The agentic operating systems of 2026, compared.
Coding agents, personal agents and agent operating systems now overlap enough to confuse anyone choosing one. This is a map: what each is actually built for, where it runs, which models it uses, what it costs, and when to use two together.
Disclosure: we build AGNT, which is on this list. Every other entry is described from its maker’s own documentation and pricing page, linked below, and each one says who should pick it over us.
What are you actually trying to fix?
Each reason points at a different tool. Picking by the reason, not the brand, is how you avoid migrating twice.
| If the reason is… | Look at |
|---|---|
| You write software all day | Claude Code or OpenAI Codex |
| You want an assistant you message from WhatsApp, iMessage or Telegram | OpenClaw, Hermes Agent or Meta Muse |
| You want one personal assistant with a personality you shape | Vellum or Meta Muse |
| You want finished documents inside Claude | Claude Cowork |
| You want to run and audit many agents, workflows and goals on your own hardware, across any model | AGNT |
| You want all of it | AGNT, delegating code to Codex or Claude Code |
How we compared them
No invented scores. Each option is described on the six questions that decide whether it fits, and every price is quoted from the vendor’s own page on 23 September 2026.
- Where the work runs. Your machine, your server, or a vendor’s cloud — and whether local files and private networks are reachable.
- How it is priced. Flat, per execution, per step or task, or per credit. The unit decides what success costs you.
- What the AI can do. A single AI step, an agent inside a workflow, or agents, goals and memory as first-class objects.
- Model freedom. One vendor’s models, several, or any provider plus local models.
- Control and evidence. Approval gates before consequential actions, and a record of what ran and why.
- Openness. Licence and whether you can self-host, inspect and leave.
8 serious options
1. AGNT
Our productPeople and teams who want AI to run recurring operations on their own hardware, across any model, with approvals and a receipt for every run.
- Runs
- Desktop app (Windows, macOS, Linux), web and mobile via QR pairing; optional dedicated cloud instance
- Pricing
- Free with unlimited local runs; Personal Cloud $29/mo; Business $99/mo with 3 seats
- Licence
- Source available
- AI capability
- Agents, workflows, autonomous goals, memory, skills, MCP; delegates to Codex, Claude Code and Hermes
- Watch out for
- Smaller connector catalogue than the big hosted tools and a younger community — and you run the software yourself, or pay for Personal Cloud.
2. Claude Code
Best forDevelopers who want the strongest coding agent on Claude models, in the terminal or IDE.
- Runs
- CLI, IDE, desktop app and web; cloud routines
- Pricing
- A paid Claude plan or an Anthropic Console account
- Licence
- Proprietary
- AI capability
- Agentic coding with subagents, skills, hooks, MCP and scheduled routines
- Watch out for
- Built for code in repositories; tied to Claude models.
3. OpenAI Codex
Best forDevelopers who already use ChatGPT and want OpenAI’s coding agent locally and in the cloud.
- Runs
- CLI, IDE, ChatGPT desktop app and cloud
- Pricing
- Included with ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Business, Edu and Enterprise, or an API key
- Licence
- CLI is Apache-2.0
- AI capability
- Coding agent with cloud tasks, scheduled and event-triggered tasks, skills and plugins
- Watch out for
- Built for code; tied to OpenAI models.
4. Hermes Agent
Best forTechnical users who want one personal agent in their chat apps that writes and improves its own skills.
- Runs
- Local, Docker, SSH, VPS or serverless backends
- Pricing
- Free; you pay your model provider (optional Nous Portal subscription)
- Licence
- MIT
- AI capability
- Self-improving agent with a learning loop, memory, cron and a messaging gateway
- Watch out for
- Terminal-first, single operator, no visual workflow builder.
5. OpenClaw
Best forAnyone who wants an assistant they can message from WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram or Slack, running on their own hardware.
- Runs
- Your own computer; native apps on macOS, iOS, Android, Windows, Linux
- Pricing
- Free — no paid tier
- Licence
- MIT, stewarded by a non-profit foundation
- AI capability
- Personal assistant reachable from 20+ messaging channels
- Watch out for
- Tools run on the host unless you configure sandboxing; no workflow canvas or graded goals.
