Panes vs Codex App: Open Source AI Coding Agent Workspace

Mar 9, 2026

Problem

I kept switching between my terminal, AI chat, and code editor. Every time I wanted to use an AI coding agent, I had to context-switch between multiple windows.

Then I saw OpenAI announce the Codex App - a unified interface for their AI coding agent. But I use multiple AI providers, not just OpenAI. I didn’t want to lock myself into a single ecosystem just to get an integrated workspace.

That’s when I found Panes.

What is Panes?

Panes is an open-source (MIT licensed) local-first application that combines chat, terminal, Git, and code editing into a single workspace.

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                      Panes                          │
├──────────────┬──────────────┬──────────────────────┤
│   Terminal   │    Chat      │      Editor          │
│   (Agent)    │  (Prompts)   │   (Diff View)        │
│              │              │                      │
│  codex-cli   │  Your input  │  File changes        │
│  claude-code │  Agent reply │  highlighted         │
│  goose       │              │                      │
├──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────────────┤
│                    Git Panel                        │
│         Status | Diff | Commit | Push              │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

The key insight: Panes doesn’t reimplement AI agents. It provides a unified interface that wraps existing CLI tools like Codex CLI, Claude Code, and Goose.

What is Codex App?

Codex App is OpenAI’s official desktop application for their AI coding agent. It provides a polished interface for interacting with Codex, OpenAI’s coding AI.

When I first tried it, I noticed the “3x boosted credits” incentive. OpenAI gives you triple the API credits when you use their official app instead of third-party interfaces.

But that’s also the catch: it only works with OpenAI.

Key Differences

I compared both tools while evaluating them:

| Aspect           | Panes                      | Codex App           |
|------------------|----------------------------|---------------------|
| License          | MIT (open source)          | Proprietary         |
| AI Providers     | Multiple (Claude, Codex,   | OpenAI only         |
|                  | Goose, etc.)               |                     |
| Local-first      | Yes                        | No                  |
| Source code      | Public, auditable          | Closed              |
| Customization    | Full control               | Limited             |
| Credits          | Standard API rates         | 3x boosted credits  |
| Multi-repo       | Yes                        | Limited             |
| Self-hosting     | Possible                   | Not applicable      |
| Community        | Contributions welcome      | Not applicable      |

The Multi-Harness Approach

What sold me on Panes was the ability to use multiple AI harnesses in one workspace.

# Panes detects installed CLI tools automatically
~/.local/share/npm/bin/codex      # Codex CLI
/usr/local/bin/claude             # Claude Code
~/.cargo/bin/goose                # Goose

Each harness runs in its own terminal pane. I can switch between them or even run multiple agents simultaneously.

Broadcasting: The Killer Feature

Panes has a “broadcasting” feature that lets you send the same prompt to multiple agents at once, each working in its own worktree:

User: "Add error handling to all API endpoints"

Agent A (worktree: feature-auth)     -> Handles auth endpoints
Agent B (worktree: feature-payments) -> Handles payment endpoints
Agent C (worktree: feature-users)    -> Handles user endpoints

This is useful when I want to compare how different AI agents approach the same task, or when I want to parallelize work across multiple worktrees.

My Setup Process

I started by installing Panes on my Mac:

# Download from panesade.com or build from source
git clone https://github.com/panesdev/panes
cd panes
cargo build --release

Then I configured my harnesses. Panes auto-detected my installed CLI tools:

workspace:
  repositories:
    - path: ~/projects/my-app
    - path: ~/projects/shared-lib
  startup_preferences:
    default_harness: claude-code
    auto_split: true
  broadcasting:
    enabled: true
    target_worktrees:
      - feature-branch-a
      - feature-branch-b

I did hit some Wayland display issues on Linux (I use sway), but the developers were actively fixing it when I reported it.

When to Choose Each Tool

I would choose Codex App if:

I only use OpenAI models
I want the boosted credits
I prefer a polished, managed experience
I don’t need multi-provider support

I would choose Panes if:

I use multiple AI providers (Claude, OpenAI, local models)
I want full local control and visibility
I value open-source and community contributions
I need multi-repo or multi-worktree workflows
I want to customize my development environment

The Trade-offs

Panes is not without compromises:

No boosted credits: You use standard API rates. For heavy users, this can add up.
Linux Wayland issues: Some display problems reported, actively being fixed.
Less polished: It’s community-developed, not a corporate product.
Windows not yet supported: Linux and macOS only for now.

But for me, the flexibility outweighs these drawbacks.

Why Local-First Matters

With Codex App, my coding sessions flow through OpenAI’s infrastructure. With Panes, everything runs locally:

Codex App:
┌─────────┐      ┌─────────────┐      ┌─────────────┐
│  You    │ ───→ │ OpenAI Cloud│ ───→ │  Your Code  │
└─────────┘      └─────────────┘      └─────────────┘

Panes:
┌─────────┐      ┌─────────────┐      ┌─────────────┐
│  You    │ ───→ │ Local Agent │ ───→ │  Your Code  │
└─────────┘      └─────────────┘      └─────────────┘
                        │
                        ▼
                 ┌─────────────┐
                 │ API Calls   │
                 │ (your choice)│
                 └─────────────┘

This matters because:

Full visibility into what the agent is doing
No vendor lock-in for my workflow
Can switch providers without changing tools
Data stays on my machine

Community Reception

The Reddit post about Panes got 19 upvotes with a 91% upvote ratio. The developers built Panes using Panes itself (dogfooding), which I find reassuring.

Active development and quick bug fix responses were mentioned by several commenters.

Summary

Panes fills a gap for developers who want an integrated AI coding environment without vendor lock-in. The key trade-off is: Codex App offers boosted credits and a polished experience tied to OpenAI’s ecosystem. Panes offers multi-provider support, local control, and open-source freedom.

For developers who want to stay in the pilot’s seat rather than being passengers in someone else’s ecosystem, Panes is worth a look.

Final Words + More Resources

My intention with this article was to help others share my knowledge and experience. If you want to contact me, you can contact by email: Email me

Here are also the most important links from this article along with some further resources that will help you in this scope:

👨‍💻 Panes Website
👨‍💻 Panes: The Work Cockpit for AI Coding Agents - Reddit
👨‍💻 OpenAI Codex CLI
👨‍💻 Claude Code Documentation

Oh, and if you found these resources useful, don’t forget to support me by starring the repo on GitHub!