Compare AI coding agents and workspaces
Compare Conductor, Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor across worktrees, branches, env files, run scripts, GitHub review, PRs, and execution environments.
Swipe horizontally to compare every tool.
| Feature | Conductor | Claude Code | Codex | Cursor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What is it? | Run Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor across separate branches, worktrees, and run environments. | Use Anthropic's agent directly from the terminal, IDE, desktop app, or web. | Use OpenAI's coding agent across the Codex app, CLI, editor integrations, and cloud environments. | Coding inside an AI-native editor. |
Yes One workspace maps to one branch, one worktree, one run environment, and one review path. | Partial Works with your repo and git workflow. | Yes Built-in worktrees and cloud environments. | Partial Background agents and editor-oriented worktrees. | |
Yes | No | No | No | |
Yes | No | No | Partial | |
Yes | Partial | Partial | Partial | |
Yes | Partial | Partial | Partial | |
Yes | No | No | No | |
Yes | Partial | Yes | Partial | |
Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Platform support | Mac app. | macOS, Linux, Windows, web, and mobile remote workflows. | macOS, Windows, web, mobile, CLI, and editor integrations. | macOS, Windows, Linux, and mobile agent workflow. |
Comparison based on public product documentation as of June 2026.
| Topic | Sources |
|---|---|
| Worktrees | Claude Code worktreesCodex worktreesConductor workspaces |
| Review and PRs | Codex reviewCodex GitHub integrationConductor review and merge |
| Cloud/background agents | Codex product pageCursor background agentsClaude Code on the web |
| Platform support | Claude Code overviewCursor docs |
What Conductor handles around the agent
Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor write code. Conductor handles the workspace around that code: branches, local config, commands, review, and cleanup.
Workspace isolation
Create a separate branch, working tree, run environment, and .context folder for each task.
Runnable workspaces
Copy env files, run setup scripts, start dev servers, reserve ports, and share defaults with settings.toml.
Review to merge
Review diffs, send comments back to agents, watch checks, create PRs, merge, and archive finished work.
Multiple harnesses
Run Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor in the same workspace when they need shared state, or in separate workspaces when they do not.
Test a worktree in main
Use Spotlight to run one workspace from the repo root when the project depends on a fixed port, local database, or expensive build cache.
Cloud support
Use local workspaces on your Mac, or run agents in cloud workspaces when local resources are the bottleneck.
Tool-by-tool comparison
How Conductor fits with each agent or editor workflow.
Conductor vs Cursor
Compare Conductor and Cursor for AI coding workflows across IDE chat, background agents, workspaces, branches, setup scripts, review, and PRs.
Conductor vs Claude Code
Compare Conductor and Claude Code for AI coding workflows across worktrees, branches, setup scripts, shared context, review, and pull requests.
Conductor vs Codex
Compare Conductor and Codex for AI coding workflows across worktrees, cloud environments, setup scripts, review, GitHub, and pull requests.
Related docs
These pages describe the behavior behind the comparison table.
Isolated workspaces
How Conductor maps workspaces to branches and working trees.
Files to copy
How .env files and gitignored config get into new workspaces.
Scripts
Setup, run, archive, and Spotlight behavior.
Test a worktree in main
How Spotlight runs one workspace from the repository root.
Review and merge
How diffs, comments, checks, PRs, and archive fit together.
Agent modes
Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor controls in one workspace.
Common questions
Short answers for developers comparing AI coding agent tools.
Run agent branches without managing every worktree by hand.
Create a workspace, start the agent, run the project, review the diff, and open the PR from the same flow.