Continue

Open-source VS Code and JetBrains assistant. Configurable autocomplete + chat + agent modes. Strong with local Ollama backends.

Install as a VS Code or JetBrains extension. VS Code: Extensions panel (Ctrl+Shift+X), search "Continue", install. JetBrains: Plugins marketplace, search "Continue", install. Continue is an open-source AI code assistant that works as an IDE extension, connecting to any LLM provider (cloud API or local). After install, open the Continue sidebar (Ctrl+L / Cmd+L or the Continue icon). On first launch, Continue walks through model configuration: pick a provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, local, Ollama, etc.), enter API key if needed, and select a chat model. For local models via Ollama: select "Ollama" as provider, set model to llama3.2, and ensure ollama serve is running. The chat interface supports @file, @folder, and @code context references — drag files into chat for context. Tab autocomplete: enable in Continue settings (powered by smaller, faster models — Starcoder, CodeLlama, Codestral). Verify: type a comment like // create a function that sorts by date and press Tab — Continue inserts completion. Time-to-first-response: ~5 seconds for chat, ~200ms for tab completions. All configuration lives in .continue/config.json (per-project) or global settings.

Best for: developers who want provider flexibility — use local models for tab completions and cloud models for complex chat within the same tool, teams with multiple LLM providers or model preferences that need a single consistent IDE extension, VS Code + JetBrains dual-IDE users who want the same AI tool across both, open-source shops that prioritize self-hosted code assistant tooling, developers who prefer extensible, config-file-driven tools over managed platforms. Not suited for: developers who want zero-config setup (use Cursor or GitHub Copilot), autonomous agentic coding where the AI creates files and runs commands (use Cline or Claude Code), non-developer team members (Continue assumes IDE literacy).

Use Continue when you want an open-source, provider-flexible AI assistant that works across VS Code and JetBrains — connect any LLM (cloud or local), any model, any tab-completion backend. Switch to Cursor when you want a fully integrated AI-native IDE with polished inline editing and agent mode — Continue is an extension, Cursor is a platform. Use Cline when you want autonomous agentic coding inside VS Code — Continue is assistive (chat + completions), Cline is agentic (file creation, terminal execution, autonomous loops). Use GitHub Copilot for the simplest "just works" completions across every IDE — Continue requires initial model configuration. Use Aider for terminal-based pair programming with git diff workflow — Continue is IDE-integrated. Continue's key advantage: provider independence. You can switch from OpenAI to Anthropic to local Llama without changing tools. Its weakness: setup friction compared to managed solutions.

Problem: Tab completions never appear or are extremely slow (>1 second). Fix: Continue's tab model is configured separately from the chat model. In config.json, check the "tabAutocompleteModel" object has correct provider and model settings. Tab autocomplete needs low latency — use a smaller model (Starcoder 3B, Codestral 7B) locally or a fast API. If using a local model, ensure it's loaded and responsive before expecting completions. Problem: @file references return "No context found." Fix: Continue indexes files referenced with @file using the file path relative to the workspace root. If the file path includes spaces or special characters, wrap in quotes: @"file with spaces.ts". The file must exist on disk. For large files, Continue may truncate context — it respects a configurable max-chars limit. Problem: Chat model switch doesn't take effect. Fix: Continue caches model config at startup. After changing config.json, reload: Cmd+Shift+P → "Continue: Reload Config." The chat interface shows the active model — verify the switch took effect. Some model names differ between providers ("claude-4" vs "claude-sonnet-4-20250514"). Check provider docs for exact model IDs.