Helix
IDE / Editor ยท Batteries-included terminal editing with built-in LSP, Treesitter, and multiple cursors
At a glance
| Pricing | Free |
| Setup effort | Low |
| Operating systems | macOS, Windows, Linux |
| Released | 2022 |
| Open source | Yes |
| Interface | Terminal/TUI |
| AI integration | AI via extension |
| Languages | All major, via built-in LSP |
| Capabilities | Vim-like modal editing, Multi-cursor, Built-in LSP, Treesitter, Fuzzy finder, No config needed |
What Helix does
Vim-like modal editing, Multi-cursor, Built-in LSP, Treesitter, Fuzzy finder, No config needed
Best for
Batteries-included terminal editing with built-in LSP, Treesitter, and multiple cursors
Works well with
LLM Provider / Model
Agent / Orchestration
Conflicts & caveats
- GitHub Copilot does not officially support Helix.
- Continue.dev only supports VS Code and JetBrains โ your IDE is Helix.
- Codeium does not officially support Helix โ use VS Code, JetBrains, Vim, or Neovim.
- Cursor built-in only runs inside the Cursor editor โ your IDE is Helix.
- Cline only supports VS Code and JetBrains IDEs โ your IDE is Helix.
- Windsurf Cascade only runs inside Windsurf โ your IDE is Helix.
- Sourcegraph Cody does not officially support Helix โ use VS Code, JetBrains, or Visual Studio.
- Tabnine does not officially support Helix.
- Amazon Q Developer does not officially support Helix โ use VS Code or JetBrains.
- JetBrains AI Assistant only runs inside JetBrains IDEs โ your IDE is Helix.
- Qodo officially supports VS Code and JetBrains โ your IDE is Helix.
- Supermaven only supports VS Code, JetBrains, Neovim, and Zed โ your IDE is Helix.
- Roo Code runs as a VS Code-compatible extension โ your IDE is Helix.
- Kilo Code runs as a VS Code-compatible extension โ your IDE is Helix.
- Zed Agent only runs inside the Zed editor โ your IDE is Helix.
- Augment Code officially supports VS Code, JetBrains, Vim, and Neovim โ your IDE is Helix.
- Amp (Sourcegraph) officially supports VS Code and JetBrains โ your IDE is Helix. Use the CLI version otherwise.
- Sourcegraph Cody (Enterprise) supports VS Code, JetBrains, and Visual Studio โ your IDE is Helix.
- Cursor CLI works in any terminal but needs an active Cursor subscription โ your IDE is Helix, which is fine but the cost is tied to Cursor.
- @codebase indexing is a Cursor-only feature, but your IDE is Helix.
- Cursor Background Agents are dispatched from Cursor (desktop or mobile) โ your IDE is Helix.
Build a full stack around Helix โ Flowpicker shows compatibility warnings before you commit.
Open the stack planner โ