Zed review
7.5/10★★★★★Fast, open-source code editor with a built-in AI agent and edit predictions
- Best for
- Developers who want a very fast native editor with optional, model-agnostic AI
- Price
- Freemium · from $10/month
Free: Free forever with limited edit predictions and unlimited use with your own keys or external agents - Platforms
- Desktop app
- Made by
- Zed Industries, Inc.
What it is
Zed is a fast, open-source code editor written in Rust, with a built-in agent that edits files and runs tools, shown as a reviewable diff. It also offers AI edit predictions and can host external agents such as Claude Agent, Codex or OpenCode. Zed reached version 1.0 in April 2026, and all AI features can be switched off.
Latest: Zed released version 1.0 in April 2026.
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
Pros and cons
- 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
How it scores
Great speed and value; output quality depends largely on the model or agent you choose.
Feature checklist · 5 of 9
- Autonomous agent mode that edits multiple files (yes)
- Inline code completion as you type (yes)
- Choice of AI models from more than one vendor (yes)
- Use your own API keys, local models or self-hosted deployment (yes)
- Extension for existing IDEs (VS Code or JetBrains) (no)
- Command-line (terminal) agent (no)
- Cloud agents that keep working in the background (no)
- AI code review for pull requests (no)
- Connects to external tools (MCP, plugins or apps like Slack and Jira) (yes)
Alternatives
See all Zed alternatives, ranked →
- OpenAI Codex 8.7/10Developers who want parallel, asynchronous tasks and pull requests back, bundled with ChatGPT
- GitHub Copilot 8.6/10Developers and teams on GitHub who want AI in the IDE they already use, at the lowest entry price
- Claude Code 8.5/10Engineers who hand off large multi-file tasks and long autonomous runs
- Cursor 8.3/10IDE-first developers who want AI in every keystroke and the freedom to switch models