Codex CLI and Qwen Code, fact by fact
| Fact | Codex CLI | Qwen Code |
|---|---|---|
| StarsCodex CLI has 100,005 more stars (4.5×). | 128,366Verified 8 Oct 2026 | 28,361Verified 8 Oct 2026 |
| Newest commitBoth committed on the same day. | 8 Oct 20260 days old when we read itVerified 8 Oct 2026 | 8 Oct 20260 days old when we read itVerified 8 Oct 2026 |
| ContributorsCodex CLI has 57 more contributors (1.1×). | 477Verified 8 Oct 2026 | 420Verified 8 Oct 2026 |
| LicenseBoth ship under Apache-2.0. | Apache-2.0Verified 8 Oct 2026 | Apache-2.0Verified 8 Oct 2026 |
| Latest stable releaseBoth released on the same day. | rust-v0.161.0published 7 Oct 2026Verified 8 Oct 2026 | sdk-typescript-v0.1.18published 5 Oct 2026Verified 8 Oct 2026 |
| npm downloadsCodex CLI has 25,508,502 more npm downloads a week (244×). | 25,613,321 a week@openai/codexVerified 8 Oct 2026 | 104,819 a week@qwen-code/qwen-codeVerified 8 Oct 2026 |
| Homebrew installsCodex CLI has 101,762 more Homebrew installs in 30 days (38×). | 104,545 in 30 dayscodexVerified 8 Oct 2026 | 2,783 in 30 daysqwen-codeVerified 8 Oct 2026 |
| Repository | openai/codexRustVerified 8 Oct 2026 | QwenLM/qwen-codeTypeScriptVerified 8 Oct 2026 |
What we know about Codex CLI
Codex CLI is the only agent in this set that confines itself in an OS-enforced sandbox on first run, with network access off and writes limited to the working directory.
“By default, the agent runs with network access turned off. Locally, Codex uses an OS-enforced sandbox that limits what it can touch (typically to the current workspace), plus an approval policy that controls when it must stop and ask you before acting.”
Point an agent at a repository you do not trust: in the default `workspace-write` mode Codex edits inside the working directory and must ask before touching anything outside it.
“Codex asks for approval to edit files outside the workspace or to run commands that require network access.”
Use a ChatGPT plan you already pay for instead of a second subscription, on Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Edu or Enterprise.
“ChatGPT Work and Codex are included in your ChatGPT Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Edu, or Enterprise plan”
Stop a team from disabling its own guard rails: an administrator can forbid `approval_policy = "never"` and `sandbox_mode = "danger-full-access"` in a requirements file.
“requirements.toml (for example, disallowing approval_policy = "never" or”
Subscription spend is unpredictable: the most-commented open issue, 630 comments since 2026-03-13, is that Codex burns the plan budget too fast, and a second reports the 5-hour budget gone in 2-3 prompts.
“Codex (gpt-5.5, Plus plan) — rate-limit cost per token jumped ~10-20x since June 16, draining the 5h budget in 2-3 prompts”
The agent cannot install a dependency until you edit the config, because the default sandbox keeps the network off.
“For the ChatGPT desktop app, Codex CLI, or IDE extension, the default workspace-write sandbox mode keeps network access turned off unless you enable it in your configuration:”
Windows is the weakest platform: an open issue with 106 comments reports the app freezing on Windows 11 Pro on hardware with resources to spare.
“Codex App frequently freezes/stutters on Windows 11 Pro despite sufficient system resources”
A developer who wants to run a local Ollama model should choose Crush or goose; Codex signs in with a ChatGPT account or an OpenAI API key.
“Run `codex` and select **Sign in with ChatGPT**. We recommend signing into your ChatGPT account to use Codex as part of your Plus, Pro, Business, Edu, or Enterprise plan.”
What Codex CLI costs
ChatGPT plans that include Codex run $0 for Free, $8 a month for Go, $20 a month for Plus, and from $100 a month for Pro.
“Plus · Power a few focused coding sessions each week. · $20 /month”
The Business plan is $20 per user per month for 2 or more users billed annually, and $25 per user per month billed monthly.
“*2+ users, billed annually. $25 per user per month when billed monthly.”
