Continue

What it is

Continue is an open-source AI code assistant for VS Code and JetBrains. It is highly configurable: you pick the model (local or hosted), the context providers, and the slash commands. It can act as a tab autocomplete, an inline chat, or a multi-step agent. The most flexible open-source coding assistant available.

Best for

• Customizable AI coding assistant in VS Code or JetBrains
• Use local / private models for code privacy
• Build a custom agent by composing providers and tools

Quick start

1. Install the "Continue" extension in VS Code or the "Continue" plugin in JetBrains IDEs.
2. Open Continue from the sidebar → click the ⚙ config button → pick "Open config.json".
3. Choose model providers in `config.json`: e.g. `models: [{ provider: "anthropic", model: "claude-3-5-sonnet-latest" }]` and add your API key.
4. For local models, swap to `provider: "ollama"` with a base URL like `http://localhost:11434` — works fully offline.
5. Hotkeys: Cmd+L (chat), Cmd+I (edit inline), Tab (autocomplete). Try `@docs` to attach docs as context.

Sample input / output

In Continue chat, with @file src/utils/parseDate.ts selected:
  "@file this function is called with mixed-format dates in 4 places. Refactor it to accept either ISO strings or epoch numbers and return a normalized UTC ISO string. Then write Vitest tests for both inputs."

src/utils/parseDate.ts (rewritten, +12 / -8):
  - Accepts string | number input via overload
  - Returns parseDate().toISOString()
  - Throws TypeError with a clear message on bad input
src/utils/__tests__/parseDate.test.ts (new): 6 cases — ISO string, epoch number, missing tz, invalid string, undefined, NaN. 6/6 pass.

Benchmarks

Pricing

Free extension; bring your own models

Underlying models