Installing Cline

Choose Your Install Path

• Desktop App — Cline as a native app
• IDE Extension — VS Code, Cursor, JetBrains, Windsurf, VSCodium, Antigravity
• CLI — terminal workflows
• Kanban (preview) — easily manage multiple agents through a kanban board
• SDK — build with @cline/sdk

Desktop App

Use this if you want Cline outside your editor, as a native desktop app with a dedicated workspace for running and managing agent sessions.

Download Cline Desktop

Get the installer for your platform from cline.bot/desktop. Available for macOS and Windows (Windows is currently in beta).

Choose a provider and model

Select the provider and open weight model of your choice. Cline Desktop is an open source app for open weight models, so you bring your own model access.

Start a session

Run sessions in parallel, schedule recurring tasks, and import sessions from other coding agents to continue in Cline.

More details: Cline Desktop, and for remote machines Cline Desktop SSH

IDE Extension

Use this if you want Cline inside your editor UI.

VS Code / Cursor / Windsurf / VSCodium / Antigravity

Open Extensions

Press Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + X.

Search for Cline

Type Cline.

Install

Click Install on the Cline extension.

Open Cline

Find Cline in the extension sidebar.

Authorize with Cline

After installing the extension, complete provider setup in Cline settings. Use the Cline Provider for pay-as-you-go access, ClinePass for a flat monthly subscription, or bring your own provider key.

Authorize with Cline

JetBrains

Open Plugins Marketplace

Settings → Plugins → Marketplace.

Install Cline

Search Cline, click Install, then restart the IDE.

Open Cline

View → Tool Windows → Cline.

Authorize with Cline

After installing the extension, complete provider setup in Cline settings. Use the Cline Provider for pay-as-you-go access, ClinePass for a flat monthly subscription, or bring your own provider key.

Authorize with Cline

Alternative: install from the JetBrains Marketplace.

CLI

Use this if you want Cline in terminal workflows (interactive + automation).

Install Node.js

Install Node.js 20+ (22 recommended).

Install CLI

npm install -g cline

Authenticate

cline auth

Run Cline

cline
# or
cline "your task"

More details: CLI Installation & Setup

Kanban

Use this if you want task-board workflows with agent execution.

Install Node.js

Install Node.js 18+.

Launch Kanban

npx kanban

More details: Kanban

SDK

Use this if you are building your own app/agent on top of Cline.

Create project

mkdir my-agent && cd my-agent
npm init -y

Install SDK

npm install @cline/sdk

Build and run

Browse SDK examples to run your first agent.

Start here: SDK Examples

Need Help?

• Troubleshooting
• Discord community