Continue

One line: Continue (36k+ stars on GitHub) is an open-source AI coding assistant for VS Code and JetBrains — it lives in your sidebar, chats about your code, edits files and auto-completes; every bit of configuration is a YAML file on your own machine.

What you get

• Chat, autocomplete and multi-file editing in the sidebar (Ctrl/Cmd + L)
• Local-first configuration: ~/.continue/config.yaml — committable, works offline with local models
• Free and open source (Apache-2.0); a matching CLI (@continuedev/cli on npm) covers terminal use with the same local-config philosophy
• Bring your own model: Anthropic / OpenAI / OpenRouter keys, or free local models through Ollama

Before you start (2 minutes)

• Visual Studio Code 1.70 or newer (hard requirement from the official VSIX engines field, measured from the shipped extension; JetBrains is supported too)
• One model source: your own API key, or a local Ollama server (any one of them)
• macOS, if you use the CLI install route: run VS Code's Shell Command: Install 'code' command in PATH once
• Not needed: administrator rights, Docker, Node.js (the extension runs inside VS Code's own runtime)
• Heads-up: the upstream repository is read-only and the team shipped a final 2.0.0 release line (official README) — the extension itself keeps working normally

Install

Route A: install with AiBOX (recommended)

1. Open AiBOX → app directory → Continue → Install
2. AiBOX downloads the platform VSIX from Open VSX (sha256-verified) and installs it through VS Code's own code --install-extension — the same channel the Marketplace uses, zero admin rights
3. The Continue icon appearing in the sidebar means it's installed

Route B: manual install (official channels)

• Marketplace: VS Code → Extensions (Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + X) → search Continue → Install

(direct page)

• CLI: code --install-extension Continue.continue
• Open VSX-compatible editors (VSCodium / Windsurf / Cursor): install Continue from Open VSX — same flow
• JetBrains: install the plugin from JetBrains Marketplace (the official README now recommends the Continue CLI alongside it)
• Terminal too: npm install -g @continuedev/cli — the official Continue CLI package on npm

Configuration

1. Open the Continue sidebar (Ctrl/Cmd + L) → click the config selector above the chat input → gear icon → Local Config
2. On first use Continue generates ~/.continue/config.yaml (%USERPROFILE%\.continue\config.yaml on Windows) with sensible defaults
3. Pick a model under models: in the YAML (Anthropic / OpenAI / Ollama / …) or via the model dropdown; Continue's own best practice is to reference keys through environment variables (e.g. os.environ/ANTHROPIC_API_KEY) instead of pasting them into the file
4. Save — Continue reloads the config automatically, no restart needed
5. Add project rules (style, build commands) in a .continue/config.yaml inside your repo, or keep everything global — your choice

Verification: what "works" looks like

1. The Continue panel opens and the model dropdown lists your configured model
2. Open a small project and ask "explain this file" → an answer streams back
3. Ask for an edit → a diff shows up in the editor → you apply it
4. Optional terminal check:

code --list-extensions --show-versions | rg Continue
# should print something like [email protected]

FAQ

• code is not recognized: macOS — run Shell Command: Install 'code' command in PATH from VS Code's Command Palette, then reopen the terminal; Windows — reinstall VS Code with "Add to PATH" checked
• Config not loading: verify the file path matches your OS and the YAML syntax is valid (Continue highlights errors inline)
• Where do keys live: in environment variables — config.yaml then stays committable and secret-free (official best practice)
• Updates: the Marketplace updates it, or re-install the newer VSIX through AiBOX (--force overwrites)
• Offline: with a local Ollama model Continue runs without internet (official guide)
• VS Code or JetBrains? Both are supported; if you live in the terminal, the official README suggests the CLI instead of the JetBrains plugin
• Nothing phones home by default: the final 2.0.0 line removed anonymous telemetry (official README)

Uninstall

• Extensions panel → Continue → Uninstall (or code --uninstall-extension Continue.continue)
• Leftovers: ~/.vscode/extensions/Continue.continue-* (VSCodium: ~/.vscode-oss/extensions) — delete only that subdirectory, never the whole extensions folder
• ⚠️ Your local config (~/.continue/config.yaml) is separate — export it first if you want to keep your rules and model choices

More: install docs · config guide · Continue docs