What happened to Roo Code?

Roo Code (formerly Roo-Cline) was a popular open-source AI coding extension for VS Code. On April 21, 2026, founder Matt Rubens announced the project would shut down. The repository went read-only on May 15, 2026.

Roomote is the new product being built by the former Roo Code team after the May 2026 shutdown. It is in early development and has not shipped a public release as of May 2026.

What is the best Roo Code alternative?

Kilo Code is the most direct replacement for Roo Code. It is actively maintained, fully open source (Apache 2.0), and automatically migrates your .roomodes and .roo/rules/ config on first startup. It supports VS Code, JetBrains, and CLI.

Roo Code archived May 15, 2026

Roo Code shut down.
The team is building Roomote.

Roo Code archived its repository on May 15, 2026. The team behind it is now building a new product called Roomote. If you used Roo Code or are evaluating Roomote, here's what happened and what your best options are today.

Install Kilo Code

Get Started with Kilo

What happened

April 21, 2026

Shutdown announced

Roo Code founder Matt Rubens announced the project would archive. The Roo Code extension had accumulated 3M+ VS Code installs.

May 15, 2026

Repository archived

The Roo Code GitHub repository went read-only. The extension remains on the VS Code Marketplace in its final state but will not receive bug fixes or model updates.

May 2026

Roomote announced

The former Roo Code team began building Roomote, a new product. As of May 2026, Roomote is in early development with no public release.

Your options today

Roomote is not yet publicly available. Here's what former Roo Code users are choosing right now.

Recommended for Roo Code users

Kilo Code

The most direct upgrade path from Roo Code. Kilo is actively maintained, open-source, and reads your existing .roomodes and .roo/rules/ config automatically on first startup — no rewrite needed.

✓Auto-migrates your .roomodes and .roo/rules/ on first startup
✓3M+ VS Code installs. Rebuilt April 2, 2026 with 188 PRs week one
✓VS Code, JetBrains, CLI — all on the same OpenCode engine
✓Apache 2.0 open source + MIT CLI core
✓500+ models, BYOK free, no markup on model costs

Install Kilo Code

Migration guide Kilo vs Roo Code

New product (in development)

Roomote

The new product being built by the former Roo Code team. Roomote is in early development as of May 2026 and has not shipped a public release.

Kilo Code vs Roomote comparison

Simple VS Code-first option

Cline

An open-source Apache 2.0 AI coding agent for VS Code. Good choice for developers who prefer a simpler single-agent workflow without specialized modes.

Kilo Code vs Cline comparison

Migrate from Roo Code in ~10 minutes

Kilo reads your Roo config automatically. Three steps.

1

Install Kilo Code2 min

Install kilocode.Kilo-Code from the VS Code Marketplace. Also available for JetBrains and as a CLI.

2

Rename your config directory3 min

Run mv .roo .kilocode at the project root. Kilo reads .roomodes and .roo/rules/ on first run and migrates them automatically — no rewrite needed.

3

Paste your API keys and start5 min

API keys live in OS SecretStorage under the Roo extension ID, so paste them into Kilo on first run. Open the Agent Manager, pick Code or Plan, start a task.