crab-code

🦀 Open-source alternative to Claude Code, built from scratch in Rust. Agentic coding CLI — thinks, plans, and executes with any LLM. Compatible with Claude Code workflows.

Open-source alternative to Claude Code, built from scratch in Rust.

Inspired by Claude Code's agentic workflow -- open source, Rust-native, works with any LLM.

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Status: Active Development -- 49 built-in tools, 6 permission modes, extended thinking, multi-agent coordination, structured message TUI with 187 spinner verbs, 3900+ tests across 17 crates, 110k+ LOC. Zero todo!() macros.

What is Crab Code?

Claude Code pioneered the agentic coding CLI -- an AI that doesn't just suggest code, but thinks, plans, and executes autonomously in your terminal.

Crab Code brings this experience to the open-source world, independently built from the ground up in Rust:

• Fully open source -- Apache 2.0, no feature-gating, no black box
• Rust-native performance -- instant startup, minimal memory, no Node.js overhead
• Model agnostic -- DeepSeek, GPT, DeepSeek, Qwen, Ollama, or any OpenAI-compatible API
• Secure -- 6 permission modes (default, acceptEdits, dontAsk, bypassPermissions, plan, auto)
• MCP compatible -- stdio, SSE, and WebSocket transports
• Claude Code aligned -- CLI flags, slash commands, tools, and workflows match Claude Code behavior

Quick Start

git clone https://github.com/lingcoder/crab-code.git
cd crab-code
cargo build --release

# Set your API key
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...

# Interactive TU