What we know about Qwen Code
Qwen Code binds the local agent to Telegram, DingTalk, WeChat or Feishu with one command, `qwen channel`, and ships TypeScript, Python and Java SDKs beside the CLI.
“- **Beyond the terminal** — IDE plugins, Desktop app, daemon mode, SDKs, and IM bots (Telegram / DingTalk / WeChat / Feishu).”
Run the agent from a group chat your team already uses, with `qwen channel`.
“| **IM Bot** | `qwen channel` | Connect to Telegram, DingTalk, WeChat, or Feishu |”
Embed the agent in your own program through the TypeScript, Python or Java SDK instead of shelling out to a CLI.
“| **SDK** | — | [TypeScript](./packages/sdk-typescript/README.md), [Python](./packages/sdk-python/README.md), [Java](./packages/sdk-java/qwencode/README.md) |”
Batch a repository-wide edit in CI with `qwen -p "..."`, which runs without the terminal UI.
“| **Headless** | `qwen -p "..."` | Scripts, CI/CD, batch processing — no UI |”
Qwen Code is no longer free: the Qwen OAuth free tier was discontinued on 2026-04-15, and requests on an old token are now rejected.
“The Qwen OAuth free tier was discontinued on 2026-04-15. Existing cached tokens may continue working briefly, but new requests will be rejected.”
You cannot finish sign-in on a server: OAuth needs a browser, which CI, SSH and container sessions do not have.
“In non-interactive or headless environments (e.g., CI, SSH, containers), you typically cannot complete the OAuth browser login flow.”
Image input regressed in the shipping line: a crash on image load since 0.21.2 is open, and the current release is v0.21.14.
“[Regression] Qwen code crashes on image load since 0.21.2”
A developer who chose Qwen Code because it was free should now price the Alibaba ModelStudio Coding Plan, or move to goose, which runs a local Ollama model at no per-token cost.
“Cost & quota : the free tier has been discontinued as of 2026-04-15.”
What Qwen Code costs
The free tier is gone as of 2026-04-15; the vendor's recommended replacement is the Alibaba ModelStudio Coding Plan, whose weekly quota is priced on Alibaba's own page, which I did not read today.
“Alibaba ModelStudio : official recommended setup. Opens a sub-menu with Coding Plan (for individual developers · weekly quota included), Token Plan (for teams and companies · usage-based billing with a dedicated endpoint), or Standard API Key (connect with an existing ModelStudio API key).”
Questions people ask
- Are Codex CLI and Qwen Code still maintained?
- Codex CLI committed to openai/codex (main) on 8 Oct 2026. Qwen Code committed to QwenLM/qwen-code (main) on 8 Oct 2026. Both readings come from the default branch of each repository, on the date shown beside them.
- What do Codex CLI and Qwen Code cost?
- Codex CLI: ChatGPT plans that include Codex run $0 for Free, $8 a month for Go, $20 a month for Plus, and from $100 a month for Pro. The Business plan is $20 per user per month for 2 or more users billed annually, and $25 per user per month billed monthly. Qwen Code: The free tier is gone as of 2026-04-15; the vendor's recommended replacement is the Alibaba ModelStudio Coding Plan, whose weekly quota is priced on Alibaba's own page, which I did not read today. Every figure here is quoted from the vendor's own page and linked beside the claim.
- Is Codex CLI or Qwen Code open source?
- Codex CLI's repository openai/codex reports the Apache-2.0 licence. Qwen Code's repository QwenLM/qwen-code reports the Apache-2.0 licence. We read the licence GitHub reports for the repository, which is not the same question as whether the hosted product is free.
How we check this page
- Machine facts. Stars, contributors, the newest commit on the default branch, the licence GitHub reports and the latest stable release come from the GitHub API, and download counts from npm, PyPI, Homebrew and the VS Code Marketplace. Each value carries the day it was last confirmed, never the day this page was built. The line under each label is arithmetic on those two values.
- Judgments. Every claim about what a tool suits, what it is bad at and what it costs is quoted from a page we read, and that page is linked beside the claim. Where there is no link, we wrote no claim.
- Index status. Both Codex CLI and Qwen Code carry claims we read, quoted and linked. So this page is offered to search engines.
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