Aider vs Claude Squad in 2026: What each does

Q: What does AgentHydra cost?

AgentHydra is free, with no account or subscription . It is open source under the MIT License .

How Aider and Claude Squad compare for running multiple coding agents, what each costs, and what to check before choosing one.

By SupaKeeper · 2026-10-14

SupaKeeper is published by LunarWerx, which makes some of the tools compared here.

This page is for someone searching Aider and Claude Squad side by side. These are names people use when they manage coding agents on their machine. The facts given here describe Claude Squad: a terminal app that manages multiple AI agents, including Aider, in separate workspaces ^[1]. The only thing the facts say about Aider is that Claude Squad can manage it as one of several local agents ^[1], so Aider's own features need its own pages. AgentHydra is a separate option on this page. Pick by what the tool should do, since the facts you can read here cover Claude Squad and leave Aider's own details to its pages.

Option	What its sources say it does	Cost	Setup or install
Aider	Not described in the facts given here; Claude Squad's page names Aider as one of several local agents it manages ^[1]	not published	not published in the facts
Claude Squad	A terminal app that manages multiple AI agents, including Aider, in separate workspaces ^[1]; works on multiple tasks simultaneously ^[1]; can complete tasks in the background, including a yolo/auto-accept mode ^[1]; each task gets its own isolated git workspace ^[1]	not published	Homebrew or manual curl install, installed as the command cs ^[1]^[1]^[1]; prerequisites tmux and gh ^[1]
AgentHydra	Shows Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode sessions on your machine in one searchable list, updated live ^[2]; lets a reply be sent into a Claude session's own desktop chat or one message to several sessions ^[2]; lists each account with its plan and quota ^[2]; shows cost at API list prices by day, model, project and account ^[2]	free, no account or subscription ^[2]; open source under the MIT License ^[2]	the tray app needs Windows ^[2]; on Windows, install with a one-line PowerShell script, or a build from GitHub Releases, or run from source with Bun ^[2]

The short answer

Aider and Claude Squad are names of tools for running AI coding agents, and people open this page to compare them. The facts given here describe Claude Squad: a terminal app that manages multiple AI agents in separate workspaces ^[1]. The only thing the facts say about Aider is that Claude Squad can manage it as one of several local agents ^[1]. Claude Squad's page says it manages several local agents in separate workspaces ^[1]. Which need each meets: if the need is managing several AI agents in separate workspaces at once, Claude Squad's sources describe that ^[1], and if the need is a searchable live view of sessions plus account quotas, AgentHydra's claims describe that. The facts here say nothing about Aider itself, so its own pages are where what it does would be read.

What Aider and Claude Squad are built for

Of the two names in this query, the facts given here describe Claude Squad, and they touch Aider only as something Claude Squad manages. Claude Squad is a terminal app that manages multiple AI agents in separate workspaces ^[1]. Its page says it manages Claude Code, Codex, Gemini and other local agents including Aider ^[1]. It uses tmux to create isolated terminal sessions for each agent ^[1]. It uses git worktrees to isolate codebases so each session works on its own branch ^[1]. Its default program is claude ^[1]. The facts given here say nothing about Aider's own features, so if Aider itself is the tool in question, its own pages are the place to read what it does.

What AgentHydra is built for

AgentHydra is made by the team that publishes this site. It shows Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode sessions on your machine in one searchable list, updated live while they run ^[2]. A developer can type a reply into a Claude session's own desktop chat, or send one message to several sessions ^[2]. It moves a Claude chat, history included, to another of your accounts ^[2]. It splits a task's pieces across Claude Code CLI sessions on your accounts, and moves a worker to another account when one nears its limit ^[2]. It shows cost at API list prices by day, model, project and account ^[2]. It pairs each failed shell command with the command that fixed it, and can copy those pairs out as a rules file for your agents ^[2]. It lists each Claude and Codex account with its plan and 5-hour and weekly quota ^[2]. It exposes its features as MCP tools, including whoami and usage checks ^[2].

Pricing and fees

The facts given here do not state a dollar price for Aider ^[1]. The facts given here do not state a dollar price for Claude Squad either, so its price is not published here ^[1]. AgentHydra is free, with no account or subscription ^[2]. It is open source under the MIT License ^[2]. No source describes any trial or discount for any option, so none is stated here. The only price given in the facts for any option is free for AgentHydra ^[2]. If you need the cost of Aider or Claude Squad for your own use, check their own pages, since the facts here do not state one.

Setting it up and daily use

For Claude Squad, both Homebrew and manual installation install it as the command cs ^[1]. It can be installed via Homebrew with a brew install command ^[1]. Manual installation puts the cs binary in ~/.local/bin ^[1]. Its prerequisites are tmux and gh ^[1], and it stores configuration in ~/.claude-squad/config.json ^[1]. Its default program is claude ^[1]. The facts say nothing about installing Aider or using it day to day, so check Aider's own pages. For AgentHydra, the tray app needs Windows ^[2]; on Windows it installs with a one-line PowerShell script, or a build from GitHub Releases ^[2]. Day to day, AgentHydra updates its session list live ^[2] and prints cost as JSON from the command line ^[2]. The facts here say nothing more about setup for any option, so check each tool's own pages.

Things to check before you choose

Ask which agents you actually run. Claude Squad manages several agents including Aider ^[1], while AgentHydra shows Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode sessions ^[2]. Ask whether you want tasks to keep running when you are away. Claude Squad's page describes what it does, including managing multiple agents in separate workspaces ^[1]. Ask how cost is shown. AgentHydra shows cost at API list prices ^[2]. Check what Aider itself does on its own pages, since the facts here do not describe it. Ask what machine you use. AgentHydra's tray app needs Windows; macOS and Linux builds exist but have not been verified ^[2], so check that before choosing.

How to choose

If the need is managing several AI agents in separate workspaces, Claude Squad's sources describe that in the table above ^[1]. If the need is a live, searchable view of sessions on the machine and account quotas, AgentHydra's claims describe that ^[2]^[2]. If the need is working within account limits, AgentHydra moves a worker to another account when one nears its limit ^[2]. If the need is no cost, AgentHydra is free with no account or subscription ^[2]. If Aider itself is the tool you mean, read Aider's own pages, because the facts here describe it only as an agent Claude Squad can manage ^[1].

Frequently asked questions

Is Aider free to use?

The facts given here do not state a dollar price for Aider, and they describe Aider only as one of several local agents Claude Squad can manage ^[1]. No price for Aider is published in these facts. Check Aider's own pages if you need its cost.

Does Claude Squad cost anything?

The facts given here do not state a dollar price for Claude Squad ^[1]. The page describes what Claude Squad does, such as managing multiple AI agents in separate workspaces ^[1], but it says nothing about a fee. Check Claude Squad's own pages if you need the cost.

Can Claude Squad run tasks without watching?

Yes. Claude Squad's page says it uses tmux to create isolated terminal sessions for each agent ^[1].

What does AgentHydra cost?

AgentHydra is free, with no account or subscription ^[2]. It is open source under the MIT License ^[2].

Does AgentHydra watch Aider and Claude Squad sessions?

AgentHydra shows Claude Code, Codex and OpenCode sessions on your machine in one searchable list, updated live while they run ^[2]. It also lists each Claude and Codex account with its plan and quota ^[2]. The facts given here do not say AgentHydra lists Aider sessions, so check its own pages on that.

Free, with no account or subscription. ^[2]

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