Cline vs Convex — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Cline starts at Free. Convex starts at $25/mo. Cline is $25/mo cheaper on the entry tier than Convex.
How pricing works
These two tools don't price the same way, so the headline numbers below aren't directly comparable until you plug in your own volume.
- Cline (Per Usage) — Cline bills purely on usage. There is no fixed per-seat fee, so the monthly cost depends entirely on how much you consume.
- Convex (Unknown model) — Convex bills on a fixed plan from $25/mo, so the listed price is what you pay regardless of volume.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
Open-source autonomous coding agent that runs in VS Code as an extension. Cline itself is free — users bring their own LLM API key (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Groq, OpenRouter, local models via Ollama). Cost is entirely determined by underlying LLM token usage. Popular with developers who want an agent-first coding experience but prefer to pay direct LLM costs rather than a marked-up subscription.
Reactive backend platform positioned as the alternative to Firebase for TypeScript developers who want end-to-end type safety + real-time subscriptions without configuring WebSockets. Distinctive per-developer pricing ($25/dev/mo Professional) instead of usage-based — predictable bills regardless of data volume or query count. Free tier is generous for solo projects. Popular with venture-backed startups building interactive AI/collaboration apps.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Cline monthly | Cline annual | Convex monthly | Convex annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / starter | Cline (extension) / Free | Free | Free | Free | Free |
| Entry paid | — / Professional | — | — | $25 | $25 |
| Teams | Teams / — | $20 | $20 | — | — |
| Enterprise | Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom | Custom |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
Cline is worth it if… developers who already have LLM API access and want an autonomous coding agent without a subscription markup. The BYOK model is the differentiator — typical monthly cost is $5-50 in Claude Sonnet tokens depending on usage, which beats most $20-60/mo subscription tools if you're a light user.
Convex is worth it if… Convex is the reactive backend-as-a-service for developers who want real-time database + serverless functions + file storage — all with TypeScript type safety end-to-end. Free tier covers development and small production apps; Starter (free with usage-based overages) removes hard caps; Professional adds team features.
Bottom line: Similar positioning, closer to a preference call than a strategic one.
Choose Cline over Convex if…
Choose Cline if…
- You want to pay only for actual usage (per usage, a free entry tier).
- You match the profile Cline is built for: developers who already have LLM API access and want an autonomous coding agent without a subscription markup.
- You need a general-purpose developer & infrastructure option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Convex if…
- You're comfortable with Convex's from $25/mo entry point.
- You match the profile Convex is built for: the reactive backend-as-a-service for developers who want real-time database + serverless functions + file storage — all with TypeScript type safety end-to-end.
- You need a general-purpose developer & infrastructure option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Cline | Convex | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Entry price | Free | $25/mo |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Per Usage | — |
| Last verified | September 20, 2026 | September 15, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 20, 2026. Tracked daily.