kitio.aiKiro vs Zed
A side-by-side look at pricing plans, free tiers, features, pros and cons, updated for 2026. Zed has the lower starting price: about $10 a month, against $20 for Kiro.
At a glance
Best for
Pricing model
Starting price
Free plan
Made by
Based in
Rating
Key features
- Spec-driven development
- Agent hooks
- Steering files
- MCP support
- Kiro CLI
- Agent panel
- Edit predictions
- External agents via ACP
- Real-time collaboration
- Bring your own key
| Feature | Kiro | Zed |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Agentic IDE from AWS built around specs before code | Fast Rust code editor with built-in AI agents and edit predictions |
| Category | Coding | Coding |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $20/mo | $10/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Made by | Amazon Web Services | Zed Industries |
| Based in | United States | United States |
| Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Key features |
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Pricing compared
Zed has the lower starting price: about $10 a month, against $20 for Kiro.
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan
Top plan
Free trial
6 plans
Kiro Free
Free
- 50 credits
- Open weight models and Claude Sonnet 4.5
Kiro Pro
$20/mo
- Per user
- 1,000 credits
- Premium models
- Add-on credits at $0.04
Kiro Pro+
$40/mo
- Per user
- 2,000 credits
Kiro Pro Max
$100/mo
- Per user
- 5,000 credits
Kiro Power
$200/mo
- Per user
- 10,000 credits
Enterprise
Contact sales
- Centralized billing and SSO
- Usage analytics
- Enterprise security controls
3 plans
Personal
Free
- Free forever
- Use your own API keys or external agents
Pro
$10/mo
- Unlimited edit predictions
- $5 of tokens included
- Usage billing beyond $5
- 14-day free trial
Business
$30/mo
- Per seat
- Org-wide AI model policies
- Data governance controls
- Role-based access controls
Prices in USD, checked Oct 28, 2026 or later. Plans change often, so confirm on each tool's site before you buy.
Pros and cons
Kiro
- Plans work before writing code
- Hooks automate repetitive checks
- Free tier with 50 credits a month
- Specs add overhead for small changes
- Credit usage can be hard to predict
Zed
- Very fast and light on memory
- Works with your own keys or local models
- Open-source editor core
- Smaller extension ecosystem than VS Code
- Hosted model usage is billed on top
Which one should you choose?
Choose Kiro if you want:
- Plans work before writing code
- Hooks automate repetitive checks
- Free tier with 50 credits a month
Watch out: specs add overhead for small changes.
Choose Zed if you want:
- Very fast and light on memory
- Works with your own keys or local models
- Open-source editor core
Watch out: smaller extension ecosystem than vs code.
Kiro vs Zed FAQ
What is the difference between Kiro and Zed?
Kiro: Agentic IDE from AWS built around specs before code. Zed: Fast Rust code editor with built-in AI agents and edit predictions. Both are coding tools.
Is Kiro or Zed cheaper?
Zed has the lower starting price: about $10 a month, against $20 for Kiro.
Do Kiro and Zed have free plans?
Kiro: Yes. Zed: Yes.
Who makes Kiro?
Kiro is made by Amazon Web Services, based in United States.
Who makes Zed?
Zed is made by Zed Industries, based in United States.
Which should I choose, Kiro or Zed?
Choose Kiro if you value plans work before writing code and hooks automate repetitive checks. Choose Zed if you value very fast and light on memory and works with your own keys or local models.