Side-by-side comparison · Coding & Dev Tools
Claude Code vs Grok Build vs Zed
Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.
Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.
At a glance
Pick it if: Anyone building software, from first-timers to senior engineers, who wants an AI that does the work itself.
Pick it if: Developers who already pay for an X Subscription or Grok and want a Claude Code-style agent included in it.
Pick it if: Developers who want a fast editor and already pay for Claude or another AI provider.
Claude Code scores highest overall, but Zed gives you more for your money. Which one is right comes down to what you value most.
Overview
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | An AI agent that works inside your project: it reads, writes and runs the code for you. | xAI's open-source terminal coding agent, included in every paid X Subscription plan. | A fast, free, open-source code editor that runs Claude Code and other AI agents inside it. |
| Pricing model | Paid | Paid | Freemium |
| Starting price | $20/mo | $8/mo | $10/mo |
| Free plan | No | No | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.4Winner | 3.5 | 4.3 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.5 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 5.0 | 3.5 | 4.0 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 4.0 | 3.5 | 5.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.5 | 3.5 | 5.0 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | No | No | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | No | No |
| Desktop app | Yes | No | Yes |
| Browser extension | No | No | No |
| API access | Yes | Yes | – |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | Yes | No |
| Connects to other apps | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | No | Yes | Yes |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | Yes | – | Yes |
| Makes images | No | No | No |
| Makes video | No | No | No |
| Writes code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | – | Yes |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 12/ 17 | 9/ 17 | 11/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | ProOur pick $20/mo, or $17/mo billed yearly Trying Claude Code and light daily use. | X Subscription Plus $8/mo Trying Grok Build alongside Grok and X Premium. | PersonalOur pick Free Almost everyone. |
Team From $20/seat/mo billed yearly, or $25 monthly Businesses with 2 to 150 people who want central billing. | X Subscription PremiumOur pick $30/mo Developers who use Grok most days. | Pro $10/mo People who want Zed's hosted AI without managing keys. | |
Enterprise $20/seat/mo billed yearly, 20-seat minimum Larger companies with compliance needs. | Super / Ultra $100/mo or $200/mo Heavy users running agents all day. | Business $30/seat/mo Teams that need spending and access controls. | |
Max From $100/mo Anyone running Claude Code for hours a day. | xAI API Pay as you go CI pipelines and people who prefer paying per use. | ||
API (pay as you go) Usage based Teams who want to pay only for what they use. | |||
| Which plan to pick | Start on Pro. It is enough to build a small site or tool in evenings and weekends. If you hit the limit most days, Max 5x is the next step; it costs five times as much but usually works out cheaper than paying for the API directly. Max also lets you spend up to half your weekly limit on Fable, which Pro only gets through paid credits. | If you already pay for X, try it on the plan you have. Premium at $30 a month is the sensible level for regular coding, but if you're choosing a coding agent from scratch, Claude Code or Codex are the safer picks today. Plans changed on 12 October 2026, so check x.ai before you buy. | Personal. If you have Claude Pro, run Claude Code inside Zed and you are done. Pro only makes sense if you want Zed's built-in assistant and edit predictions without setting up API keys. |
Key features
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | Claude Code | Grok Build | Zed |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, Claude Code, Grok Build or Zed?
Claude Code scores highest overall in our ratings (Claude Code 4.4/5, Grok Build 3.5/5 and Zed 4.3/5). Claude Code is best for building a whole feature, start to finish and fixing bugs you can't find. Grok Build is best for X Subscription users who want a coding agent included and Trying Grok models on real coding work. Zed is best for Running Claude Code inside an editor and speed on big projects.
Which is cheaper, Claude Code, Grok Build or Zed?
Claude Code: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $20/mo. Grok Build: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $8/mo. Zed: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $10/mo.
How we compare
Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.
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