2026-04-15: Qwen OAuth free tier has been discontinued. To continue using Qwen Code, switch to Alibaba Cloud Coding Plan, OpenRouter, Fireworks AI, or bring your own API key. Run qwen auth to configure.
2026-04-02: Qwen3.6-Plus is now live! Get an API key from Alibaba Cloud ModelStudio to access it through the OpenAI-compatible API.
2026-02-16: Qwen3.5-Plus is now live!
Why Qwen Code?
Qwen Code is an open-source AI agent for the terminal, optimized for Qwen series models. It helps you understand large codebases, automate tedious work, and ship faster.
Note: It’s recommended to restart your terminal after installation to ensure environment variables take effect.
Manual Installation
Prerequisites
Make sure you have Node.js 22 or later installed. Download it from nodejs.org.
NPM
npm install -g @qwen-code/qwen-code@latest
Homebrew (macOS, Linux)
brew install qwen-code
Quick Start
# Start Qwen Code (interactive)
qwen
# Then, in the session:
/help
/auth
On first use, you’ll be prompted to sign in. You can run /auth anytime to switch authentication methods.
Example prompts:
What does this project do?
Explain the codebase structure.
Help me refactor this function.
Generate unit tests for this module.
Click to watch a demo video
🦞 Use Qwen Code for Coding Tasks in Claw
Copy the prompt below and paste it into your agent:
Use Qwen Code as a coding agent. First, fetch and read this skill reference:
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/QwenLM/qwen-code/refs/heads/main/.qwen/skills/qwen-code-claw/SKILL.md
Then follow the instructions inside to install, authenticate, and use Qwen Code via acpx for all coding tasks.
Authentication
Qwen Code supports the following authentication methods:
API Key (recommended): use an API key from Alibaba Cloud Model Studio (Beijing / intl) or any supported provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google GenAI, and other compatible endpoints).
Coding Plan: subscribe to the Alibaba Cloud Coding Plan (Beijing / intl) for a fixed monthly fee with higher quotas.
⚠️ Qwen OAuth was discontinued on April 15, 2026. If you were previously using Qwen OAuth, please switch to one of the methods above. Run qwen and then /auth to reconfigure.
API Key (recommended)
Use an API key to connect to Alibaba Cloud Model Studio or any supported provider. Supports multiple protocols:
OpenAI-compatible: Alibaba Cloud ModelStudio, ModelScope, OpenAI, OpenRouter, and other OpenAI-compatible providers
Anthropic: Claude models
Google GenAI: Gemini models
The recommended way to configure models and providers is by editing ~/.qwen/settings.json (create it if it doesn’t exist). This file lets you define all available models, API keys, and default settings in one place.
Tip: You can also set API keys via export in your shell or .env files, which take higher priority than settings.json → env. See the authentication guide for full details.
Security note: Never commit API keys to version control. The ~/.qwen/settings.json file is in your home directory and should stay private.
Local Model Setup (Ollama / vLLM)
You can also run models locally — no API key or cloud account needed. This is not an authentication method; instead, configure your local model endpoint in ~/.qwen/settings.json using the modelProviders field.
Set generationConfig.contextWindowSize inside the matching provider entry
and adjust it to the context length configured on your local server.
cd your-project/
qwen serve
# → qwen serve listening on http://127.0.0.1:4170 (mode=http-bridge)
Run Qwen Code as a local HTTP daemon so IDE plugins, web UIs, CI scripts and custom CLIs all share one agent session over HTTP+SSE — instead of each spawning their own subprocess. Loopback bind has no auth by default (set QWEN_SERVER_TOKEN to enable bearer auth even on loopback); remote binds (--hostname 0.0.0.0) require a token — boot refuses without one. See:
Qwen OAuth free tier was discontinued on 2026-04-15: Qwen OAuth is no longer available. Run qwen → /auth and switch to API Key or Coding Plan. See the Authentication section above for setup instructions.
To report a bug from within the CLI, run /bug and include a short title and repro steps.
This project is based on Google Gemini CLI. We acknowledge and appreciate the excellent work of the Gemini CLI team. Our main contribution focuses on parser-level adaptations to better support Qwen-Coder models.
An open-source AI agent that lives in your terminal.
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🎉 News
2026-04-15: Qwen OAuth free tier has been discontinued. To continue using Qwen Code, switch to Alibaba Cloud Coding Plan, OpenRouter, Fireworks AI, or bring your own API key. Run
qwen authto configure.2026-04-13: Qwen OAuth free tier policy update: daily quota adjusted to 100 requests/day (from 1,000).
2026-04-02: Qwen3.6-Plus is now live! Get an API key from Alibaba Cloud ModelStudio to access it through the OpenAI-compatible API.
2026-02-16: Qwen3.5-Plus is now live!
Why Qwen Code?
