OpenHands or Continue?

OpenHands if you want a Replit-shaped agent in a sandbox. Continue/Aider/Cline if you want the editor or terminal assistant — /replace/cursor.

Is this GitHub Codespaces?

No. Codespaces is /replace/github-codespaces (Coder / code-server). Replit is the cloud IDE plus an agent.

Do I still pay a model vendor?

Yes, unless you run local weights. OpenHands is the agent. It is not free inference.

Stacks / AI chat

Medium

OpenHands / Coder

An AI coding agent you host. OpenHands is MIT; Coder is AGPL-3.0 workspaces — Replit without the cloud IDE seat.

The problem

Replit is a hosted IDE plus an agent that writes in their cloud. You wanted that loop on hardware you control. OpenHands is MIT (OpenHands/OpenHands — formerly OpenDevin): a software-engineer agent in a sandbox you run. Coder is AGPL-3.0 workspaces; code-server is MIT VS Code in the browser — already the Codespaces path. Continue, Aider, and Cline stay the editor/CLI assistants (/replace/cursor). This is not Replit's every template, hosted model, or Ghostwriter SKU. You still pay tokens or a GPU.

Replaces

Replit

Replace Replit See all best open-source AI coding assistants

Estimated SaaS saved

$1,200

per year, small team, before lock-in

Start on Railway

Continue / Aider if this is the editor assistant, not a Replit-shaped agent

Sponsor this stack Tip jar

Placeholder: OpenHands wants a sandbox runtime (Docker or a VM). Coder is a control plane for workspaces. A single tiny Railway service is often the wrong size. No one-click template in this repo yet — Start on Railway. Editor assistants stay on /stacks/continue-copilot.

The stack

OpenHands
MIT AI-driven development agent you self-host
Catalog entry →
Coder
AGPL-3.0 workspaces if the job is the remote IDE
Catalog entry →
code-server
MIT VS Code in the browser on one box
Catalog entry →

Cost table

You stop paying	Typical / year	Self-host instead
Replit (small team)	$1,200	OpenHands + a sandbox you run

Agent setup prompt

Replace Replit Agent with OpenHands on a machine you control. Pair Coder or code-server if you also want the remote IDE.

- Follow openhands.dev self-host docs. Persist workspace data. Point at LiteLLM or Ollama. Do not claim Replit's hosted model catalog.
- Codespaces-shaped editors stay on /stacks/coder-workspaces. Continue/Aider stay on /stacks/continue-copilot.
- Write AGENT_PROMPT.md.

Also as markdown: /stacks/openhands-dev.md

FAQ

OpenHands or Continue?: OpenHands if you want a Replit-shaped agent in a sandbox. Continue/Aider/Cline if you want the editor or terminal assistant — /replace/cursor.
Is this GitHub Codespaces?: No. Codespaces is /replace/github-codespaces (Coder / code-server). Replit is the cloud IDE plus an agent.
Do I still pay a model vendor?: Yes, unless you run local weights. OpenHands is the agent. It is not free inference.