BYOAIK (Bring Your Own AI Key) is a directory of AI tools that run on your own API key.

Cline

Open-source autonomous coding agent for VS Code, JetBrains, and CLI with bring-your-own-key model support.

Website Source code

Category:
Coding Assistants
Maintenance:
Actively developed (last commit today)
Pricing:
Open Source
Open source:
Yes (Apache-2.0)
Self-hostable:
No
Local-first:
Yes
Platforms:
VS Code Extension, JetBrains Plugin, CLI, Desktop
AI providers (bring your own key):
Anthropic, OpenAI, Google Gemini, Azure OpenAI, OpenRouter, Groq, Mistral, DeepSeek, xAI Grok, Together AI, Fireworks, Perplexity, Ollama, Custom / OpenAI-compatible, Hugging Face
API key storage:
Stored locally on device
Key risk level:
LOW
Trust score:
82/100

Cline is an open-source (Apache 2.0) autonomous coding agent that runs as a VS Code/JetBrains extension, CLI, and SDK. It edits files across a project, executes terminal commands with human-in-the-loop approval (Plan/Act modes), and integrates MCP servers. It is bring-your-own-key: users plug in their own provider credentials and pay only for inference, with no subscription. The settings panel exposes API key and custom OpenAI-compatible base URL fields, and the pricing FAQ explicitly confirms users can bring their own keys from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and others. Local models via Ollama/LM Studio are supported. The project is very actively maintained (63.6k stars, 250+ contributors, releases into June 2026) and reports 5M+ installs.

Why this trust score (82/100)

Trust measures how the tool treats your API key and how much of that has been verified. It contains no popularity signal.

  • Key Safety 23/25: The key is held on your own device.
  • Request Routing 17/20: Requests go straight from you to the AI provider.
  • Transparency 20/20: Source is public under Apache-2.0, so anyone can check how the key is handled.
  • Privacy 11/15: Local-first: it works without sending your data anywhere.
  • Maintenance 10/10: Actively developed: commits within the last three months.
  • Verification Confidence 1/10: Compiled from public documentation by an AI-assisted pass, not independently confirmed.

What was checked

Verification tier RESEARCH_ASSISTED, derived from the evidence below and not set by hand.

  • [REPORTED · RESEARCH] This listing was compiled by an AI-assisted research pass over the tool's public website, README and documentation. No person independently confirmed it.
  • [STRONG · SOURCE_SCAN] Supports a local model backend, so it can run with no cloud provider key at all. source
  • [CONFIRMED · SOURCE_SCAN] Most recent commit 2026-08-14, about 0 month(s) ago. source

How your API key is handled

Your API key is stored locally on your device. Requests are sent directly to the AI provider.

Setup

Open settings, paste your provider API key, choose a model, and start. The key stays on your device.