Qwen Code is an open-source AI agent for the terminal, optimized for Qwen series models. It helps you understand large codebases, automate tedious work, and ship faster.
Installation
Quick Install (Recommended)
Linux / macOS
Windows (Run as Administrator)
Works in both Command Prompt and PowerShell:
Manual Installation
Prerequisites
Make sure you have Node.js 22 or later installed. Download it from nodejs.org.
NPM
Homebrew (macOS, Linux)
Quick Start
On first use, you’ll be prompted to sign in. You can run
/authanytime to switch authentication methods.Example prompts:
Click to watch a demo video
🦞 Use Qwen Code for Coding Tasks in Claw
Copy the prompt below and paste it into your agent:
Authentication
Qwen Code supports the following authentication methods:
API Key (recommended)
Use an API key to connect to Alibaba Cloud Model Studio or any supported provider. Supports multiple protocols:
The recommended way to configure models and providers is by editing
~/.qwen/settings.json(create it if it doesn’t exist). This file lets you define all available models, API keys, and default settings in one place.Quick Setup in 3 Steps
Step 1: Create or edit
~/.qwen/settings.jsonHere is a complete example:
Step 2: Understand each field
modelProvidersopenai,anthropic,geminirepresent the API protocol.modelProviders[].idqwen3.6-plus,gpt-4o).modelProviders[].envKeymodelProviders[].baseUrlenv.envfiles orexportfor sensitive keys).security.auth.selectedTypeopenai,anthropic,gemini,vertex-ai).model.nameStep 3: Start Qwen Code — your configuration takes effect automatically:
Use the
/modelcommand at any time to switch between all configured models.More Examples
Coding Plan (Alibaba Cloud ModelStudio) — fixed monthly fee, higher quotas
Multiple providers (OpenAI + Anthropic + Gemini)
Enable thinking mode (for supported models like qwen3.5-plus)
Local Model Setup (Ollama / vLLM)
You can also run models locally — no API key or cloud account needed. This is not an authentication method; instead, configure your local model endpoint in
~/.qwen/settings.jsonusing themodelProvidersfield.Set
generationConfig.contextWindowSizeinside the matching provider entry and adjust it to the context length configured on your local server.Ollama setup
ollama pull qwen3:32b~/.qwen/settings.json:vLLM setup
pip install vllmvllm serve Qwen/Qwen3-32B~/.qwen/settings.json:Usage
As an open-source terminal agent, you can use Qwen Code in five primary ways:
qwen serveexposes ACP over HTTP+SSE so multiple clients share one agent (experimental)Interactive mode
Run
qwenin your project folder to launch the interactive terminal UI. Use@to reference local files (for example@src/main.ts).Headless mode
Use
-pto run Qwen Code without the interactive UI—ideal for scripts, automation, and CI/CD. Learn more: Headless mode.IDE integration
Use Qwen Code inside your editor (VS Code, Zed, and JetBrains IDEs):
Daemon mode (
qwen serve, experimental)Run Qwen Code as a local HTTP daemon so IDE plugins, web UIs, CI scripts and custom CLIs all share one agent session over HTTP+SSE — instead of each spawning their own subprocess. Loopback bind has no auth by default (set
QWEN_SERVER_TOKENto enable bearer auth even on loopback); remote binds (--hostname 0.0.0.0) require a token — boot refuses without one. See:SDKs
Build on top of Qwen Code with the available SDKs:
Python SDK example:
Commands & Shortcuts
Session Commands
/help- Display available commands/clear- Clear conversation history/compress- Compress history to save tokens/stats- Show current session information/bug- Submit a bug report/exitor/quit- Exit Qwen CodeKeyboard Shortcuts
Ctrl+C- Cancel current operationCtrl+D- Exit (on empty line)Up/Down- Navigate command historyConfiguration
Qwen Code can be configured via
settings.json, environment variables, and CLI flags.~/.qwen/settings.jsonmodelProvidersandenv..qwen/settings.jsonThe most commonly used top-level fields in
settings.json:modelProvidersopenai,anthropic,gemini,vertex-ai).envexportand.envfiles.security.auth.selectedTypeopenai).model.nameBenchmark Results
Terminal-Bench Performance
Ecosystem
Looking for a graphical interface?
Troubleshooting
If you encounter issues, check the troubleshooting guide.
Common issues:
Qwen OAuth free tier was discontinued on 2026-04-15: Qwen OAuth is no longer available. Runqwen→/authand switch to API Key or Coding Plan. See the Authentication section above for setup instructions.To report a bug from within the CLI, run
/bugand include a short title and repro steps.Connect with Us
Acknowledgments
This project is based on Google Gemini CLI. We acknowledge and appreciate the excellent work of the Gemini CLI team. Our main contribution focuses on parser-level adaptations to better support Qwen-Coder models.