6. Meta Muse
Best forPeople in the US who want a personal agent for everyday life with zero setup.
- Runs
- Meta-operated Muse Secure VM; iOS, Android, Mac, WhatsApp, web
- Pricing
- Free with a usage limit; paid plans for more
- Licence
- Proprietary
- AI capability
- Consumer personal agent with goals, approvals, audit trail and agent checkout
- Watch out for
- One model (Muse Spark), runs in Meta’s cloud, US-only rollout for adults.
7. Vellum
Best forIndividuals who want one assistant that knows them and follows them across every device.
- Runs
- Local, or Vellum Cloud
- Pricing
- Free locally; Vellum Cloud $30, $100 or $200/mo
- Licence
- Open source
- AI capability
- Personal AI assistant with long-term memory and permissions
- Watch out for
- Personal-first: one assistant rather than a system of agents and workflows.
8. Claude Cowork
Best forClaude subscribers who want finished documents, spreadsheets and research with no setup.
- Runs
- Anthropic cloud sessions; desktop, web and mobile
- Pricing
- Paid Claude plans (Pro, Max, Team, Enterprise)
- Licence
- Proprietary
- AI capability
- Agentic knowledge-work tasks with scheduling and sub-agents
- Watch out for
- Claude models only; being merged into Claude itself.
Every option in one table
| Option | Runs | Pricing | Licence | AI capability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AGNT | Desktop app (Windows, macOS, Linux), web and mobile via QR pairing; optional dedicated cloud instance | Free with unlimited local runs; Personal Cloud $29/mo; Business $99/mo with 3 seats | Source available | Agents, workflows, autonomous goals, memory, skills, MCP; delegates to Codex, Claude Code and Hermes |
| Claude Code | CLI, IDE, desktop app and web; cloud routines | A paid Claude plan or an Anthropic Console account | Proprietary | Agentic coding with subagents, skills, hooks, MCP and scheduled routines |
| OpenAI Codex | CLI, IDE, ChatGPT desktop app and cloud | Included with ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Business, Edu and Enterprise, or an API key | CLI is Apache-2.0 | Coding agent with cloud tasks, scheduled and event-triggered tasks, skills and plugins |
| Hermes Agent | Local, Docker, SSH, VPS or serverless backends | Free; you pay your model provider (optional Nous Portal subscription) | MIT | Self-improving agent with a learning loop, memory, cron and a messaging gateway |
| OpenClaw | Your own computer; native apps on macOS, iOS, Android, Windows, Linux | Free — no paid tier | MIT, stewarded by a non-profit foundation | Personal assistant reachable from 20+ messaging channels |
| Meta Muse | Meta-operated Muse Secure VM; iOS, Android, Mac, WhatsApp, web | Free with a usage limit; paid plans for more | Proprietary | Consumer personal agent with goals, approvals, audit trail and agent checkout |
| Vellum | Local, or Vellum Cloud | Free locally; Vellum Cloud $30, $100 or $200/mo | Open source | Personal AI assistant with long-term memory and permissions |
| Claude Cowork | Anthropic cloud sessions; desktop, web and mobile | Paid Claude plans (Pro, Max, Team, Enterprise) | Proprietary | Agentic knowledge-work tasks with scheduling and sub-agents |
Prices as listed by each vendor on 23 September 2026; plans that bill annually are marked as such.
Frequently asked
What is an agentic operating system?
Software that runs AI agents as long-lived, managed things — with memory, tools, schedules, goals, permissions and records — rather than one chat at a time.
Is Claude Code an agentic operating system?
Claude Code is an agentic coding tool. It has skills, hooks, subagents and scheduled routines, but it is built around code in repositories and Claude models.
Which agentic system is open source?
Hermes Agent and OpenClaw are MIT-licensed, the Codex CLI is Apache-2.0, and Vellum says its assistant is open source. AGNT is source available.
Can I use several of these together?
Yes. AGNT can delegate to Codex, Claude Code and Hermes, and many people keep a chat-first assistant such as OpenClaw alongside it.