A Claude Code Desktop alternative with Codex and Gemini CLI
As of October 9, 2026
Claude Code Desktop is the Code tab of Anthropic’s Claude desktop app: Claude Code with a graphical interface, for working on a folder on your computer and reviewing the changes without a terminal. Moontors is an agentic development environment (ADE) that runs Claude Code, Codex and Gemini CLI side by side, each as its vendor’s own command-line agent.
At a glance
Section titled “At a glance”| Claude Code Desktop | Moontors | |
|---|---|---|
| Agents | Claude Code | Claude Code, Codex and Gemini CLI |
| Platforms | macOS, Windows (x64 and ARM64); Linux in beta (x86-64 and arm64), Ubuntu 22.04+ or Debian 12+ | macOS 13+, Windows 10+ (x64), Linux (x86-64); an Android app on Google Play, the iPhone's coming soon; no build is signed yet, and macOS and Windows ask before the first open; on Windows 11, Smart App Control, when it's on, blocks unsigned apps, Moontors among them; early preview (0.x) (Known limits) |
| Parallel sessions | Yes, each optionally in its own git worktree | Yes, each optionally in its own git worktree (Worktrees) |
| When the app is closed | Cloud sessions continue after you close the app; a local session followed through Remote Control goes offline when you quit the app, and scheduled tasks run only while the app is open | Sessions keep working in a background service (Sessions and the board) |
| Cloud sessions | Yes, on Anthropic-managed infrastructure | No |
| Sign-in | A Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise plan; no Console API key | A Claude subscription or an Anthropic API key, and each other agent's own (Signing in) |
| Price of the app itself | Included with the plan (pricing) | Free, with no Moontors account |
What each has that the other doesn’t
Section titled “What each has that the other doesn’t”Claude Code Desktop, from Anthropic’s overview:
- cloud sessions, which keep running with your computer off, and moving a local session to the cloud;
- following sessions from claude.ai or the Claude app on the iPhone as well as Android, with Remote Control;
- a browser pane for app previews, comments on diff lines that go back to Claude, PR monitoring, and computer use on macOS and Windows with a Pro or Max plan;
- SSH and WSL sessions, and enterprise configuration.
Moontors:
- Codex and Gemini CLI beside Claude Code, on one board;
- Claude Code with an Anthropic API key as well as a subscription;
- local sessions that keep working after you quit the app, in a background service, where a Claude Code Desktop session followed through Remote Control goes offline when you quit the app, until you bring it back;
- an Android app on Google Play that follows and answers your computer's own sessions, end to end, with no Moontors server between them; the iPhone's coming soon;
- an AppImage for Linux distributions beyond Ubuntu and Debian, where Claude Code Desktop’s
Linux build is a
.debfor Ubuntu 22.04+ or Debian 12+; - no Moontors account. Moontors itself sends no telemetry; each agent's own usage data follows that agent's settings. See Known limits for what Moontors doesn’t do yet.
Where Claude Code Desktop is the better fit
Section titled “Where Claude Code Desktop is the better fit”- You only use Claude Code and want Anthropic’s own app, with its cloud sessions, and mobile apps for the iPhone as well as Android.
- You want sessions to run in the cloud while your computer is off.
- You want a browser preview and computer use inside the same app.
- Your organization manages Claude through Anthropic’s enterprise configuration.
- You work on an ARM64 PC: Claude Code Desktop has Windows ARM64 and Linux arm64 builds, where Moontors builds Windows and Linux for x64 only.
Questions
Section titled “Questions”Is there a Claude Code Desktop alternative that runs other agents?
Section titled “Is there a Claude Code Desktop alternative that runs other agents?”Moontors runs Claude Code beside Codex and Gemini CLI, each as its vendor’s own command-line agent, on one board. Claude Code Desktop runs Claude Code alone.
Can I use Claude Code with an API key?
Section titled “Can I use Claude Code with an API key?”In Moontors, yes: sign in with a Claude subscription or an Anthropic API key. See Signing in. Claude Code Desktop asks for a Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise plan.
Can I keep using both?
Section titled “Can I keep using both?”Yes. Moontors signs Claude Code in apart from the Claude Code you use elsewhere, so the two keep their own sign-ins. See Signing in.
Do the sessions keep working after you quit the app?
Section titled “Do the sessions keep working after you quit the app?”In Moontors, yes: its sessions run in a background service that keeps them working after you quit the app. In Claude Code Desktop, a local session followed through Remote Control goes offline when you quit the app, until you bring it back, and scheduled tasks run only while the app is open; its cloud sessions carry on.
Do Moontors’ sessions run in the cloud?
Section titled “Do Moontors’ sessions run in the cloud?”No. They run on your computer, in a background service that keeps them working after you quit the app. Claude Code Desktop’s cloud sessions run on Anthropic’s infrastructure.