# Autohand ACP vs Pi ACP

> Side-by-side comparison of Autohand ACP (Autohand) and Pi ACP (svkozak): pricing, key features, ideal use cases and verdicts.

Source: https://ai.dosa.dev/compare/autohand-acp-vs-pi-acp · Terminal & CLI Agents · Updated 2026-10-01 · Published by dosa.dev

## Quick answer

Autohand ACP (Freemium) is best for developers using ACP-compatible IDEs (like Zed) who require persistent, long-running agent sessions and deep integration with their editor's UI. Pi ACP (Open Source) is best for developers using the Zed editor who want to integrate the pi coding agent into their IDE workflow while retaining access to pi-specific features.

## Comparison table

| | [Autohand ACP](https://ai.dosa.dev/tools/autohand-acp) | [Pi ACP](https://ai.dosa.dev/tools/pi-acp) |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Autohand | svkozak |
| Category | Terminal & CLI Agents | Terminal & CLI Agents |
| Pricing | Freemium | Open Source |
| Best for | Developers using ACP-compatible IDEs (like Zed) who require persistent, long-running agent sessions and deep integration with their editor's UI. | Developers using the Zed editor who want to integrate the pi coding agent into their IDE workflow while retaining access to pi-specific features. |
| Not ideal for | Simple, one-off automation scripts or CI/CD pipelines where the overhead of a persistent ACP session is unnecessary; standard RPC mode is recommended for these cases. | Users requiring ACP filesystem (fs/*) or terminal delegation, as pi reads/writes and executes locally without those specific delegations. |
| Verdict | A robust and essential bridge for developers seeking to bring Autohand's powerful agentic coding capabilities into their IDE workflows with full session and permission control. | An essential, high-utility bridge for pi users, offering a polished way to manage agents within Zed, though it remains an MVP-style tool that may see minor breaking changes. |

## Key features

### Autohand ACP

- Persistent session management (resume, fork, switch)
- Configurable permission modes (interactive, restricted, unrestricted, dry-run)
- Real-time streaming of agent messages, reasoning, and tool events
- Mid-session model switching without restarts
- Native integration with ACP-compatible editor UIs

### Pi ACP

- ACP JSON-RPC 2.0 interface for pi coding agent
- Real-time streaming of assistant output and tool call updates
- Support for file-based, built-in, and skill slash commands
- Session persistence mapping between ACP and pi session files
- Terminal-based authentication flow for provider setup

## FAQ

### Is Autohand ACP or Pi ACP free?

Autohand ACP is Freemium; Pi ACP is Open Source. Check each tool's detail page for full pricing breakdowns.

### Which should I choose, Autohand ACP or Pi ACP?

Autohand ACP is best for Developers using ACP-compatible IDEs (like Zed) who require persistent, long-running agent sessions and deep integration with their editor's UI. Pi ACP is best for Developers using the Zed editor who want to integrate the pi coding agent into their IDE workflow while retaining access to pi-specific features.

### What is the main difference between Autohand ACP and Pi ACP?

Autohand ACP (Autohand) is listed as Terminal & CLI Agents; Pi ACP (svkozak) is listed as Terminal & CLI Agents. Autohand ACP is an integration layer that enables the Autohand Code CLI to function as a native Agent Client Protocol (ACP) agent. It allows developers to embed Autohand's termina… By contrast, Pi ACP is an adapter that bridges the Agent Client Protocol (ACP) with the pi coding agent, enabling it to run within ACP-compatible editors like Zed. It manages session lifecycle…

## Links

- Autohand ACP review: https://ai.dosa.dev/tools/autohand-acp
- Autohand ACP alternatives: https://ai.dosa.dev/tools/autohand-acp/alternatives
- Pi ACP review: https://ai.dosa.dev/tools/pi-acp
- Pi ACP alternatives: https://ai.dosa.dev/tools/pi-acp/alternatives