GRITCODE GITHUB

AI coding that doesn't
break the bank.

A native desktop chat client that connects directly to DeepSeek. Same quality as the expensive models — at a fraction of the cost. Free tier included, no sign-up needed.

Built with wxWidgets in C++20. ~10 MB binary, ~50 MB RAM at rest. No Electron, no bloat. Opens instantly.

Download View on GitHub ♥ Sponsor
Gritcode AI coding assistant screencast — streaming markdown, tool calls, bash execution, and cross-project memory search in a native desktop UI

Download

Linux

Ubuntu, Debian

.deb ↓

macOS

Apple Silicon & Intel

.dmg ↓

Always links to the latest release — no need to check back for updates.

Why pay more?

Claude and OpenAI charge a premium. DeepSeek delivers the same coding performance for pennies. We connect you directly.

$0.00 / month

Start for free

The default model works anonymously. No API key, no credit card, no sign-up. Just open the app and start building.

~10× cheaper

DeepSeek-direct pricing

Bring your own DeepSeek key. A heavy day of coding costs cents. The same workload on Claude costs dollars.

No middleman

You talk to the model

No platform markup, no subscription tiers, no per-seat licensing. Just your code and the AI.

Runs like it should

A single native binary. No Electron, no Chromium, no JavaScript runtime. Opens before you finish blinking.

01

Zero idle tax

Event-driven architecture. When you're not typing, Gritcode uses no CPU at all.

02

Linux & macOS

Same CMake build, same experience. Native on both platforms.

03

Feels at home

Native OS widgets. Automatically follows your system dark/light theme.

04

Tiny footprint

~10 MB binary, ~50 MB RAM. Hundreds of MB less than Electron alternatives like T3 Code, OpenCode GUI, or Claude Code GUI.

Features

Streaming markdown

Headings, code blocks, bold, italic, inline code — rendered live as the model responds.

▶ Play button

One click builds and runs your project. No AI roundtrip needed — just straight execution.

Tool calls

The AI runs bash, reads/writes/edits files, lists directories, greps, fetches URLs.

Cross-project memory

SQLite-backed full-text search across all your sessions. Recall past work instantly.

No API key needed

Free tier works anonymously. Bring your own DeepSeek key when you want more power.

Native themes

Tracks your system dark/light preference automatically. No config needed.

Build from source

Prefer to build yourself? Grab the source and go.

Linux

sudo apt install build-essential cmake ninja-build pkg-config \
    libwxgtk3.2-dev libgtk-3-dev libcurl4-openssl-dev \
    libsqlite3-dev libsecret-1-dev

git clone https://github.com/lszl84/gritcode.git
cd gritcode
cmake --preset release
cmake --build --preset release
./build/gritcode

macOS

brew install cmake ninja

git clone https://github.com/lszl84/gritcode.git
cd gritcode
cmake --preset release
cmake --build --preset release
open ./build/gritcode.app

Support the project

Built by one person with help from AI agents. No VC backing. Sponsor development to help grow the project.

♥ Become a GitHub Sponsor