ByHeather MacAvelia·Last verified Jun 20, 2026

Goose

Name: Goose
Author: Block

★4.0/ 5

by Block

MCPIndependently Reviewed

Visit goose-docs.ai →

Open-source AI agent by Block (formerly Square) for code, workflows, and automation. Apache 2.0, BYOK model, desktop app + CLI + API. 49.9K GitHub stars, 500+ contributors.

From

Custom

free ↗

GitHub

⭐ 50.4k

View on GitHub ↗

—

Rating

MCP

⚡ Yes

Compatible

Goose is the open-source AI agent platform created by Block (formerly Square, Cash App, Tidal) and donated to the Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF) under the Linux Foundation. Built in Rust for performance, Goose runs on your local machine as a desktop app, CLI, or API, handling code, workflows, research, writing, automation, and data analysis use cases that would otherwise require multiple specialized tools. Pricing is fully free and open-source under Apache 2.0 license with no paid tier. Goose follows a BYOK model: users pay only for the LLM API usage they choose. Goose supports Claude, OpenAI, Google Gemini, local models via Ollama, and 30+ other LLMs through its Provider system. Typical Goose workflows cost $5 to $50 per month in API fees depending on model choice and usage intensity, materially cheaper than subscription-based competitors at moderate use. Goose differentiates from Aider and Claude Code through breadth of use cases and MCP-native architecture: rather than focusing solely on coding, Goose is a general-purpose AI agent with 70+ MCP extensions covering code (Git, GitHub, file operations), data (databases, APIs, web scraping), productivity (Slack, calendars, browsers), and creative work. The MCP-first design lets developers easily extend Goose with new tools, share extensions across the community, and embed Goose into other applications via the API. Goose is open-source on GitHub under the aaif-goose organization (formerly block/goose, which redirects) with 50.4k stars, 500+ contributors, and active daily development. The project moved to the Agentic AI Foundation in 2025, joining the Linux Foundation ecosystem alongside other major open-source AI infrastructure. Block continues to support Goose development as an active maintainer. The desktop app is available on macOS, Linux, and Windows. Organizations needing enterprise SLAs, compliance certifications, or commercial support should evaluate Cursor ($20/month) or Claude Code ($20/month) instead. BYOK API costs require active monitoring and billing limit configuration, adding operational overhead versus fixed-subscription alternatives. No SOC 2, HIPAA, or commercial compliance certifications exist, which is a hard constraint for regulated industries that require certified vendors. Current state Q2 2026: Goose has 50.4k GitHub stars and 500+ contributors under the Agentic AI Foundation. The desktop app, CLI, and API are all shipping on macOS, Linux, and Windows. The platform supports 70+ MCP extensions and 30+ LLM providers. Block remains an active maintainer. No pricing changes or paid tiers have been introduced.

Pricing

free

View pricing ↗

Segment

b2b

Setup

moderate

Verified

Jun 20, 2026

Transparency

Public

Contract

Month-to-month

Data training

Not Trained

Autonomy

Human Optional

Capabilities

agentic-codingterminal-agentautonomousopen-sourcebyok

Pros & Limitations

Editorial assessment

Pros

✓Fully open-source under Apache 2.0 with Linux Foundation governance: code is auditable, forkable, and self-hostable with foundation governance protecting against vendor lock-in concerns that block proprietary AI agent tools at security-conscious organizations.
✓BYOK model with 30+ LLM support: pay only for actual API usage rather than subscriptions, materially cheaper at moderate use than Cursor or Copilot, with full flexibility to switch between Claude, GPT, Gemini, and local models per task.
✓MCP-native architecture with 70+ extensions beyond coding: databases, APIs, browsers, GitHub, Google Drive, Slack, Jira, calendars, and more via the Model Context Protocol open standard, making Goose a general-purpose AI agent rather than a coding-only tool.

Limitations

⚠No commercial support or SLA: open-source community development means support depends on GitHub Issues and Discord responsiveness rather than contracted uptime guarantees, a hard constraint for organizations needing enterprise support commitments.
⚠No compliance certifications: community-driven development has not pursued SOC 2, HIPAA, or other certifications, which is a hard constraint for regulated industries that require certified vendors regardless of technical capability.
⚠BYOK API costs require active management: users must monitor LLM API spending across providers, configure billing limits, and handle rate limit errors themselves, more operational overhead than fixed-subscription tools that bundle API costs into a flat monthly fee.

Technical Details

Deployment

cloud

Avg setup time< 15 minutes (install desktop app or CLI, configure LLM API key, run first agent task)

Autonomous rateConfigurable: Goose runs autonomously on multi-step tasks with developer-configurable approval gates; CLI mode supports headless automation

MCP compatibleYes

Integrations

VS CodeJetBrainsZedGitHubGoogle DriveJiraSlackMCPClaudeOpenAIGoogle GeminiOllamaDatabasesWeb BrowsersCalendars