), but the right pick depends on what you need.
Choose OpenAI Codex if…
Developers who want parallel, asynchronous tasks and pull requests back, bundled with ChatGPT
8.7/10★★★★★Full review →Choose Zed if…
Developers who want a very fast native editor with optional, model-agnostic AI
7.5/10★★★★★Full review →Side by side
| OpenAI Codex | Zed | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 8.7/10 | 7.5/10 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 13 | #9 of 13 |
| Price | Freemium · from $8/month | Freemium · from $10/month |
| Free version | Quick coding tasks on ChatGPT Free | Free forever with limited edit predictions and unlimited use with your own keys or external agents |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, VS Code, Terminal, Desktop app | Desktop app |
| Made by | OpenAI | Zed Industries, Inc. |
| Code quality | 9 | 7 |
| Ease of use | 8 | 8 |
| Features | 8.5 | 7 |
| Value for money | 9 | 8.5 |
| Platforms | 9 | 6.5 |
OpenAI Codex: what the AI does
- Cloud agent in sandboxed machines that delivers pull requests
- Open-source Codex CLI
- IDE extension and desktop app with multi-agent management
- Automatic GitHub code review
- Subagents, skills, hooks and MCP
- Codex Security vulnerability agent
- Top CLI agent on Terminal-Bench 2.0
- Low entry price, with free and $8 tiers
- Many surfaces: web, CLI, IDE, desktop, iOS
- Open-source CLI
- Async cloud tasks add latency for quick edits
- Only OpenAI models
- Free and Go tiers get a lighter model
Zed: what the AI does
- Built-in agent with reviewable diffs
- Edit predictions
- External agents via the Agent Client Protocol
- MCP server support
- Bring your own keys, including local models
- Real-time multiplayer shared with agents
- Exceptionally fast native editor
- Cheap Pro plan and generous free use
- Works with any agent
- AI can be fully disabled
- Smaller extension ecosystem than VS Code or JetBrains
- Less independent evidence on its own agent's quality
- No SSO on the Business plan yet