Claude Code vs Gemini CLI: limits, price and fit

We make Shuriken. We tried to be fair; corrections welcome at office@shuriken.sh.

Quick answer#

Claude Code vs Gemini CLI used to be a question of models. Since 18 June 2026 it's first a question of access. Claude Code runs on a paid Claude plan (Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise) or an API key. Gemini CLI no longer serves personal Google sign-ins, free or Google AI Pro and Ultra; it runs on a Code Assist Standard or Enterprise licence, or a paid Gemini API key.

If you're a solo developer with a personal Google account, Google's own answer is Antigravity CLI, not Gemini CLI. If your company already pays for Gemini Code Assist, Gemini CLI is right there, and it's open source.

At a glance#

Every cell comes from the vendor's own docs or repository, read on 22 October 2026.

What changed in June 2026#

On 19 May 2026 Google announced that "On June 18, 2026, Gemini CLI and Gemini Code Assist IDE extensions will stop serving requests for Google AI Pro and Ultra", and for people using it free through Gemini Code Assist for individuals. Enterprise access on Code Assist Standard or Enterprise "remains unchanged", and "Gemini CLI will remain accessible via paid Gemini and Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform API keys" (Google Developers Blog).

The Gemini CLI repository now opens with the same message: "Unpaid tier and Google One users: Gemini CLI was replaced by Antigravity CLI on June 18th, 2026" (GitHub). Comparisons written before June describe the old free tier of 1,000 requests a day. That tier is gone for Gemini CLI. Our Gemini CLI free tier guide has the numbers that still apply.

What Claude Code does well#

• It's built to be configured. Subagents, hooks, skills, plugins, CLAUDE.md and MCP servers give you a lot of control over how it works.
• One plan covers it. Every paid Claude plan includes Claude Code. Pro is the cheapest way in; our Pro vs Max guide helps you size it.
• Limits you can reason about. A five-hour window plus a weekly limit. Annoying when you hit it, but you know its shape.
• Checkpoints. /rewind takes your files and conversation back to an earlier prompt.

What Gemini CLI does well#

• It's open source. Apache-2.0, so you can read what the agent does and build it yourself.
• Daily allowances are easy to plan around. On a Code Assist licence you get a number of requests per day, not a rolling window.
• It fits a Google Cloud shop. If your company already pays for Code Assist or runs on Google Cloud, sign-in and billing go through accounts you have.
• Web fetch and search are built in, alongside file and shell tools, per the README.

Where they differ in practice#

Who can sign in#

This is the big one in late 2026. A freelancer with a Claude Pro plan has Claude Code today. The same freelancer with a personal Google AI Pro plan doesn't have Gemini CLI any more; Google moved them to Antigravity CLI. Gemini CLI is now mainly for people with a company Code Assist licence or a paid API key.

The limit you'll hit#

On Claude, a busy day runs into the five-hour window, and a busy week into the weekly limit. On a Code Assist licence it's a daily request count. On a paid Gemini API key it's your tier's rate limits and your bill. Our 5-hour limit guide explains Claude's side.

Openness#

Gemini CLI's source is public; Claude Code's isn't. Google's migration page describes Antigravity CLI as keeping "backward compatibility with the core developer-experience constructs popularized by Gemini CLI", but it's a different program, run as agy (Antigravity docs).

Which should you choose?#

• You pay for Claude Pro or Max: start with Claude Code. It's included.
• Your company gives you a Gemini Code Assist Standard or Enterprise licence: Gemini CLI is included and open source. Try it on real work.
• You have a personal Google AI Pro or Ultra plan: Gemini CLI won't take it. Look at Antigravity CLI, which is Google's path for you; Gemini CLI vs Antigravity CLI compares the two.
• You want pay-as-you-go: both run on API keys. Compare the per-token prices on each vendor's page for the models you'd use.
• You can't decide: give the same task to both, on your own code, and compare the diffs. We explain why we don't publish benchmarks on our Claude Code vs Codex page.

Pricing#

As published on 22 October 2026, in US dollars:

• Claude: Pro is $20 a month, or $200 billed yearly ($17 a month); Max starts at $100 a month. Claude Code is included in every paid plan and not in Free.
• Gemini CLI: no consumer plan covers it now. A Code Assist Standard or Enterprise licence goes through your company's Google Cloud account; a Gemini API key is billed per token, with limits that rise with your usage tier. Google's quota page still lists 250 requests a day, Flash only, for an unpaid API key, but Google's announcement names only paid keys, and we couldn't confirm unpaid keys still work with Gemini CLI.

Using them together#

Shuriken runs Claude Code and Gemini CLI side by side, along with Antigravity CLI and the rest of its 67 coding agents. One project can hold a Claude Code chat and a Gemini chat, each on its own branch in its own git worktree, so they never edit the same files under each other.

Each agent runs on its own sources. Claude Code chats run on the Claude accounts you add; Gemini chats on the Google sign-ins you add (one with a Code Assist licence, since 18 June), each kept in its own folder, and API keys can be added for both. When the sign-in in use reaches a limit, chats move to another source for the same agent. A Claude Code chat never turns into a Gemini chat.

Add only accounts you own and are entitled to use, and read the terms that come with each sign-in. If you pay for both, download Shuriken and add a source for each.